Exposure to Risk Information Detail (RID) in News Coverage of Anorexia Increases Self-Efficacy to Perform Risky Behaviors.

In an online randomized experiment with 419 Israeli adult women using two rounds of data collected at a one-month interval, we test the effects of exposure to messages with greater and lesser detail about behaviors that increase personal risk (RID: Risk Information Detail) on women's self-efficacy to perform the risky behaviors. Participants viewed news media videos about anorexia (or a control video about vaccination). Video messages varied according to the amount of detail provided regarding the specific risky behaviors (High vs. low RID), and message format (narrative or expository). Effects of exposure to RID on self-efficacy were mediated through response efficacy, both immediately after exposure and at one-month follow-up. The indirect effects of RID were not moderated by participants' risk of developing an eating disorder, or identification with the protagonist (messages with a narrative format). Implications for social cognitive theory, social learning processes, and unintended media effects are discussed.

Media Images of Anorexia: Effects of Moderate vs. Extreme Anorexia-Related Messages on Young Women.

The aim of the study was to examine which type of anorexia-related messages have been presented on television and how they have affected young women in Israel. An empirical study was performed in two parts: (1) Anorexia-related stories that had aired on the news editions of commercial TV channels in Israel were categorized by code page. (2) A random sample was conducted among 291 women, aged 13-35. Every interviewee was requested to complete one online questionnaire that differed in its attached video message: an extreme or a moderate anorexia-related message. 71.4% of the tv-stories featured a young anorexic woman suffering from extreme underweight. Moreover, the extreme message resulted in higher reaction than the moderate message and less agreement with the message (rejecting anorexia and preferring that it be eradicated). Theoretical and practical implications of the findings will be discussed.