Fitspo and Bopo: An experimental study
Disentangling text from image effects in #bopo and #fitspo media
Keywords:
text, images, fitspiration, bopo, believability, implicit body image, attitudesAbstract
Fitspiration is online content that shows text with images of idealized bodies as desirable and achievable through exercise. In contrast, bopo displays bodies of varying shapes and sizes often with accompanying text that emphasizes diversity. This research tested the differences between six combinations of fitspiration and bopo (image only, text only, both) on implicit body image, explicit attitudes, and believability, and examined relationships to exercise intentions. Fitspiration-related cognitive errors were examined as a possible moderator of the relationships. Women aged 18–30 years (N=460) completed a questionnaire measure of fitspiration-related cognitive errors and then viewed condition-specific stimuli and rated them on likeability (explicit attitudes). Participants then completed measures of implicit body image, believability, intentions, and demographics. Participants with low (effect=-.28) and mean levels of fitspiration-related cognitive errors (effect=-.18), who reported disliking the fitspiration images with text, had greater intention to exercise. Conversely, participants with the low fitspiration-related cognitive errors who reported liking the bopo images more, reported greater intention to exercise, (effect = .15 [SE = .08]). The bopo images alone were the most positively received. Interventions to reduce the negative impacts of Fitspiration among women prone to making fitspiration-related cognitive errors may be warranted.
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