Assessment of the ideal body image of women in Accra, Ghana

Abstract

The hypothesis tested in this study was that the 'traditional build' is the culturally valued body shape by Ghanaian women. Culturally sensitive figural stimuli were designed to assess the current body image (CBI) and the ideal body image (IBI) of Ghanaian women. The most frequently selected model for the CBI was one that represented a slightly overweight woman; the IBI selected was consistent with a representation of normal body mass index; and the least healthy image was that figure that represented morbidly obesity.