Changes in How Men See Their Bodies

Exactly what is this guy accomplishing? Nicholas Monu / iStockphoto.com

From far too long ago, I can remember what it was like to get into "watch me" conversations with other boys on the school playground. In essence, one would say, "I can do this!" and the other would follow with, "Well, I can do this!" And the competition would be on. It might not last more than ten seconds, but it would be repeated often.

Adult men aren't immune to this, either. It can be hard for some men to hear what other guys are saying because they're busy thinking of the next thing they want to say about their own accomplishments -- with a significant portion of those accomplishments being of the physical kind. Males have tended to measure themselves according to what they can do.

Whether you find these (gross) generalizations fair or not, the trend may be changing in a dangerous way. More and more, the media appear to be depicting men in ways that emphasize their appearance, not their abilities (see image at right). If more men are placing their self-worth in their appearance, perhaps it's no wonder that we are seeing increasing numbers of men with eating disorders.

• Emphasizing appearance over ability in media images of men
• Eating disorders in men
• What's bigorexia, and why is it so much like anorexia?