Body Image And Gender in Turkish Media: An Analysis of Representation

Abstract

Bu araştırma Türk medyasında beden imajının temsil edilmesini ve bunun özellikle genç kadın ve erkekler arasındaki toplumsal cinsiyet algılarına etkisini incelemektedir. Çalışma, medya temsillerinin toplumsal cinsiyet stereotiplerini nasıl pekiştirerek beden imajı sorunlarına yol açtığını ve özsaygıyı nasıl etkilediğini araştırmaktadır. Popüler televizyon programları, reklamlar ve sosyal medya fenomenlerine yönelik bir içerik analizine dayanan bu çalışma, Türk medyasında ideal beden tiplerine dair toplumsal normları vurgulamaktadır. Bulgular, Türk medyasında beden imajının temsilinin geleneksel toplumsal cinsiyet rollerini pekiştirdiğini ve genç izleyiciler arasında ulaşılamaz güzellik standartlarının içselleştirilmesine katkıda bulunduğunu göstermektedir.

Keywords

• Body Image
• Gender Norms
• Turkish Media
• Media Representation
• Gender Stereotypes

Ethical Statement

Çalışma içerik analizi olduğundan etik beyan gerektirmemektedir.

Türk Medyasında Beden İmajı ve Toplumsal Cinsiyet: Temsilin Bir Analizi

Abstract

Bu araştırma Türk medyasında beden imajının temsil edilmesini ve bunun özellikle genç kadın ve erkekler arasındaki toplumsal cinsiyet algılarına etkisini incelemektedir. Çalışma, medya temsillerinin toplumsal cinsiyet stereotiplerini nasıl pekiştirerek beden imajı sorunlarına yol açtığını ve özsaygıyı nasıl etkilediğini araştırmaktadır. Popüler televizyon programları, reklamlar ve sosyal medya fenomenlerine yönelik bir içerik analizine dayanan bu çalışma, Türk medyasında ideal beden tiplerine dair toplumsal normları vurgulamaktadır. Bulgular, Türk medyasında beden imajının temsilinin geleneksel toplumsal cinsiyet rollerini pekiştirdiğini ve genç izleyiciler arasında ulaşılamaz güzellik standartlarının içselleştirilmesine katkıda bulunduğunu göstermektedir.

Keywords

• Beden İmajı
• Toplumsal Cinsiyet Normları
• Türk Medyası
• Medya Temsili
• Toplumsal Cinsiyet Stereotipleri

References

1. Açer, T. M. (2020). Gender, Power and Body Analysis through Eksi Sozluk - The New Face of Public Space. Journal of Erciyes Communication, 7(2), 767-788. https://doi.org/10.17680/erciyesiletisim.643315
2. Akanyıldız, R. Ç. (2010). Perfect bodies, ideal women: beauty, the female body and the construction of femininity in popular women's magazines in Turkey in the 1990s. [Master thesis, Boğaziçi University]. Archives and Documentation Centre Digital Archives. http://digitalarchive.boun.edu.tr/handle/123456789/20089
3. Anasari, N. (2024). The impact of physical self-concept on body image dissatisfaction in female students. Indian Social Science Journal, 13(08), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.55640/
4. Ando, K., Giorgianni, F. E., Danthinne, E. S., & Rodgers, R. F. (2021). Beauty ideals, social media, and body positivity: A qualitative investigation of influences on body image among young women in Japan. Body Image, 38, 358-369. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2021.05.001
5. Ata, R. N., Ludden, A. B., & Lally, M. M. (2007). The effects of gender and family, friends, and media influences on eating behaviours and body image during adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36, 1024-1037. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9159-x
6. Atkinson, A. M., Meadows, B. R., Emslie, C., Lyons, A., & Sumnall, H. R. (2022). ‘Pretty in Pink’and ‘Girl Power’: an analysis of the targeting and representation of women in alcohol brand marketing on Facebook and Instagram. International Journal of Drug Policy, 101, 103547. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103547
7. Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.
8. Beldagli, L. (2021). The Under-representation of Women in the Turkish Media Sector. Asian Journal of Information and Communications, 13(1), 116-128. https://kiss.kstudy.com/Detail/Ar?key=3950213

