As a sociologist who does research on and teaches about body image and healthy embodiment, I have had countless conversations with young college students about how beauty ideals get reinforced and what makes body norms so hard to resist. Punishment for not following norms or not living up to an ideal, is only half of the equation. This is what fat shaming falls into — people being ridiculed as a form of punishment for not meeting an ideal body type. But there is another way that norms and practices are reinforced, and in many ways it’s even more powerful than punishment: positive reinforcement. In the case of beauty norms and practices, this positive reinforcement takes the form of simple praise. Many of my young female students recount their experiences with praise as a motivator for following beauty norms. They describe the interactions they have with their friends on days that they wake up early, fix their hair, put on make-up, and put on attractive clothes. Or they recount the i
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