Social media and body image
Media, a bubble of expectations which changes people has been a recent lookout worldwide. It affects us mentally and physically. Media platforms are mainly a marketplace for human behavior which many don’t realize. Meaning that once a creator posts an advertisement they want to know how the media users will react, based on that data they will increase the posting on that specific topic. They say that one app can impact billions of people and they can be very addicted. In some terms the media is very helpful. It provides information like news worldwide and increases the intelligence based on every topic you can think of. But what about the downfall that affects an individual.
We all want the perfect versions of ourselves portrayed in the media. It has given us a mindset of how we should look, body wise. To look slim and have nice curves, rather than having a body we are happy with. Being physically fit benefits the person with good health, diet also contributes to a healthy lifestyle. Many have said that fitness is a major motivator for being physically active. As of the media, it has shaped people to believe that fitness is only based on to look attractive rather than being healthy. Not only fitness but the way people eat or diet themselves and the idea of having cosmetic surgeries. As we move further in years we should realize how the media affects us and to be aware of our actions towards it.
Did you know that teens younger than us starve themselves to have an ideal body portrayed in the media? While this might be hard to believe, I, Myself has been in that position during high school. When I used media platforms like Instagram, looking at posts from famous people I thought to myself why I couldn’t look like them. People like the Kardashian’s were the most I looked up to. Everyone till now still looks up to them based on how good they look. They even set trends of cosmetic surgeries as being a normal thing. Well my body seemed decent like any normal person but i kept thinking i had to lose weight. It was the constant thoughts saying eat less and run around more or no ones gonna like you. At the time i did also care for the likes i would get, like any other teenager. Not posting everyday but having good pictures that satisfied me the way I looked. I could tell that my friends had the same mindset of looking nice and the ones that were oversized got bullied. Even girls that were 6 ft tall were not cared for being attractive. However, not everyone can have the same body.
My theory is that social media affects body image negatively. It tends to make us think that we should have a better body image. The thoughts of dissatisfied individuals feelings toward their shape, weight and some body parts. It makes us believe that if we are thinner or have muscle we are better than others. Even, fitness magazines emphasize appearance, over health and fitness, as the goal of physical activity. This could even affect people’s behaviors in which they isolate themselves from outside because they feel bad about their appearance, which i have experienced also. This mindset set from society can lead to depression, low self-esteem, harmful diets, eating disorders and getting cosmetic surgeries which sometimes aren’t necessary.
On the other hand, the media does encourage us to workout to get that ideal body. We get a better knowledge on what people are attracted to. We also learn more things and engage in body positive conversations with other users. It can influence people on what types of food they should consume to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Fitness and food related accounts can inspire many people. However People get influenced simply by overthinking and comparing themselves to others. Negative body image can cause eating disorders. This leads to psychological addiction to social media needing to spend countless hours on it and even risks of depression, anxiety and self harm. It is important that we are aware of what we use social media for and how it affects us.
Some ways the negative effect was proven was by a study analyzing images under the #fitspiration posts on Instagram. The hashtag was created so they were easily able to collect the metadata. There have been two studies, 1 showing types of images uploaded under the hashtag and 2 on what comments/caption were used under the pictures. The authors coded the images in 3 categories; table 1 displayed The reliability and the frequency of occurrence Table 2, Coding of People Featured in #Fitspiration Images and Table 3, Analysis of Bodily Characteristics of Individuals Featured in #Fitspiration Images Overall and by Gender. This research included 490 participants, where there was more capacity but was denied the viewpoint for the kids not being included. In study 1 it focused on referencing the food or the physical activities they are doing. While in study 2 it reveals the message behind the images that are being shared online and how the message they’re spreading inspires others. The authors tried to show the theme on relevance rather than frequency.
The results of this study show that they found that common types of images were used: people include text posts 42.37%, exercise related posts 31.67%, diet-related posts 25.21% and with the highest percentage, 52.01% for people included, themselves. With their research they also identified the percentage for genders posting on media. These included 68.27% of women, which were featured more than men, 31.45%. After the gender analysis it was clear how men showed their masculent selves; their arms, chest and half body posts. Whereas the women showed more of their body and wore revealing clothes. Lastly for non gendered concerns, the ones that were fat and thin most of them uploaded selfies, revealing their faces and shoulders only.
Both studies have shown that the images and the texts within the hashtag show a sign that the appearance has more influence and objectifying has more of a false view of fitness. In Study 2, messages focused on individual responsibility for both engaging in exercise and the acquisition of an idealized and sexually desirable appearance. Most of these people acknowledge their eating disorders but believe this to be a choice and not a disorder. They tend to overlook the actual problems. Many also feel shame when comparing their bodies to others on social media especially the younger people. They should be educated in not feeling objectified or having to compare their bodies to others.