9. Blond, A. (2008). Impacts of exposure to images of ideal bodies on male body dissatisfaction: A review. Body Image, 5(3), 244-250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2008.02.003
10. Borba, R., & Milani, T. M. (2019). Colonial intertexts: Discourses, bodies and stranger fetishism in the Brazilian media. Discourse, Context & Media, 30, 100290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2019.01.003
11. Borzekowski, D. L., & Bayer, A. M. (2005). Body image and media use among adolescents. Adolesc Med Clin, 16(2), 289-313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.admecli.2005.02.010
12. Calado, M., Lameiras, M., Sepulveda, A. R., Rodriguez, Y., & Carrera, M. V. (2011). The association between exposure to mass media and body dissatisfaction among Spanish adolescents. Women's Health Issues, 21(5), 390-399. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2011.02.013
13. Çetin, K.B. (2014). The ‘politicization’ of Turkish television dramas. International Journal ofCommunication, 8, 2462–83. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/2749/1265
14. Cicchelli, V., & Octobre, S. (2021). Sociology of Hallyu Pop Culture. Springer International Publishing.
15. Coleman, R. (2008). The becoming of bodies: Girls, media effects, and body image. Feminist Media Studies, 8(2), 163-179. https://doi.org/10.1080/14680770801980547 ü
16. Cusumano, D. L., & Thompson, J. K. (1997). Body image and body shape ideals in magazines: Exposure, awareness, and internalization. Sex Roles, 37, 701-721.
17. Cukier, W., Gagnon, S., & Latif, R. (2021). Changing the narrative: shaping legislation to advance diversity on boards in Canada. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 40(7), 770-800. https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-03-2019-0090
18. Demirtaş, B. (2024). Perceptions of male scholars toward gender: reconsidering sustainable patriarchy in Turkish academia. Turkish Studies, 25(2), 301-330. https://doi.org/10.1080/14683849.2023.2300936
19. Donmez-Colin, G. (2019). Women in the Cinemas of Iran and Turkey: As Images and as Image-makers. Routledge.
20. Daiy, K., Frieson, T., Palacio‐Londono, L., Barnes, I., Olmedo, S., Aranda, P., & Valeggia, C. (2023). Body norms, body image, and media in a market‐integrating indigenous population in Argentina: A mixed‐methods investigation. American Journal of Human Biology, 35(2). https://doi.org/10.1002/ajhb.23813
21. Daniels, E. A., Zurbriggen, E. L., & Ward, L. M. (2020). Becoming an object: A review of self objectification in girls. Body Image, 33, 278-299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.02.016
22. Darling-Wolf, F. (2014). Imagining the global: Transnational media and popular culture beyond East and West (p. 201). University of Michigan Press.
23. DW Documentary. (2019, November 14). The social media beauty cult | DW Documentary [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=5PBs7RqPTrI
24. Ensonhaber. (2020). Meryem Can kimdir? YouTuber Meryem Can kaç yaşında, takipçi sayısı kaç? [Image]. Ensonhaber. https://www.ensonhaber.com/medya/meryem-can-kimdir-youtuber-meryem-can-kac-yasinda-takipci-sayisi-kac
25. Eyal, K., & Teleni-Harari, T. (2013). Explaining the relationship between media exposure and early adolescents’ body image perceptions: The role of favourite characters. Journal of Media Psychology, 25, 129–141. https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000094
26. Figueroa, M.P. (2003). Resisting “Beauty” and Real Women Have Curves. In A. G. de Alba (Eds.), Velvet Barrios. New Directions in Latino American Cultures. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-137-04269-9_16
27. Fredrickson, B. L., & Roberts, T.-A. (1997). Objectification Theory: Toward Understanding Women’s Lived Experiences and Mental Health Risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21(2), 173–206. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.1997.tb00108.x
