Is "Body Neutrality" Really Something to Strive For?

Source: Eleanor Jane/Pexels

The term “body neutrality” has taken off in social media, with influencers suggesting that body neutrality is a more realistic approach to improving body image than positivity. But a new paper by a group of experts on body image research suggests that proponents of body neutrality may be misunderstanding what it means to have a positive image. In addition to suggesting that body neutrality is not really “new,” these researchers also argue that neutrality isn’t much of a goal when it comes to body image.

The idea of body neutrality emerged not from academic research on body image and eating disorders, but rather from social media spaces focused on body image. Since then, the concept of body neutrality has begun appearing in academic papers, with authors contrasting neutrality with “body positivity.” But the authors of this new paper suggest that some researchers (in addition to social media influencers and clinicians) who promote body neutrality seem to be confused about what it really means to have a positive body image. In essence, they argue that the promising components of body neutrality aren’t really neutral and they aren’t really new.

One point of misunderstanding seems to stem from confusing the phrase “positive body image” with “body positivity.” As the authors of the paper explain, body positivity is a social movement; positive body image is a complex concept that includes “a person’s experience of accepting, appreciating, respecting, caring, and loving their body.”

Many influencers argue that body neutrality is a more realistic goal than a positive body image, because they assume that having a positive body image means feeling good about your appearance all the time. This is a misunderstanding. Of course, no one feels good about every aspect of their appearance at all times. But on top of that, body image is about much more than how you feel about your appearance. For example, a key component of a positive body image is body appreciation, which includes feeling OK about your body no matter how it looks, treating your body well, approaching your body with an accepting attitude even though it’s imperfect, and trying to reject media messages that promote narrow and unrealistic definitions of a “good body.”

Overall, having a positive body image is about much more than how you feel about how you look. It includes an appreciation for the functions of your body—all the cool things your body can do. Having a positive body image also involves the choice to treat your body with kindness and care even if you’re feeling bad about how you look and even when you might be disappointed with how your body is functioning.

Source: Los Muertos Crew/Pexels

Some influencers seem to argue that “neutrality” might be the most people can or should hope for when it comes to relating to their body. The authors of this new paper respond to that argument by reviewing research showing that even those with severe body dissatisfaction or eating disorders can build a positive body image with the right support and interventions.

Another popular idea about body neutrality is that it’s a type of middle ground between a negative and positive body image, which might explain why it feels more realistic to some people than working toward a positive body image. But this view of body neutrality (as a middle point) doesn’t make sense, because positive and negative body image aren’t really on the same continuum. That may sound a bit confusing, but it might help to think about the issue using general emotions as a comparison. It’s common for people to believe that our emotional experience ranges from negative at one side of a continuum to positive at the other side. But negative and positive emotional experiences are somewhat independent. You can be happy and sad at the same time. For example, at a graduation ceremony you might feel proud and happy about your accomplishments, excited to be moving on to a new phase of life, but also sad or worried about the transition and the potential to lose contact with your classmates. It is much the same for body image. You can experience elements of a positive body image and negative body image at the same time, so it isn’t accurate to think of body neutrality as being in the “middle” of these two states.

Source: RDNE Stock Project/Pexels

The authors of this new paper also argue that proponents of body neutrality might be underestimating how important positive body image can be for well-being. In other words, aiming for “neutrality” might (at least in some cases) be setting the bar too low. A positive body image can be a key component of well-being. Striving to simply “tolerate” your body might close off routes to psychological flourishing. In sum, the notion of body neutrality sounds like something new—but it mostly seems to be a repackaging or misunderstanding of broad definitions of positive body image that have been embraced by many researchers and clinicians for decades.