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Changing Perceptions of Female
Beauty Ideals in Contemporary
China
Young Women's Perceptions of Traditional
and Contemporary Female Beauty Ideals in
China
Traditional Female Beauty Ideals in China
According to the text, traditional characteristics of female beauty in China include being fat and having a round face. The traditional East Asian body ideals have emphasized round faces and mildly plump bodies, with more emphasis placed on facial features than body shape.
These traditional beauty ideals are rooted in Confucian philosophy, which emphasized women's subordination and submissiveness to men. Women's physical beauty was important as part of their feminine identities, but they had little power or influence beyond domestic activities.
Contemporary Female Beauty Ideals in China
The text indicates that contemporary characteristics of the female beauty ideal in China include a slim body and a small face. These standards have become pervasive in media images, particularly in the context of rapid and disruptive social changes in China, including changing gender roles for women.
The implementation of the open-door policy and economic reforms in the 1980s brought enormous economic, social, and cultural transformations to Chinese society. Chinese consumers became more influenced by international advertising and Western lifestyles, as China evolved into a nation with a neoliberal economic system that advocates individualism and consumerism.
The transformation of Chinese society has also shown increased individual consumerism culture, which has brought more attention to individual success and awareness of their bodies. Chinese women's internalized conceptions of body image and feminine beauty are strongly influenced by mass media, which often communicates Western standards of the thin- idealized female beauty.
In addition to Western media influences, the popularity of Korean entertainment and beauty industries, known as the "K-Wave" phenomenon, has also become an important influence on fashion and beauty trends in
China. This has created a more competitive beauty industry in China, with Korean cosmetics and beauty products gaining significant market share.
Comparison of Traditional and Contemporary Beauty Ideals
The text suggests that young women in contemporary China seem to endorse many Western standards for the female beauty ideal, which have become pervasive in media images. These contemporary beauty ideals differ significantly from the traditional Chinese beauty ideals that emphasized round faces and mildly plump bodies.
The rapid social and cultural changes in China, particularly the transformation from a planned economy to a market economy, have brought about a shift in women's roles and opportunities. As a result, Chinese women have found greater freedom and desire to achieve the cultural standards of ideal beauty that are prevalent in contemporary media.
The text indicates that understanding the cultural definitions of female beauty from both traditional and contemporary perspectives can provide insight into the changing gender roles and the transformation of feminine identity in the context of China's socioeconomic, political, and cultural changes.
Changing Perceptions of Female Beauty
Ideals in China
Traditional and Contemporary Concepts of Female Beauty
According to Xu and Feiner (2007), contemporary Chinese society expects women to possess physical beauty according to an Anglo-European standard, as well as traditional Chinese virtues such as submissiveness and nurturing. This suggests that women in China face increased pressure to obtain feminine identities that incorporate both Western physical standards and traditional Chinese values.
Increasing Body Image Issues in China
While the economic status and diversity of women's roles have increased in contemporary China since the founding of the People's Republic in 1949 (Xi, 2011), reports indicate a significant rise in eating disorders in China since the 1990s (Meyers, 2016; Pike & Dunne, 2015). Before 1990, Japan was the only Asian country to report eating disorders, but after 1990, other Asian countries such as Hong Kong, mainland China, South Korea, and Singapore began to report similar issues (Gordon, 2001). This suggests that body image issues and eating disorders are related to the dynamics of a country's economic transformation and cultural changes.
The emergence of thin body ideals permeated in the media is also related to the increasing body image issues (Jung & Lee, 2006). Advertising models can negatively influence the self-image of audiences by elevating their
Importance of Cultural Standards and Media Influence
The cultural standards of the ideal beauty and the impact of media are considered particularly important in defining concepts of female beauty. Individuals often use the cultural standards to assess the attractiveness of others as well as themselves, and images of the cultural ideals are prevalent in the media, particularly in advertising images in magazines.
Focus Group Study on Female Beauty Ideals in China
This study focused on concepts of female beauty in China from both traditional views and contemporary preferences and perceptions prevalent in fashion magazines. College-aged women in China were interviewed in focus group settings to explore the following questions:
Do Chinese women believe that contemporary cultural standards of ideal female beauty are different from the traditional concepts of female beauty? Do Chinese women aspire to have physical characteristics of the female images in magazines and other media outlets such as television and movies? Do Chinese women feel pressure from significant others such as friends, partners, and parents to have ideal physical characteristics as shown in the media?
The focus group interviews were conducted in Shanghai, China, with 23 female college students from various majors and backgrounds. The data collection and analysis methods are described in detail in the text.
Questionnaire Items
Traditional and Contemporary Definitions of Female Beauty
Ideals
The questionnaire items were developed and organized into three areas:
Items focused on cultural understanding of female beauty ideals from both traditional and contemporary definitions.
Examples of questions in this area include:
"What is the traditional preference of female ideal beauty in China?" "Do you feel the traditional ideas about female beauty have changed in China?" "What do you think is the definition of Chinese female ideal beauty in China today?" "What aspects of traditional beauty do you still like?"
Items focused on representation of female beauty ideals in fashion magazines and their influence.
Prior to asking these questions, the researcher circulated recent issues of popular fashion magazines in China (e.g., Vogue, Elle) to stimulate participants' thoughts about the models seen in the magazines. Participants were asked about their magazine reading habits and which magazines they enjoyed reading the most.
