Body image dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms have previously been shown to be significantly linked, and the media is a contributing risk factor for body image dissatisfaction. The present study investigated whether acute exposure of males and females to “thin-ideal” images would induce a significant decrease in body image satisfaction, and whether any effect would be further influenced by depressive symptoms. In a repeated measures design, ninety-six participants completed a depression inventory followed by body satisfaction questionnaires before and after an intervention exposing them to ‘thin-ideal’ body images. Data analysis revealed an overall significant negative correlation between depressive symptoms and the change in body image satisfaction scores from pre- to post-exposure to “thin-ideal” bodies. Further analysis indicated that this effect was greater for males than females. The current results demonstrate that those with more depressive symptoms are increasingly vulnerable to the negative effects of the media portrayal of “ideal” bodies and that this effect is gender-specific. Future research could consider replicating this study in different countries in order to establish cross-cultural differences and further inform interventions worldwide.
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