Reflections in the Store Window: U.S. Women’s Self-Comparisons to Mannequins

Abstract

One of the promotional tools retailers often use to promote clothing is a stick-thin mannequin that does not reflect the body type of a typical American female. The use of snowball convenience sampling method yielded 316 usable responses. Results indicate that the greater the woman's body mass index, the more likely she is to compare herself with mannequins and to perceive discrepancy between her body and the body of a mannequin and, 2) subsequently, the less likely she is to be satisfied with her own body. This research extends Social Comparison Theory.