GREGORY LANDSMAN DISSOLVING DIFFERENCES FOUNDATION
Why are we
trading self acceptance
for social acceptance?™
OUR WORLD TELLS US DAILY IN THOUSANDS OF WAYS THAT OUR VALUE AS HUMAN BEINGS IS LINKED TO OUR PHYSICAL APPEARANCE.
THE PROBLEM
Our research in 2003 and 2019 in Victorian schools showed that
96% of children don't like the way they look
THE IMPACT
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Children are experiencing stress, shame and anxiety about their appearance.
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When this happens they become vulnerable to bullying and exclusion.
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They start to believe that the way they look is more important than who they are.
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To survive in their world and fit in, they start to let go of the best parts of themselves .​
Our Children start their young lives trading self acceptance for social acceptance
THE SOLUTION
knowing we are all deserving of being treated with kindness and respect
Our research showed that those students who liked the way they looked and embraced their differences (physical and behavioural), exhibited high levels of self belief.
These students experienced significantly less bullying, more inclusion and acceptance of their differences.
In 2003 the Foundation created the Dissolving Differences Education Program to support children in schools
we teach young people to know their value
that we are all deserving of being treated with kindness and respect
that our value is not defined by our physical characteristics, our age, our gender or our circumstances
and that we should never let any person, media or institution tell us otherwise
1 IN 2 GIRLS SAY THAT IDEALIZED BEAUTY CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA IS DAMAGING TO THEIR SELF ESTEEM.
In 2024 we extended the dissolving differences program
THE DISSOLVING DIFFERENCES PROGRAM IS ENDORSED BY MEDICAL & EDUCATION PROFESSIONALS FROM AROUND THE WORLD.
Research revealed that watching just seven minutes of "beauty content" in one session on TikTok and Instagram is enough for young people to experience significant shame and anxiety about their appearance.
Griffith University, Sept 2022
We teach our young people to believe in their differences
to feel strong and centred in themselves &
to know the value they bring to the world
RESEARCH
Global beauty and wellness expert and author, Gregory Landsman has undertaken extensive research into the question of whether perception of body image satisfaction or dissatisfaction is driven by physicality (having the physical characteristics that are admired or sought after within a society); or whether low self-esteem drives perception and levels of satisfaction with the way we look, regardless of our physical characteristics.
Research projects include:
Primary School Aged Children
Research with children aged 6-12 in primary schools showed that self-esteem was a critical factor in their perception of their physical characteristics and that in the negative, contributed meaningfully to their levels of body dissatisfaction regardless of their physical characteristics or perceived differences.
Models
Research with models aged 18-30 showed that despite their physicality meeting societal beauty standards and being in receipt of ongoing external validation, that their levels of body satisfaction or dissatisfaction, correlated with their personal levels of self-esteem, that almost always pre-dated their work in the fashion and beauty industry.
Oncology Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy
Research with cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy showed that those patients who were happiest with themselves (high self-esteem) and their lives prior to their cancer diagnosis, were the least impacted by the changes to their perceived beauty and body image brought on by their treatment regime, and thus experienced lower levels of body dissatisfaction, as a result of the physical changes.​
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our beauty as human beings has nothing to do with masculinity, femininity or physical perfection – it is about equality and celebrating the divine differences
we all bring to the world.
Dissolving Differences
Gregory Landsman Podcast
WHY ARE WE TRADING SELF ACCEPTANCE FOR SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE?
