Perspectives DISTURBANCES IN THE SOCIAL BODY Differences in Body Image and Eating Problems among African American and White Women

An emerging body of research comparing body image disturbance and eating problems among African American and white women suggests that there are major ethnic differences in these areas. African American women appear to be more satisfied with their weight and appearance than are white women, and they are less likely to engage in unhealthy weight control practices, yet they are more likely to have high rates of obesity. Drawing on both Black and white feminist literature on eating problems, this arti-cle advances three arguments that may account for these differences: (1) Black women may develop a strong positive self-valuation and an alternative beauty aesthetic to resist societal stigmatization, (2) Black women may be less likely to acquire eating disorders due to differences in the cultural construction of femininity in Black communities, and (3) positive body image among Black women may sometimes reflect a defensive need to deny health problems such as compulsive overeating and obesity. Mary Douglas (1966) writes that the body is a form or surface on which the central rules, hierarchies, and commitments of a culture are inscribed. The central insight she offers is the idea of the body as a symbolic medium of culture. Similarly, Scheper-Hughes and Lock (1987) describe the body as a “natural symbol ” for thinking about relationships between nature, society, and culture. This articl