Social Media Linked to Poor Body Image

Rebecca Lewis April 11, 2014

New research shows that women spend more time on Facebook than men. And the more they are exposed to their friends’ ‘selfies’, the more they compare themselves negatively.

The study is the first to show a link between social media and poor body image. Whilst the mass media is known to have an influence on how people feel about their appearance, little is known about the impact of social media on it.

Researchers say friends’ photos may be more influential than celebrity shots as they are of known contacts, say UK and US experts. Young women are particularly high users of social networking sites and post more photographs of themselves on the internet than men.

For the study, researchers from the University of Strathclyde, Ohio University and University of Iowa surveyed 881 female college students who answered questions about their Facebook use, eating and exercise regimes, and body image.

The findings suggest that the more time women spent on Facebook, the more they compared their bodies with that of their friends, and the more they felt negative for their appearance. However, the study didn’t find a link between social media use and eating disorder.

In an interview with the BBC, Petya Eckler of the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow said "The attention to physical attributes may be even more dangerous on social media than on traditional media because participants in social media are people we know.” "These comparisons are much more relevant and hit closer to home. Yet they may be just as unrealistic as the images we see on traditional media."

"These comparisons are much more relevant and hit closer to home. Yet they may be just as unrealistic as the images we see on traditional media."

"The fascination with celebrities, their bodies, clothes and appearance has all increased the pressure that people typically feel at a time when they seek to establish their own identities and when their bodies are growing and changing," a spokesperson for the Beat eating disorders charity. "The fascination with celebrities, their bodies, clothes and appearance has all increased the pressure that people typically feel at a time when they seek to establish their own identities and when their bodies are growing and changing," she said.

Source of this article:

’Selfie’ body image warning issued