"Selfies with filters": Are they causing more good or bad?
In our last post, we talked about the concept of body modification and how it has been extrapolated by postmodernised social media. This week, we will shift towards the topic of social media face filters, as selfies and image-sharing habits became a culture rooted into the society, traced back to the earliest history of social media.
Plus, the convergence of Augmented Reality (AR) introduces greater complexities to user experiences, on both its process and effects to an individual's mental and physical wellbeing. Just like any other technological features, augmented reality features in selfies are widely celebrated on its available platforms such as Snapchat. Social media companies exploit great revenue potential from AR especially when paired with selfies option. In this episode, we will study the history and impact of face filters as a whole.
But first, let’s uncover what the social media conglomerates don’t want you to know behind those “cute doggos” AR filters.
Number one. They don’t want you to know that the AR filters act as sophisticated biometric data-harvesting tools (Bell, 2025). The AR filters don’t just paste a cute cartoon onto your face, they require real-time tracking to work. That’s the reason why sometimes it goes off from your face, but when you move to a certain position, the filter is then reapplied. While doing so, your face biometrics are being taken down. This includes all your micro-expressions, eye movements and the general facial features.
Number two. The filters cause the psychology of “filter dysmorphia”. Filter dysmorphia is a modern phenomenon where individuals become fixated on altering their appearances to match the idealized, filtered versions of themselves (Leno, 2026). The companies are well aware of the psychological outcomes and urges of using face filters. They just don’t care as much. Many face filter users start by already feeling a low self esteem about their appearances. The outcome of using these face filters, with hopes to feel better, only worsens the dysmorphia, leading to increased dissatisfaction about how they look in real life.
Number three. AR filters are often used for marketing and strategic business purposes. In some cases, you may have become some free promotional tools for the companies without you even realising. For example, you use some branded AR effects, or even general face filters, in some way or the other, it helps to construct better algorithms and engagement for targeted advertising.
And now, let’s spin back to the general good and bad of face filters. Instagram face filters will be a good enough example to look at.
To speak fairly, face filters exist because of the normal human desire to achieve beauty, aesthetics and perfection. Face filters result in better quality images and offer self expression to a certain extent. However, by abusing face filters, it distorts the nature of this beauty or entertainment function, thus leading to a series of side-effects and psychological harm. Isakowitsch (2023) affirms that augmented reality attacks one’s self perception because it generates facades of the users’ real self-image, and creates a more depressing situation when people find out that reality is far away from the perceived ideal projected by those face filters.
And yes, people hate themselves more behind those pretty faces shared online. An improved image representation of oneself versus fake distorted beauty projection offers a very thin line to cross. A major problem lies in the company’s algorithmic recommendation of filter use for selfie purposes, which appeals to the human emotion but is risky towards long term wellbeing.
The digital world won’t get rid of its smart-trick in offering beauty perfection. And theories explain the vulnerability of human brains in differentiating between physical reality and image representation (UCL, 2025). So what can we do? In some ways, we are bound to co-exist with some digital tools with potential to impose harm in a sociocultural aspect, though not completely, just like the selfie filters. The best way forward is perhaps sticking onto awareness, and by watching out for the “boobytraps” of “perfect beauty” exist on our social media.
HEY BY THE WAY, DON'T FORGET THAT
