Sajila Nudrat | Health Editor
Featured image courtesy of Pexels
With the turn of the century, one of the most impressive feats of development that today’s society may never be able to survive again without, are the technological innovations that only seem to be growing in both popularity and numbers. Social media’s surge in both usage and demand is on par with the 10-year challenge that has been plaguing all the various forms of interactive web applications. This fleeting trend of the minute showcases the drastic changes the very platforms it’s broadcasted on have undergone in the last decade or so.
In 10 years time, technology has fit a computer into a person’s back pocket, designed a heart monitor to fit on a wrist, and has inadvertently slaughtered a person’s self-esteem. That doesn’t mean technology in and of itself is humanity’s greatest fault. It’s done plenty of good, like put man on the moon, artificial intelligence in our kitchens, and some calls to extraterrestrials in space that are hopefully answered soon.
However, the greatest weapon to come of this age, by far, is social media. Whether it is used to spread fake news, catch up on the state of the world via the undoubtedly reliable Fox News, or simply as a tool to watch cute cat videos, social media has most definitely made a lasting impact, one that may not always have positive implications.
The things we experience and are exposed to on a daily basis have direct effects on our wellbeing, and social media tends to be a direct agent in that. Jennifer Mills, an associate professor in the department of psychology at York, researches eating behaviour and body image. A few years ago she became interested in the relationship between social media, and how women see and feel about their bodies, and whether social media may be a risk factor in one’s perception of their bodies.
In furthering her research, Mills and her colleagues have published two studies looking specifically at the causal effect of the various activities people do online, and how the engagement in those activities affects body image. The first study views how the action of taking and posting a selfie on social media changes a person’s perceptions of their body. The young undergraduate women that took part in the study were shown to demonstrate a significant shift in how they felt about themselves. There was anxiety and lowered feeling of confidence among them.
The other study published that Mills took part in was the effect the exposure to other people’s images had on people, and their self-confidence. The point of the study was to determine how a person feels about their own bodies when they are looking at their peers, or someone they consider to be attractive.
“Young undergraduate students (women) came into the lab and looked at photos of someone they identified as a peer and as more attractive than them. In sociological theory, this was a social comparison, and we found that after actively engaging in the social media of an attractive peer, people felt more dissatisfied with their bodies,” Mills says.
She further elaborates and discusses how body image is in constant flux. “There aren’t dramatic or extreme changes in body image, but if we think in terms of risk factors, we know body image is important to a lot of people (particularly young people). It’s their primary concern. Social media is a risky behaviour, and it has the potential to trigger body image dissatisfaction, especially for those who are vulnerable.”
Mills also states that not everyone will react the same way; some people with high self-esteem may not be affected. People react differently, but the overall general trend that was seen in the studies was that people felt worse about their body image when they were engaged in appearance-based social media activities.
When asked about the message that can be taken from the studies, Mills replies: “We are hardwired to socially compare ourselves, it’s human nature to compare ourselves to other people on all kinds of different attributes. We should try to minimize that and try not to engage in excessive social comparison or chronic social comparison where it seems to be occurring all the time.”
While social media may make it easy to form comparisons, it’s important to remember that the image a person posts may not necessarily be real. Nowadays, people are retouching, photoshopping and putting their images through entire 12-step processes before posting them on social media. This is to try and make the picture as ideal as possible, and once this is done, it no longer remains that a person is simply comparing themselves to someone more physically attractive—but rather, they’re comparing themselves to an unattainable image.
To avoid negative and lackluster feelings, according to Mills: “People should be aware of how social media makes them feel and when they feel its contributing to low self-esteem, mood or anxiety, they should take a break. Some participants in our research have started to incorporate social media breaks. It’s hard to do that because so much of socializing comes from the online network but it’s good for people to check in on how its affecting their mental health.”
When asked if research has indicated ways social media can be used to curb the dissatisfaction people may have with their body image, Mills responded that there hasn’t been much success with intervention designed around body image, but one of the best things a person can do is distract themselves. They should fill their life with other non-appearance-related activities.
If social media consistently proves to be a factor of low self-esteem, why do people continue to use it? If posting pictures of themselves eventually leads to feelings of dissatisfaction, what pathological desire is hardwired into the minds of people that causes them to continue down such a path?
“In the real world, people tend to post selfies when they feel good about the photo they’ve taken. They may feel pressure to post on a certain basis. For the most part, people can choose when they post, and so they post when they feel good, but they’re also looking for that positive feedback, and subconsciously, anticipating positive comments. This is something that is expected of friends. Posting a positive comment on a photo goes along with the role of being a friend, and when you don’t get positive comments it can be disappointing, and make you feel insecure. When people post, they’re hoping for positive comments, because we’re hardwired to desire social approval and inclusion.”
Social media can be an emotional rollercoaster. Someone may feel good about what they post for a time being, but the applications also have the potential result in feelings of anxiousness and body dissatisfaction.
“One of the things participants in the research told us is that they’ll pick a picture, and hold onto it, until they can get a lot of likes and comments. So people will time their photos in order to maximise the positive feedback they’ll get.”
Mills also adds that it may not all be bad, as some people like putting together a social media presence, and this might actually help them feel good about themselves; they feel proud of their work, and other things they’ve accomplished. “There could be an element that provides self-validation, but so much of it is tied into how other people react that it overshadows any confidence they might have of themselves, if other people don’t respond in a positive way,” she says.
Mills attributes the changing of body ideals to social media. “With social media there’s, so many body ideals; on one hand it provides more diversity, but on the other hand, it provides a social comparison that people are not measuring up to a certain standard. It takes a lot of time and effort, and the end result is people still feel dissatisfied with their bodies. Even if they’re comparing themselves to different bodies, it’s still not realistic.”
Even with the changing ideas and notions of how a person’s body should or should not look, Mills doesn’t believe that popular culture phenomena such as the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show are going away any time soon.
This is because: “We as a society have internalized that concept of beauty (intersection of beauty, thinness, youth, femininity) that’s so ingrained in our culture, that they’ll always be an appetite for exposing those kinds of images. Advertisers exploit that; it’s no coincidence advertising uses very thin and attractive models, because that’s what captures people’s attentions because that’s what they want to see, even if it makes them feel bad—a lot of research shows those images work, as they capture our attention, it’s a fantasy most people want to live,” she says.
