Generation+Y.+Materialistic+and+egocentric?+The+deconstruction+and+comparison+of+mental+health+issues+associated+with+a+Me,+Myself+and+I+generation.

Name: Ashley Lanauze Student number: N8282650 Tutor: Sophie Miller

Generation Y: Materialistic and egocentric? The deconstruction and comparison of mental health issues associated with a me, myself and I generation and its media influences. “Even the models we see in magazines wish they could look like their own images.” -Cheri K. Erdman.

//"It has to change. The fashion industry affects everyone." - Ali Michael//

Artifact The above images were taken from a recent fashion advertisement and publicised catwalk, where young women were sought after to promote clothing and contemporary fashion apparel. However, this exaggerated connotation of an ideal image or 'look' endorsed by the alarmingly underweight model presented in these images is one of the leading causes of mental illness in young people. The aforementioned images in particular attest to this mental illnesses associated with Generation y endorsing a 'smaller = better' connotation, perpetuating a dangerous and unrealistic image of what beauty embodies for young Australians at large. These images promote a negative body image, and the modern fashion industry has a purpose to manipulate this view.

Public Health Issue In an idealist society, realistic values are replaced with the over consumption of products such as the latest technology, clothing and in particular general appearance. This is particularly evident in what sociologists call Generation Y. In today’s society, adolescents have become increasingly self obsessed. The current social, economic and cultural conditions which we are apart, allow individuals to maintain a ‘me me me’ attitude and follow a social pattern in which society judges one another based on superficial aspects likes ones appearance and material possessions. With society and mass advertising the way it is, the notion of being ‘too fat’ is widespread, particularly in adolescents with a significant number of young people subjected to body insecurities every day. Mass advertising similar to the images above lead to feelings of unacceptance and body dissatisfaction. This is particularly evident with statistics proving that more and more young people have been diagnosed with eating disorders such as Anorexia Nervosa (AN), Bulimia Nervosa (BN), and drug related weight loss than ever before (ABS 2009).

Litrature Review David Elkind in the ‘Crisis of Adolescence’ uses the constructivist theory of develop mentalist Jean Piaget to propose what is now a well known theory of adolescent egocentrism. Ekind suggests that an adolescent belonging to Generation Y is characterised by material possessions and appearance rather then personal values and beliefs. He describes three characteristics of contemporary adolescent thinking. The first characteristic is the’ Imaginary Audience’ This is the self-conscious nature of adolescents and the feeling that teenagers are constantly being observed and judged, not only on their actions, but general appearance and material possessions. The second is the ‘Personal Fable’ Basically, this is self-centeredness of modern adolescents. The last component of Ekinds theory of adolescent egocentrism is ‘Apparent hypocrisy’.‍This is the notion that this behaviour is typical to this generation and therefore acceptable: ‘It is okay to excessively use weight loss pills or laxatives, purge or not eat because everybody is doing it.’ All Characteristics prove a dangerous cocktail of modern traits that can increase the likelihood of mental illness, physical illness and in some circumstances death.

A recent study was conducted using Swiss and Georgian examples to determine the effects of women’s self objectification after being subject to different images which depicted unrealistic thin women and attractive men. The study comprehensively concluded that women who viewed the images of thin beautiful women were more likely to have higher levels of self objectification, weight associated-self perception anxiety, negative moods, negative bodily perception than those who viewed product advertisements without models. (Brit Harper 2007) From the above results it was observed that there is a direct link between images portrayed in the media and the booming negative psychological and mental perception of young women and the ‘ideal body image’.

Generation Y are remarkably sophisticated consumers, with a high level of brand awareness and body awareness endorsed by mass-media. They are healthy spenders and important agents of contemporary influence, who are generally swayed by or conform to popular opinion without being able to justify why they do. (Oda, A. Y. 2007) Those who are not able to follow popular mass trends or are unable to attain the ‘perfect body’ are subjected to a mental potential push towards society’s fringes where they tend to develop a weak sense of belonging. This is where depression is likely to occur. With mental illness on the rise, the link between social insecurities and mental illness is evident with over one hundred and sixty thousand young people under the age of 24 diagnosed every year in Australia alone. (ABS 2007)

Australia’s first comprehensive assessment of young peoples’ health statuses found that a young person’s mental health status is strongly influenced by family, social and cultural factors to which they are exposed (Pagava, 2011). These include: Socio economic status- Being born into a lower socio-economic family, or having financial difficulties can increase your chances of attaining mental illness. Cultural background- Certain cultures living in Australia have issues with racism and unacceptance. Family breakdown- The loss of a parent, or a divorce can cause depression. Substance abuse - Alcoholism and drug addictions. Social insecurities- Being overweight, underweight, or not being able to purchase products like everyone else can lead to feelings of insecurity and unsureness. This study also found that the leading causes of death in adolescents belonging to what is characterised as ‘Generation Y’ was: Accidents and Injuries (both unintentional and self inflicted mental health problems (including depression, anxiety and suicide) Behavioural problems (including substance abuse)

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. From a study conducted in 2007 called National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing. An alarming 20% of Australia’s adolescent population deal with depression at any given time with over 400 young individuals committing suicide each year. With society and mass advertising the way it is today, the common notion of feeling ‘not cool' or 'ugly' or 'fat' is one shared by many. Mass advertising and these commonly endorsed notions lead to feelings of unacceptance, particularly in adolescents who are still trying to find their place in society.

Therefore, the question arises... to what extent do people conform to these images being portrayed in the media and should this be looked upon as a public health issue?