28. Gerbner, G., & Gross, L. (2017). Living with television: The violence profile. In The Fear of Crime (pp. 169-195). New York: Routledge.
29. Grabe, S., Ward, L. M., & Hyde, J. S. (2008). The role of the media in body image concerns among women: a meta-analysis of experimental and correlational studies. Psychological Bulletin, 134(3), 460.
30. Grogan, S. (2021). Body image: Understanding body dissatisfaction in men, women and children. New York: Routledge.
31. Grossbard, J. R., Neighbors, C., & Larimer, M. E. (2011). Perceived norms for thinness and muscularity among college students: What do men and women really want? Eating Behaviors, 12(3), 192-199. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2011.04.005
32. Goldfarb, B. (2002). Visual pedagogy: Media cultures in and beyond the classroom. Duke University Press.
33. Gürer, S. Z. V., & Gürer, M. (2020). Toplumsal cinsiyet rolleri bağlamında Türkiye'deki televizyon dizilerinde sunulan kadın stereotipi. Alanya Akademik Bakış, 4(3), 631-650. https://doi.org/10.29023/alanyaakademik.684492
34. Haberjet. (2024). Uzun Makarna yeni dizisinde kötü bir prensesi canlandıracak [Image]. Haberjet. https://www.haberjet.com/biyografi/uzun-makarna-yeni-dizisinde-kotu-bir-prensesi-35848
35. Haberler. (2024). Ahmet Can Dündar'ın sevgilisi kim? [Image]. Haberler. https://www.haberler.com/haberler/ahmet-can-dundar-in-sevgilisi-kim-ahmet-can-17778956-haberi/
36. Heede, F. V., Pelican, S., Holmes, B., Moore, S. A., & Buchanan, D. (2005). Values, body weight, and well being: the influence of the protestant ethic and consumerism on physical activity, eating, and body image. International Quarterly of Community Health Education, 25(3), 239-270. https://doi.org/10.2190/9083-712K-4666-J021
37. Huang, Q., Peng, W., & Ahn, S. (2021). When media become the mirror: A meta-analysis on media and body image. Media Psychology, 24(4), 437-489. https://doi.org/10.1080/15213269.2020.1737545
38. Hobson, J. (2012). Body as evidence: Mediating race, globalizing gender. State University of New York Press.
39. Joom. (2024). Yeni yaz erkek moda [Image]. Joom. https://www.joom.com/tr/products/62076ff2b3f7b801abf6c069
40. Kanal D. (2011). Kuzey Güney [Image]. Kanal D. https://www.kanald.com.tr/kuzeyguney
41. Kanal D. (2024). Yargı [Image]. Kanal D. https://www.kanald.com.tr/yargi
42. Karakaya, H. (2018). Religious Bourgeois and Women In Turkey. The Journal of International Social Sciences, 28(2), 211-229. https://doi.org/10.18069/firatsbed.460944
43. Karta, G. (2024). Fotoğraflarım [Image]. Gamze Karta. https://gamzekarta.com/
44. Kaziga, R., Muchunguzi, C., Achen, D., & Kools, S. (2021). Beauty is skin deep; the self-perception of adolescents and young women in construction of body image within the ankole society. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(15), 7840. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18157840
45. Keyman, E. F. & Özbudun, E. (2002). “Cultural Globalization in Turkey: Actors, Discoursesand Strategies.” In Many Globalizations: Cultural Diversity in the Contemporary World, edited by P.L. Berger, and S.P. Huntington.New York: Oxford University Press.
46. Kwon, J. (2022). Theorizing the Korean Wave| K (q) ueer-pop for another world: Toward a theorization of gender and sexuality in K-pop. International Journal of Communication, 17, 52-71.
47. López-Guimerà, G., Levine, M. P., Sánchez-Carracedo, D., & Fauquet, J. (2010). Influence of mass media on body image and eating disordered attitudes and behaviors in females: A review of effects and processes. Media Psychology, 13(4), 387-416. https://doi.org/10.1080/15213269.2010.525737
48. Liebelt, C. (2023). Istanbul appearances: Beauty and the making of middle-class femininities in urban Turkey. Syracuse University Press.
