Female mannequins sizes medically unhealthy, study warns

A new study published in the Journal of Eating Disorders has warned that the bodies of female shop mannequins are ‘unrealistic’.

Researchers from the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Psychology, Health and Society concluded that if people were the same size some of the mannequins on display in shop, they would be ‘considered medically unhealthy’.

Meanwhile, the average male mannequin body size was significantly larger than the average female mannequin body size and only a small proportion of male mannequins represented an underweight body size.

Dr Eric Robinson, author of the study, explained: “We became interested in this topic after seeing some news report about members of the general public noticing that some mannequins in fashion stores were disturbingly thin.

“Around the same time we had also read news coverage that fashion retailers had responded to this concern and adopted more appropriate sized mannequins, so it felt like an interesting research question to examine. Our survey of these two high streets in the UK produced consistent results; the body size of female mannequins represented that of extremely underweight human women.

“Because ultra-thin ideals  encourage the development of body image problems in young people, we need to change the environment to reduce emphasis on the value of extreme thinness.

“We of course are not saying that altering the size of high street fashion mannequins will on its own ‘solve’ body image problems. What we are instead saying is that presentation of ultra-thin female bodies is likely to reinforce inappropriate and unobtainable body ideals, so as a society we should be taking measures to stop this type of reinforcement.

“Given that the prevalence of body image problems and disordered eating in young people is worryingly high, positive action that challenges communication of ultra-thin ideal may be of particular benefit to children, adolescents and young adult females.”