Cultural and Social Analysis In today’s society, contemporary sociologists stress the significance of sociological determinism and how prevailing social structures and processes shape the way in which people live and are expected to look. In a world where individuals both shape and are concurrently shaped by society, the extent of which human behaviour is determined by social structure is questionable. As a solution to the unknown, C.W Mills coined the term sociological imagination. Such a phrase refers to a state of mind which enables us to understand both biography, history, and the relationship between the two in modern society. This, he claimed, was the distinction between personal and public issue (1989). So when does an individuals body image issues become not only a personal problem but the communities? Society should be aware of this is as more and more people have become obsessed with their looks. Mills stated that “many personal troubles cannot be solved as troubles, but must be understood in terms of public issues.

The notion of ideal bodyweight is one which is continually stressed throughout generation y. This is not only a cultural but also somewhat historical aspect, as the urge to be thin, is one which has been passed down from generation to generation.The Australian Bureau of Statistics noted that only 26% of young women under 13 are unhappy about their weight, whereas 70-76% of adolescent females are extremely dissatisfied with their weight and general appearance. This social concept is ideal in determining the contrast between personal trouble and public issue, as it depicts the vast number of individuals who are suffering from weight issues, and reiterates Mill’s theory that personal troubles should not be perceived as an individual problem, but one which should be faced by society as a whole. The twentieth century has carried a diverse array of sociological strategies some of which suggest that a range of modern media approaches has had a profound and direct impact on the Australian population. The images depicted in modern advertising have played an important and somewhat controversial role in shaping the way people perceive themselves.

Personal worlds are, and have always been influenced by prevailing social conditions. People have always and will continue to follow the social pattern in which society judges individuals based on superficial aspects like ones appearance or material possessions. Eating disorders such an Anorexia Nervosa (AN) and Bulimia Nervosa (BN) will always be prevalent unless there is a widespread change. A mental health prevention organisation Reach Out identified the key cause of eating disorders was the strong cultural emphasis and society’s obsessive preoccupation with body image ideals. With advertisements depicting unhealthy connotations of what the ideal body image is, it is only expected that young people would strive to attain the unattainable. This is where there needs to be change. If magazines published fewer images than those above and instead endorsed healthy eating habits and images with healthy persons, the overwhelming urge to look like these models would be lesser with more and more adolescents accepting themselves and their body.

Reflection The importance of prevention is better than any cure, by educating on such issues, society has the chance to say NO in attempting in attaining the unattainable. To overcome this, further awareness should be endorsed so that women learn to love themselves rather then physically damage themselves in order to be ‘thin’ and beautiful. Further organisations such as Beyond Blue, Reach Out and The Butterfly Foundation were created for this purpose alone and are dedicated to bringing about change to the culture, policy and practise in the prevention, treatment and support of those affected by mental health issues, eating disorders and negative body image.

// Mills stated that “many personal troubles cannot be solved as troubles, but must be understood in terms of public issues. Public issues must be revealed by relating them to personal trouble” (1959, p8 text).The purpose of this paper is to merely outline the prevailing social, personal and medical issues associated with this phenomenon. Through the study of recent modern theories associated with contemporary theorists, contemporary readers will be permitted to draw from such, a conclusion regarding the media’s overwhelming influence on contemporary youth and therefore raise further awareness in the future. From the aforementioned information and the images displayed, readers will realise the disturbing reality of what has become of this issue. //// With over 160, 000 Australians diagnosed every year it is evident that there needs to be change. Without change, there is no hope. //

**Generation Y Not.** A fairly solid wiki.I chose to comment on this particular page because I think It affects every single person in there life at some stage. The areas that stood out to me, were your litrature review section. The recent research that you have used, have proven your main arguments perfectly. I think the use of alcohol and cannibis is becoming more acceptable, however the science is there and in everybodys faces proving the link between usage and mental illnesses and I believe that the severity of damage should be decreasing the statistics of usage and not increasing it. Or do you think we just dont care? In some places you made great statements but if you dropped a statistic, quote or ref in there you would be looking at great marks. all up I enjoyed your piece. Typos go without saying...  ** An Equal Playing Field For Women & Girls. **  Hey Ok so I have read a few wikis on this issue and I can assure you that yours stands out to me the most. I like the way that you gave your assignment a worldly view. So many assignments I do these days are Australian based. Also I like the way that you really nail the 'need for improvement part' your litrature properly proves how bad the situation is and how bad its been for the last 10 years. I for one am dissapointed that there is such a low demand for women sport broardcasting. Or is that the medias fault? thats my view anyway.Great artifact.Great great litrature.Great READ.Seriously well done.cheers.



References


 * Australian Bureau of Statistics (2008). 2007 National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing: Summary of Results (4326.0). Canberra: ABS


 * Australian Institute of health and wellbeing// . // (03). // Australia //// ’s Young // // People 2003: Their Health and Wellbeing. // Retrieved from: [|[[http://www.aihw.gov.au/publicationdetail/?id=6442467534|http://www.aihw.gov.au/publication]]]detail/?id=6442467534


 * Brit Harper. Marika Tiggermann.(2007) The effects of thin ideal medial images on womens self objectification, mood, body and image. 59:649-657


 * Cranston, B. (2008). Talkin”bout their generations. // B&T Weekly //. 10. Retrieved from: []


 * Mitchell, Vincent-Wayne (01/06/2006). "UK Generation Y male fashion consciousness". Journal of fashion marketing and management, 10 (2), p. 169


 * Xu, QM (01/10/2004). "False self and mental health in adolescents". International journal of psychology, 39 (5-6), p. 170.


 * Pagava, Karaman (01/08/2011). "Objectified body consciousness and mental health in female adolescents: cross-cultural evidence from Georgian and Swiss national samples". Journal of adolescent health, 49 (2), p. 141.


 * Oda, A. Y. (2007). David elkind and the crisis of adolescence: Review, critique,and applications. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 26(3), 251-251-256. Retrieved from @http://search.proquest.com/docview/237252848?accountid=13380