I agree that the media can cause health problems toward body image, that needs emphasizing since the majority of the people believe that the media has a positive impact. Not everyone can have the experience but they will have doubt in themselves. Furthermore, in this study women were objectified more. Objectification theory is the understanding of an experience of being a female. Female body that is objectified sexually. The physical selves are more for female genders than men because of how it’s portrayed in the media. In evidence it shows that “Exposure to sexually objectifying media have been found to induce self-objectification tendencies and result in numerous negative outcomes.” (Harper & Tiggermann, 652). Meaning this leads to females monitoring their body image and how it should be presented in public. The challenges faced are anxiety, shame, low self-esteem, negative mood and even clinical level risks.
If this has not convinced you yet that the media has a negative impact on body image then take a look at another study by Lee, M., & Lee, H. (2019). They introduced how social networking sites have affected people negatively. Data collected from Korea has shown that people tend to upload images of themselves that they find most attractive or alter their own appearance to meet their standards. Editing one’s own appearance and posting it online drastically increased and has received negative feedback. Many of the young females who upload these edited pictures of themselves experience body dissatisfaction. The present study explored the role of photo editing behavior in the relationships between internalization, media pressure, and body satisfaction in the SNS environment. People till this day feel pressure for altering their photos and define their self worth based on that.
For this survey 406 females were interested in participating but only 133 members were approved. This is because only the people who have used Facebook/Instagram for more than a year and spent the most were invited. The data from 133 females were analyzed and showed that ages from 20-29 used free editing applications. In the surveys, they included 4 subjects (photo editing behavior, Internalization, Media pressure and body satisfaction) and used a 5-point response format for all the questions, meaning 1 (definitely disagree) to 5 (definitely agree). Some questions used on the survey were, how often do you use photo editing applications, do you want your body to look very thin and if the pressure from the media made them want to be in better shape. To measure this reliability the study used Cronbach’s alpha, and for their moderator they used 2 models. In model 1, it internalized the ideal body. Model 2, predicted media pressure. For both analyses the variable was to use editing applications. All the predictors were mean based and graphed on a simple slope to compare the relationship.
According to table 1 photo editing apps create negative media pressure that leads to body dissatisfaction. Model 1 and Model 2 (Table 2) both showed the same patterns that had no effects of using editing apps that correlate with body dissatisfaction. People who experienced body dissatisfaction are associated with thin body images. However, at high levels of photo editing application use, media pressure did not significantly influence body satisfaction. According to Table 4 many people who use these apps for altering their appearance were still not satisfied with themselves. The levels of photo editing application use was low so the media pressure did not influence body dissatisfaction.
The study focused on the recent behavioral trend among the users. As of the results, it is confirmed that effects on internalization and media pressure are negative. The photo editing applications are still increasing in female SNS users. Although it is better using these filters rather than dieting and having cosmetic surgeries. The authors have defined this as a cheater strategy. This study was also limited in the search area, meaning that this study focused on SNS users who used it more than one hour per day, which the concerns of body image can increase with the frequency and duration of time spent. Another missing part is not identifying whether the pictures were selfies or full body pictures. Overall, the study on 133 females in Korea identified that media pressure does not affect body dissatisfaction.
I disagree with the idea of the research and that it was very limited. They could have expanded to including males in the survey to have acknowledgement on both genders. Furthermore, i also disagree with the idea stated by authors, “ In many societies and cultures, attractive appearance arouses positive emotions in others (Hazlett & Hoehn-Saric, 2000; Mehrabian & Blum, 1997) and considerable social rewards are given to attractive women” (Lee, M., & Lee, H. 232). They reported that in some cultures awards are won only by the ones that have good appearances. Even if its a cultural following, I also believe that this sets a negative impact, how would others feel not winning. The females who used applications to photoshop their images or used filters only made themselves feel better, which is not clear. What was the purpose for using the filters if they thought they looked good already according to lee’s article. and the pressure effect was negative. I believe that the filters are to use when you want to look cute and attractive. Many people who catfish using filters to alter their identities end up getting exposed. This happens for many reasons such as not being satisfied with their appearances. This can cause relationship problems and being socially distant. Which again is terrible for one’s mental health.
We should care about this topic because it has impacted many people’s lives. The new generations focus on caring more about how many likes and comments they get under their posts. They should be taught early in the age that none of these things should matter. Younger people should be aware of what the media can do to them. They should be taught in school, why it’s important to love yourself and even create clubs to help students appreciate themselves more often. Recap on the studies have shown that the images show a sign that appearance has more influence and objectifying has more of a false view of fitness. Media users should be educated in not feeling objectified or having to compare their bodies to others.
Works cited
Deighton-Smith, N., & Bell, B. (2018). Objectifying Fitness: A Content and Thematic Analysis of #Fitspiration Images on Social Media. Psychology of Popular Media, 7(4), 467-483.
Harper, B., & Tiggemann, M. (2008). The effect of thin ideal media images on women’s self-objectification, mood, and body image. Sex Roles, 58, 649– 657.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11199-007-9379-x
Lee, M., & Lee, H. (2019). Can Virtual Makeovers Using Photo Editing Applications Moderate Negative Media Influences on SNS Users’ Body Satisfaction? Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science, 51(4), 231-238.
