As a change organisation that utilises the power of research and insight to design behavioural change programmes to bring about social change we sat and pondered about how we would try to move people from a negative mind set to a positive one – bearing in mind that we ourselves struggle with a negative body image at times. We looked back over the research we had conducted with over 500 families in Corby, Northamptonshire (which focused on weight and exercise) and a poor body image stood out like a sore thumb – with many mum’s telling us that they couldn’t – and wouldn’t go to the gym or take part in physical activity because they hated the way they looked or they didn’t have the right ‘kit’.
Who or what is to blame?
So who or what is causing us to feel negative about our body and how and why do we let these feelings take over? Blame. It is something we all do as a first response. I can’t remember when I first began to feel negative about my own body. 27 years ago I was five years old and I recall negative name calling in the playground. My sister was terribly bullied about her weight and I was playing with barbie dolls with a figure I could only dream of. Maybe these played a part. I don’t know. Can I blame them for feeling the way I do? Can I blame others – the magazines for their ‘body perfect special pull out’ and their poking fun at celebrities for microscopic examples of cellulite – or maybe the food industry for tempting me with naughty foods at exactly the time I feel a little low. Part of this whole problem is blame. We look to blame others before looking at ourselves and whilst we can do this we will not change. What I do know now – 27 years later – is that I have to take personal responsibility for the way I feel. Nobody else makes me feel the way I feel. At five years old however, I am not so wise.
The worrying five year old
Our team have spent considerable time working with people and communities on change issues. We have spent hours listening and observing. We have heard about triggers and influences such as stress at work, personal relationships and a lack of money. All are different, all are personal and all are complex. A lack of motivation, feeling of hopelessness, and no inspiration lay at the heart of our Corby findings. Cultural norms played a strong part in a lot of our youth research. The truth is, the reasons for and why are often so deep, a one size fits all solution just won’t work to solve this particular issue.
We haven’t investigated why five years olds have a poor self image but surely the environment is key to answering this question – especially at this age. Social and cultural norms are the behavioural expectations, or rules, within a society or group. It is the case (and behavioural science confirms) that people often take their understanding of social norms from the behaviour of others, which means that they can develop and shape rapidly. If mum is constantly worrying about weight and how she looks, daughter is going to pick up on those vibes. If friends are talking about their body negatively then this rubs off.
Lots of ideas from many camps have sprung up since the publication of the report – most of which were torn apart by Zoe Williams at the Guardian who blasted ‘body image and self esteem lessons for children in primary and secondary schools’ proposed by MP’s. Quite rightly she points out the report failed to mention why five years old are fixated with their weight in the first place – which we agree would be the first issue to focus on. Maybe if this was investigated the suggestion would not be body image classes. Not that we are against further education on this issue, its just that the default for almost all ‘hard to tackle’ social issues that involve young people is either school education or promotion – both of which do not work on their own and can be poorly designed and executed.
The answer to this issue probably lies outside of the classroom. It is complex, emotional and cannot be solved by MP’s. It is also impossible. We are not always going to feel good about ourselves and our bodies and trying to get us to be happy 100% of the time is not going to happen. But that should not stop us trying. Especially if it helps our five years olds to stop worrying like us and do what they do best – being a five year old.