49. Ling, L. H. M. (1999). Sex machine: Global hypermasculinity and images of the Asian woman in modernity. Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique, 7(2), 277-306.
50. Mabry-Flynn, A., Champlin, S. (2018). Leave a Comment: Consumer Responses to Advertising Featuring “Real” Women. In J. Vickery & T. Everbach, T. (Eds.), Mediating Misogyny. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-72917-6_12
51. Mammadov, R. (2023). Emerging perspectives and contemporary debates: assessing the landscape of online media communication research in Central Asia. Online Media and Global Communication, 2(4), 621-650. https://doi.org/10.1515/omgc-2023-0049
52. Maritato, C. (2020). Women, religion, and the state in contemporary Turkey. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
53. Marks, R. J., De Foe, A., & Collett, J. (2020). The pursuit of wellness: Social media, body image and eating disorders. Children and Youth Services Review, 119, 105659. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105659
54. MSN. (2024). Goril Faruk kaç yaşında? YouTuber Goril Faruk kimdir, sevgilisi kim, nereli, gerçek adı ne? [Image]. MSN. https://www.msn.com/tr-tr/haber/other/goril-faruk-ka%C3%A7-ya%C5%9F%C4%B1nda-youtuber-goril-faruk-kimdir-sevgilisi-kim-nereli-ger%C3%A7ek-ad%C4%B1-ne/ar-BB1oLZlz
55. Murnen, S. K., & Don, B. P. (2012). Body image and gender roles. Encyclopaedia of Body Image and Human Appearance, 1, 128-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-384925-0.00019-5
56. Nas, A. (2018). Media Representations of the Cultural other in Turkey. Springer.
57. Negi, S., Benau, E. M., Strowger, M., Grammer, A. C., & Timko, C. A. (2022). Internalization of appearance ideals and not religiosity indirectly impacts the relationship between acculturation and disordered eating risk in south and southeast Asian women living in the United States. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.843717
58. Neumann, M. M., & Herodotou, C. (2020). Young Children and YouTube: A global phenomenon. Childhood Education, 96(4), 72-77. https://doi.org/10.1080/00094056.2020.1796459
59. NTV. (2018). Avon’un yeni marka yüzü: Dilan Çiçek Deniz mükemmel mat ruju tanıttı [Image]. NTV. https://www.ntv.com.tr/yasam/avonun-yeni-marka-yuzu-dilan-cicek-deniz-mukemmel-mat-ruju-tanitti,XxGkjNWNgUSCgUNZt0QN_g#google_vignette
60. Onur, P. (2024). Women in the AKP Years, 2007–2021: Conservative Politics and Neoliberalism. In P. Onur (Ed.), Ethnographic Discourses on Women and Islam in Turkey: A Critical Reading (pp. 223-281). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.
61. Ozbek, S., Greville, J., & Hooper, N. (2024). The thin ideal across two cultural contexts: The role of body image inflexibility and the fear of negative evaluation. Psychology of Popular Media, 13(3), 518–523. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000464
62. Özyürek, E. (2006). Nostalgia for the modern: State secularism and everyday politics in Turkey. Durham: Duke University Press.
63. Oktaviani, J., Simatupang, H. Y., & Pramadya, T. P. (2025). Korean Beauty in International Relations: From Neoliberalism to Soft Masculinity. Proirofonic, 1(1), 546-559.
64. Paquette, M. C., & Raine, K. (2004). Sociocultural context of women's body image. Social Science & Medicine, 59(5), 1047-1058. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2003.12.016
65. Puri, J. (2002). Woman, body, desire in post-colonial India: Narratives of gender and sexuality. Routledge.
66. Rodgers, R. F., Kruger, L., Lowy, A. S., Long, S., & Richard, C. (2019). Getting Real about body image: A qualitative investigation of the usefulness of the Aerie Real campaign. Body Image, 30, 127-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2019.06.002
