"You can't be too skinny. You can't be too fat. I don't know what you are supposed to be.": A qualitative focus group study exploring body image experiences of South Asian women in the UK

Mishra, Ankita; Craddock, Nadia; Chan, Jamie; Elwyn, Rosiel; Cerea, Silvia; Tan, Wen Q.; Bin Haamed, Haifa; Turk, Fidan

Abstract

British South Asian women may experience unique appearance pressures associated with their intersecting (racialised and gendered) identities; yet qualitative investigations of intersectional understandings of their body image are scarce. The aim of this study was to explore sociocultural factors influencing British South Asian women's body image using an intersectional framework. Seven focus groups were conducted with 22 women of South Asian heritage living in the UK between the age of 18 and 48 years old who were comfortable speaking in English. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. We generated four themes (1) navigating (often marriage-related) appearance pressures from South Asian elders and aunties (2) negotiating cultural and societal standards across different aspects of one's identity (3) representation of South Asian women in the wider context and (4) forms of healing from the pressures imposed on South Asian women. The findings have important implications for the body image experiences of South Asian women by acknowledging the need for tailored and nuanced responses to their complex needs in the sociocultural, political and relational context such as family, peers, education, health, media and the wider consumer landscape.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 19, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Jun 6, 2023
• Publication Date: Sep 30, 2023
• Deposit Date: Aug 11, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 11, 2023
• Journal: Body Image
• Print ISSN: 1740-1445
• Electronic ISSN: 1873-6807
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 46
• Pages: 123-138
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2023.05.005
• Keywords: South Asian women; Body image; Intersectionality; Reflexive thematic analysis; Focus groups; Appearance concerns
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/10853595
• Publisher URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1740144523000785?via%3Dihub