Week 8: Body Image and the Social Media Influence
To me, social media has the ability to promote positive body image, however it seems to cause enormous negative effect on body image, particularly on girls aged 13-25. Whilst social media should promote positive body image (range of ethnicities, body shapes, hair colours etc.), our feeds are constantly made up of the same ‘Instagram aesthetic’ kind of girl. White, skinny but curvaceous in all the right places, flawless skin, big lips, perfectly styled hair, perfectly posed photos. But the truth of these girls is that without the makeup, fake tan, hair stylists, expensive wardrobe, cosmetic surgery and photoshop, these girls don’t appear this way in real life.
The social media guide to becoming a ‘microcelebrity’ involves fitting to the feminine aesthetic template as well as sexualising your brand known as ‘pornification’. Sexualised images are common practice on social media, reflecting an online nature that endorses “the aesthetics of commercial pornography within western societies” (cited in Drenten at al. 2018). These sexualised images gain more attention than other photos, giving the social media user more validation when it comes to posting and hence creating a cycle. Followers are constantly comparing themselves to these social media influencers and celebrities, simply by following them, or scrolling their feed. This causes huge implications on mental and physical health. Recent years have seen a rise in plastic surgery such as fillers, breast implants and butt lifts, all signs of the perfect feminine social media aesthetic. This plastic surgery increase saw the Victorian government release a campaign in 2019, underlining the importance of safe cosmetic procedures, as a new trend cheap deals at unlicensed facilities were targeting vulnerable Victorians, seeing a surge in health complaints due to infection, disfigurement and in rare cases death (Minister for Health, 2019). As well as physical health, the constant exposure to unattainable body types causes a huge effect on mental health. A study showed that casual social media use had do determined effect on young girls drive for a thin body, however more focused social media use such as searches for ‘fitspo’ influencers and focused ‘stalking’ on influencers and celebrities were seen to be significantly correlated with both female and male drive for a skinny or muscular body, respectively (Kim et al. 2015).
References:
Drenten, J Gurrieri, L Tyler, M 2018, ‘Sexualized lavour in digital culture: Instagra, influencers, porn chic and the monetization of attention’, Gender Work Organ, vol. 41, pp. 41-66.
Kim, JW, Chock TM, 2015, ‘Body image 2.0: Associations between social grooming on Facebook and body image concerns’, Computers in Human Behaviour, vol. 48, pp. 331-339.
Lai, Z Henninger, CE Alevizou, PJ 2017, ‘An Exploration of Consumers’ Perceptions Towards Sustainable Fashion – A Qualitative Study in the UK’, Sustainability in Fashion: A Cradle to Upcycle Approach, pp. 81-101.
Victorian Government, Health Minister, 'Protecting Victorians From Dodgy Cosmetic Surgery' (2019)
