Instagram Filters and Self-Perception: A Digital Citizenship Issue
Week 9: Digital Citizenship and Software literacy: Instagram Filters
Have you ever taken a photo 📸, applied an Instagram filter🥵, and instantly felt more confident about posting it online? While filters can make photos more appealing, they may also influence self-perception and beauty standards in today’s digital world.
Hi everyone 🧸 welcome back to my blog again. Today, we will be exploring the topic of Instagram filters. Instagram filters have become a routine feature of online self-expression, especially among young users on platforms like Instagram, and I also use them when posting on social media. While they are often seen as harmless tools for enhancing photos, research suggests they play a much deeper role in shaping self-perception, body image, and digital identity (Qaili, 2024).
A 2021 Wall Street Journal report found that 32% of teenage girls said Instagram made them feel worse about their bodies when they were already feeling insecure (Frier & MacMillan, 2021). This highlights how social media platforms do not exist in isolation—they actively influence emotional wellbeing and self-evaluation. Earlier research suggests that social media can contribute to body dissatisfaction by exposing users to idealised and edited representations of beauty (Perloff, 2014).
Adding to this, beauty-filtered selfies can be more damaging to self-esteem than viewing filtered images of others. This is because individuals tend to engage in harsher self-criticism when comparing their edited self-image to idealised beauty standards created by filters (British Psychological Society, 2023). This pressure is particularly evident among younger social media users. Teenage girls often engage in self-presentation and peer comparison on social media platforms by posting selfies and carefully curating their online identities. The desire to gain approval through likes and positive comments can intensify concerns about appearance, encouraging users to rely on filters (Chua and Chang, 2016).
From a digital citizenship perspective, this issue is not only about individual self-esteem but also about how users behave and interact responsibly within digital environments. Digital citizenship involves understanding the impact of our online actions, including how we present ourselves and how this influences others. When filtered images become the dominant form of self-representation, they can unintentionally reinforce unrealistic beauty norms and increase social pressure within online communities.
Another important way to understand the impact of Instagram filters is through communication and media theories. Social media platforms often encourage users to continuously improve and curate their online image. As a result, users frequently edit photos to appear more attractive, confident, and successful, reinforcing a culture of visual perfection.
One useful explanation is Social Comparison Theory (Festinger, 1954), which suggests that individuals evaluate themselves by comparing their appearance and lifestyle with others. On platforms like Instagram, this process is intensified because users are not only comparing themselves to others, but also to filtered and idealised versions of those individuals. This can lead to distorted self-evaluation, where natural appearance is perceived as less desirable than digitally enhanced images.
Similarly, Objectification Theory (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997) explains that individuals, particularly women, may begin to view their bodies as objects to be evaluated based on appearance. Instagram filters contribute to this process by encouraging constant visual self-monitoring, where users become highly focused on how they look rather than how they feel, think, or express themselves.
In conclusion, Instagram filters are much more than simple photo-editing tools. While they provide opportunities for creativity and self-expression, they can also influence body image, self-esteem, and perceptions of beauty. As digital citizens, it is important to recognise that the images we encounter online are often carefully curated rather than accurate reflections of reality. By developing critical awareness and practising responsible engagement online, we can navigate digital spaces more thoughtfully and promote healthier standards of self-perception.
Qaili, E. (2024). Instagram filters and self-perception: A quantitative study. In The teacher of the future: 36th International Scientific Conference (Vol. 64.1, pp. 135–138). KNOWLEDGE – International Journal. https://ojs.ikm.mk/index.php/kij/article/view/6791
Frier, S., & MacMillan, D. (2021, September 14). Facebook knows Instagram is toxic for teen girls, company documents show. The Wall Street Journal. https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show-11631620739
Perloff, R. M. (2014). Social media effects on young women's body image concerns: Theoretical perspectives and an agenda for research. Sex Roles, 71(11–12), 363–377. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-014-0384-6
British Psychological Society. (2023, July 21). Beauty-filtered selfies are more damaging than filtered photos of others. BPS Research Digest. https://www.bps.org.uk/research-digest/beauty-filtered-selfies-are-more-damaging-filtered-photos-others
Chua, T. H. H., & Chang, L. (2016). Follow me and like my beautiful selfies: Singapore teenage girls' engagement in self-presentation and peer comparison on social media. Computers in Human Behavior, 55, 190–197. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.09.011
Festinger, L. (1954). A theory of social comparison processes. Human Relations, 7(2), 117–140. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872675400700202
Fredrickson, B. L., & Roberts, T. A. (1997). Objectification theory: Toward understanding women's lived experiences and mental health risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21(2), 173–206. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.1997.tb00108.x
