The Headless and Feckless in Obesity Messages

• In Event: Alcohol, Diet, Behavior Change: High-Density Panel in Public Health Communication

Abstract

Obesity-related news stories often use pictures of an obese person whose head is cropped out of the picture (i.e. headless). Despite the prevalence of this visual framing technique, little is known about its effects on readers. The aim of this study is to empirically examine such effects along with four domains: (1) weight satisfaction (2) perceived health risk (3) information seeking intention (4) intention to perform health behavior. We conducted an online experiment with 3 (picture weight: overweight vs. obese vs. no picture control) x 2 (head/face absence: yes vs. no) x 2 (participant weight: overweight vs. obese) between subject design. The results showed that when exposed to news stories containing a headless photo (head/face absence condition), overweight people showed greater weight satisfaction that resulted in decreased perceived health risk and information seeking intention. Implications of this result for health message designers are discussed in the extended abstract.

Authors

• Yongwoog Jeon, Indiana University

• Minchul Kim, Indiana U

• Robert F. Potter, Indiana U