The Handbook of Diversity in Body Image addresses the urgent need for inclusive body image research and practice. This volume fills a critical gap by comprehensively examining how body image develops and is maintained and negotiated in various cultural, geographic, and social contexts. This book begins by tracing the historical trajectory of body image research and practice, highlighting the evolution from past perspectives to our current understanding. It then presents in-depth reviews of body image research in a range of geographic regions around the world. The volume also includes chapters that review the intricate intersections of identity, including discussions on body image in racialized minority groups, indigenous communities, minoritized sexual and gender identities, men, diverse religious identities, and those experiencing food insecurities. This handbook also presents chapters that consider diversities in life experiences, including body image across the lifespan, as well as in people with visible differences, disabilities, illness, neurodivergence, and larger bodies. Each chapter highlights the importance of understanding and embracing diversity in body image practice, emphasizing the significance of intersectionality in both research and real-world applications. Handbook of Diversity in Body Image empowers researchers, clinicians, and educators to broaden their understanding of and approach to body image discussions. By highlighting marginalized voices and presenting innovative frameworks, this volume equips the audience with the tools to advance research, improve clinical practice, and foster inclusivity in the study and promotion of positive body image worldwide.
Section 1: Introduction
1. Body image research and practice: Where we were and where we are now
Viren Swami and Tracy Tylka
Section 2: Diversities in Culture and Geography
2. Body image in East Asia
Todd Jackson, Yusu Yue and Amy Shaw
3. Body image in South and Southeast Asia
Viren Swami
4. Body image in South America and the Caribbean
Emilio Juan Compte and Pedro Carvalho
5. Body image in Sub-Saharan Africa
Oyenike Balogun
6. Body image in the Middle East and North Africa
Maria Kalantzis and Ayah Aldebyan
7. Body image in Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Mona Vintila and Gianina Lazarescu
Section 3: Diversities in Social Identity
8. Body image in racially minoritised women
Jioni A. Lewis, Brianna Ladd and Laurel B. Watson
9.Body image in Indigenous populations
Tara-Leigh McHugh and Leah Ferguson
10. Body image in minoritized sexual identities
Zachary A. Soulliard, Connor I. Elbe, Robert B. Manning, III
and Katherine Laveway
11. Body image in transgender and gender-diverse populations
Sophia Choukas-Bradley, Savannah Roberts, Scout Silverstein, Tess Carroll and
Allegra Gordon
12. Body image in men
Stuart B. Murray, Artha J. Gillis and Tracy L. Tylka
13. Body image in the food insecure and economically
marginalised
Heather Davis and Jacqueline Kosmas
Section 4: Diversities in Life Experiences
14. Body image in religious diversities
Marika Tiggemann
15. Body image in childhood and adolescence
Ella Guest and Mahira Budhraja
16. Body image in midlife and older individuals
Rachel F. Rodgers, Genevieve P. Nowicki and Ruthann C. Hewett
17. Body image in people with visible differences
Maia Thornton and Diana Harcourt
18. Body image in people with disabilities
Aly Bailey
19. Body image and illness
Kerry A. Sherman and Melissa Pehlivan
20. Body image in neurodiverse communities
Phaedra Longhurst
21. Body image in larger-bodied individuals
Angela Meadows
Section 5: Diversities in Body Image Practice
22. Understanding diversity in body image practice
Jennifer B. Webb
23. The importance of intersectionality in body image research and practice
Mike Parent and Yaritza Carmona
Section 6: Conclusion
24. Body image research and practice: Where we go from here
Tracy L. Tylka and Viren Swami
Viren Swami is Professor of Social Psychology at Anglia Ruskin University, where he is co-Director of the Centre for Groups and Societies, and Adjunct Professor at Perdana University, where he is Director of the Centre for Psychological Medicine. His research is focused on body image, mental health, and the benefits of being in nature. He is ranked in the top 2% of the most-cited scientists in the world and is the author of over three hundred academic papers and three books, including Attraction Explained (now in its second edition) and The Psychology of Physical Attraction. Tracy Tylka is a Professor of Counseling Psychology at the Ohio State University. She is Editor-in-Chief of Body Image: An International Journal of Research. Her research focuses on body image and eating behavior, with a particular emphasis on positive body image, intuitive eating, and psychometric instrument development. She is ranked in the top 2% of most-cited scientists in the world and is the author of over a hundred academic papers and five books, including Handbook of Positive Body Image and Embodiment: Constructs, Protective Factors, and Interventions and Positive Body Image Workbook: A Clinical and Self-Improvement Guide.