67. Rankin, B., Ergin, M., & Gökşen, F. (2014). A cultural map of Turkey. Cultural Sociology, 8(2), 159-179. https://doi.org/10.1177/1749975513494878
68. Rounsefell, K., Gibson, S., McLean, S., Blair, M., Molenaar, A., Brennan, L., ... & McCaffrey, T. A. (2020). Social media, body image and food choices in healthy young adults: A mixed methods systematic review. Nutrition & Dietetics, 77(1), 19-40. https://doi.org/10.1111/1747-0080.12581
69. Rubin, L. R., Fitts, M. L., & Becker, A. E. (2003). “Whatever feels good in my soul”: Body ethics and aesthetics among African American and Latina women. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry, 27, 49-75. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1023679821086
70. Sarı, G. (2020). Overview of gender with Examples from Turkish Media. In Gender and Diversity Representation in Mass Media (pp. 1-16). Pennsylvania: IGI Global.
71. Sastre, A. (2014). Towards a radical body positive: Reading the online “body positive movement”. Feminist Media Studies, 14(6), 929-943. https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2014.883420
72. Schmitt, B., Brakus, J. J., & Biraglia, A. (2022). Consumption ideology. Journal of Consumer Research, 49(1), 74-95. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucab044
73. Serttas, A., Ege, Ö., Çanakpınar, B., & Bedir, A. İ. (2023). Sexism and the Commodification of Women in Media: A Critical Analysis. Communication Papers, 12 (25), 79-93. https://doi.org/10.33115/udg_bib/cp.v25i12.22944
74. Sari, M., Ayuningtyas, C. D., Cristin, S., & Rahyadi, I. (2022). Beauty of Women from Ideal Appearance and Understanding of Beauty Standards: A Literature Review. Infokum, 10(5), 686-699. https://doi.org/10.58471/infokum.v10i5.1124
75. Selensky, J. C., & Carels, R. A. (2021). Weight stigma and media: An examination of the effect of advertising campaigns on weight bias, internalized weight bias, self-esteem, body image, and affect. Body Image, 36, 95-106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.10.008
76. Sumter, S. R., Cingel, D., & Hollander, L. (2022). Navigating a muscular and sexualized Instagram feed: An experimental study examining how Instagram affects both heterosexual and nonheterosexual men’s body image. Psychology of Popular Media, 11(2), 125–138. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000355
77. Şakrak, B. E. (2020). Dizi Filmlerde Toplumsal Cinsiyet Bağlaminda Kadının Temsili Örnek İnceleme:“kadın” Dizisi. Avrasya Uluslararası Araştırmalar Dergisi, 8(22), 420-434. https://doi.org/10.33692/avrasyad.686441
78. Netflix. (2024). The Witcher [Image]. Netflix. https://www.netflix.com/tr/title/80189685
79. Uluyol, F. M. (2023). The mediator role of femininity-masculinity perceptions between body perception and eating attitudes. Journal of Clinical Psychology Research, 7(1), 75-89. https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=1136778
80. Williams, T. R. (2013). Empowered femininity: The textual construction of femininity in women’s fitness magazines. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
81. Weiss, N. (2010). Falling from grace: Gender norms and gender strategies in Eastern Turkey. New Perspectives on Turkey, 42, 55-76. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0896634600005574
82. Yan, T. D., Mak, L. E., Carroll, E. F., Khosa, F., & Yong-Hing, C. J. (2022). Gender-inclusive fellowship naming and equity, diversity, and inclusion in radiology: an analysis of radiology department websites in Canada and the United States. Canadian Association of Radiologists Journal, 73(3), 473-477. https://doi.org/10.1177/08465371211066104
83. Yeni Bakış. (2023). Mete Kayagil kimdir? Mete Kayagil’in mesleği nedir? Mete Kayagil nerede okuyor? Mete Kayagil hangi burç? [Image]. Yeni Bakış. https://www.yenibakishaber.com/mete-kayagil-kimdir-mete-kayagilin-meslegi-nedir-mete-kayagil-nerede-okuyor-mete-kayagil-hangi-burc