Current Initiatives
The Rudd Center conducts strategic scientific research to bring attention to weight bias and develop solutions. Because weight bias remains socially acceptable and usually goes unchallenged, scientific evidence is needed to help demonstrate the importance of this problem and bring it the attention it deserves.
Here are examples of some studies in progress:
Prevalence and Consequences of Weight Stigma in the News Media (in progress). Through a series of studies, we aim to document the prevalence of stigmatizing visual content in the news media and to examine the consequences of weight stigma in the news on public attitudes towards obese persons.
The Influence of News Images of Obese Persons on Anti-fat Attitudes (in press). Using an experimental design, this study found that participants who viewed stereotypical and unflattering news photographs of an obese person expressed more negative attitudes about obese people than those who viewed the positive news photographs.
Public Health Implications of Weight Stigma (in press). This paper addresses common societal misperceptions about obesity and weight stigma that undermine public health and provides counter-arguments to these views with evidence from empirical research studies.
Public Attitudes Towards Policies to Prohibit Weight Discrimination (in progress). This study assesses public support for laws that prohibit weight-based discrimination in employment and examines ways to elicit popular support for these types of policies.
Assessing Weight-Based Bullying in Adolescents (in progress). This study will assess the prevalence and nature of weight-based bullying in schools with the ultimate goal of developing strategies to reduce bullying.
Please see our Rudd Center Publications page for already published studies.