The items focused on questions such as:
"What are the most important characteristics of female images in fashion magazines?" "Do you think magazines are important for shaping women's beauty ideals?" "Would you like to look like magazine images?" "Do you compare yourself to female images in magazines?" "Do you feel pressure to look like the magazine images of women?"
Items focused on pressure to have ideal bodies from other media and significant others such as peers, romantic partners, and parents.
These questions included: "Do you feel pressure from your friends or a romantic partner to have a thin body or attractive physical characteristics?" "Do you feel pressure to look like television actresses or movie stars?" "Do you compare your appearance to appearance of television actresses or movie stars?" "Would you like to look like television actresses or movie stars?"
Data Analysis
The constant comparative method was used for data analysis to generate meaningful categories by systematically exploring and investigating the phenomenon.
The two coders, the principal investigator and a trained graduate research assistant, transcribed the data by independently listening to the audio-recorded responses multiple times. Topic codes driven by the responses to the questions were created using Microsoft Excel. To establish coding consistency, intercoder reliability between the two coders was calculated using the simple proportion method. The initial intercoder reliability was found to be 60-70%, and the coders made adjustments to the codebook by narrowing the definitions of some codes and adding new codes. The final codes of the transcripts revealed 80-90% intercoder reliability. When the same data code appears multiple times, the number of responses was recorded in parentheses to observe frequencies. Participants' responses of "yes" or "no" were also counted and used for providing percentiles in the findings. Participants were given pseudonyms for their responses.
Importance of "White Skin"
Having "white skin" was mentioned as an important aspect of both traditional and contemporary definitions of female beauty in China.
Perceptions of Ideal Female Body Type
The majority of participants said that being slim is very important for female beauty. However, some participants expressed that they do not like being too slim and that being healthy is the most important. One participant said: "I think I totally like the contemporary bodies... like supermodels. Being slim is very important."
Fashion Magazine Influence on Female Ideal Beauty
The majority of participants (78.3%) read fashion magazines online rather than subscribing to print copies. Magazines read include both local and international fashion and lifestyle magazines such as Vivi, Vogue, Mina, Harper's Bazaar, Vision, and Teen magazine. The most important characteristics of female images in fashion magazines were: Being "thin" (68.9%) Being "sexy" (22.8%) Having "Western-like" images (8.3%) The majority of participants (82.6%) agreed that fashion magazines are important for shaping women's beauty ideals in China. One participant said: "Yes, they really, and often we have their shops we can make the body of the models and actors more beautiful than themselves. So we may think they are just like this so we want to be like this, we keep fit and we do...sometimes do plastic surgeries or we will make up just to be like them." Another participant said: "Sometimes TV programs can show a real body shape or what they will look like but magazines always show more beautiful side of them. So I think magazines are more important to shape...to show beauty."
Comparisons to Magazine Images
The majority of participants (78.2%) said they do not compare themselves to female images in magazines. However, the responses for whether they would like to look like magazine images were split between "sometimes" and "yes." Some participants acknowledged comparing themselves to magazine images (21.7%), even though they might find themselves different from those images. Some participants intentionally avoid comparing themselves to magazine images due to the negative consequences, indicating that it would make them feel unhappy or bad about themselves.
One participant said: "I want to look like them (magazine images), but I don't compare because that it would make me unhappy." Another participant said: "I don't want to compare to magazine images because that would break my heart."
Influences of Other Media and Significant Others
The majority of participants did not feel pressure from television actresses, movie stars, peers, parents, or romantic partners to have an ideal body or attractive physical characteristics. However, some participants mentioned feeling pressure from friends or romantic partners. One participant said: "My friend always looks better than me. I'm not so confident because of my... (pointed to her face) ... Yeah freckles. I don't like it on my face." Participants also discussed "self-pressure" as a source of influence, where they put pressure on themselves to have a thin body or attractive physical characteristics.
Comparisons to Celebrity Appearances
The majority of participants (86.9%) said they do not compare their appearance to television actresses or movie stars. While the most frequent response was "no" when asked if they would rather look like television actresses or movie stars (60.9%), this was closely followed by "some aspects" (21.7%) and "yes" (17.3%). Some participants mentioned specific Chinese and English-named actresses, such as Angela Yeung Wing (also known as Angelababy), indicating that they admire their physical appearance. One participant distinguished the importance between body shape and face, saying: "I'm more affected by models not actors. Because models have good shapes and actors have good faces... that's a huge difference. I think having a good body shape is more important."
Female Beauty Ideals in China
Traditional Chinese Beauty Ideals
China has been dominated by Confucian beliefs and mannerisms, and women's beauty ideals were also subject to this traditional concept. The predominant traditional preferences included "round faces" and "plump bodies" that could show women's wealth and status.
Contemporary Chinese Beauty Ideals
The contemporary ideals of female beauty seem to endorse the thin body ideal and sharper faces with a pointy chin. These contemporary images are easily seen in various media outlets, such as street kiosks, convenience chain stores, and waiting lounges of banks and hotels.
Limitations and Future Research
The study was limited to a sample of young women attending a major university in a major city, and the findings may not generalize to all young women in China. Future research should include Chinese women of a wider range of ages and social backgrounds. Participants' understanding of the interview questions could have been different from their counterparts in the United States. Some participants may have been hesitant to express their opinions due to cultural characteristics of not being direct with their expressions, particularly in a group setting.
