Effects of Society and Social Media on Body Image Essay Example

The topic I will be discussing throughout this paper, as well as my presentation is Body image and the influence of society and social media have on how we perceive ourselves and others. This can be somewhat of a controversial or triggering subject for some and that makes complete sense based on one’s past trauma or what they were taught about the subject from family members, teachers, doctors, etc. This is an extremely important topic to me because of my own experiences with body image, and how my self-perception and worth have been distorted by social media and other factors of my life. From my own unfortunate experiences, and many others as well I have gained somewhat of an understanding of what it feels like to be constantly critiquing how you look in the mirror. As a society, we are becoming somewhat better about having open discussions about this topic and trying to accept this idea of “body neutrality” however like many other problems in our world today such as racism we are still nowhere near where we should be at this point. 

One of the most relevant articles that I found while researching this topic was about the effects that viewing either “thin” or “plus-sized” models in either objectifying or empowering contexts on Instagram. We usually only talk about the negative effects of scrolling through social media as it has been proven to affect our mental health and body image. There can be ways to fix this, as we can control what we see on there, maybe we look at some accounts for motivation but this can end up doing far more harm than good, I know this from experience. There’s always been this phenomenon in our society where if someone looks or is worse off than us it makes us feel better even if we won’t admit this to ourselves. More companies in the last couple of years have begun to show a wider range of model sizes which is wonderful but are they doing this because they believe that all bodies are beautiful or because they were following a trend and trying not to get canceled. I guess no matter the intentions they are still helping anyone who may not feel like they fit into the “ideal body type” feel better.  They also looked at different slogans used in campaigns, and how they referred to different models, there have been huge companies like Victoria’s Secret that have viewed size 6 girls as plus-sized, not that there is anything wrong with plus size, but more so the obsessive need society has to put labels on everyone. We have always fallen into this social comparison trap, it has just grown more and more since the rise of social media, so companies create ad campaigns that will target a specific body type. And the goal is typically to make people feel more comfortable in their skin, but studies have shown that these movements have made people more unsatisfied with their bodies. Even if companies and societies attempt to convince us otherwise, we do live in an ideal “thin” world, the ideal body types even in the last 5 years or so are very attainable for the vast majority of people. And with a negative body image can come eating disorders which unfortunately are far too common and can lead to serious health problems. A lot of the idea of body image and this objectification of women comes from typically heterosexual males, whether they write offensive songs or the sexual gaze that they have. This is interconnected with women being portrayed as sexual objects in the mass media, that are constantly being criticized, all of this can psychologically warp how a person feels about their worth. 

Another source that I found while researching was both very relevant to my topic, as well as to the state of the world is about how everyone’s attitudes towards personal appearance, body image, etc changed dramatically during the start of COVID-19. Everyone is in lockdown and having to move back in with their families which can bring back disordered eating if you are from a toxic household and had nowhere else to go. The pandemic has been a stressor for everyone, but especially for vulnerable groups of people like those with struggle with mental health, body image issues, or any type of disordered eating. Everyone especially in the very beginning had far more time than usual to scroll through social media to compare, and some would constantly be exercising, which I tried to do because it made me feel good and gave me the energy that I needed to feel somewhat normal. Exercising isn’t inherently bad of course unless people are using it just to look like someone else especially people who may be an unobtainable body shape or size, the reality is even if we eat and work out the same as a supermodel every single day, we still would never look the same as them since we all have unique bodies. One thing that helped me through the lockdown was following very body-positive accounts, as this study suggests this can greatly decrease the internalization of thin body ideals.  During the first lockdown, while I was working out every day, it was much easier to not think about nutrition which is perfectly fine I think, because there have been times in my life where I overanalyze what I’m consuming too much. It is extremely difficult to find a good balance when it comes to nutrition, especially if someone's mind is tricking them into believing that they should barely be eating anything or eating too much.

Sure we can go to therapy, talk to loved ones, and talk to a dietitian or nutritionist but this cannot rewire our brains completely. We are the only ones who can control how we see ourselves and if we are satisfied with what we see. 

A huge part of our personal beliefs and ideologies comes from society and any people we surround ourselves with often. And unless we deeply analyze where our beliefs are coming it can be much tougher to see that we are not as free of thinkers as we thought. Even someone who lives completely alone in a desolate forest or town somewhere will still feel the weight that society has on us. In 2021 there are still so many harmful stereotypes about different body types and many double standards for anyone who is not a straight white cis man. If we are too thin then we must be anorexic and unhealthy, when that can sometimes just be genetics. If you weigh a little more then you must not be exercising and you’re lazy. This is not usually the case either, you never know exactly what someone is going through with their body and self-confidence journey, so it’s important to simply be kind and not comment on someone whether they’ve gained a little weight or lost some.  Why as a society have we become so obsessed with outer appearances when that is the most unique part about ourselves other than our personalities. All of this ties in with the source that I looked at about Instagram and other social media affecting mental health and sense of worth since a majority of stereotypes and societal constructs come from mass media. 

This is as I mentioned earlier an incredibly important topic to myself and many others. It is maybe a sensitive or controversial topic, but it shouldn’t be. As the world and society keep evolving we have to these more difficult conversations and be upfront with whoever has encouraged any unhealthy habits. The whole concept of self-esteem, body confidence, etc has in the past been viewed as a selfish thing, but if we learn to treat ourselves and our bodies with kindness then it is much easier to do this for others. This is easier said than done because it takes a long time to fully love yourself. Everyone has their insecurities that never really go away, and this is not necessarily a bad thing it sets us all apart, and even the biggest celebrity will feel incredibly insecure especially since their body is constantly on display.

The main conclusion I can draw out so far from my research and personal experience is that social media and society as a whole greatly affect one's sense of worth and body confidence. Though we can never rid ourselves fully of these toxic influences, we can dictate who we follow and who we surround ourselves with. The reality is that our bodies are the least interesting thing about us, good friends will be focused on your beautiful personality and not how you look in a dress.  My inquiry was more successful than I thought it would be, and I wasn’t sure exactly what I would learn when i chose my topic. I definitely would like to keep researching this topic since it is important to me, and other people no matter their gender identity should be educated on it as well. This way we can treat others accordingly especially if we have kids in the future. As I am hoping to become a clinical psychologist I hope that I can specialize in this subject, I already feel incredibly passionate about it and I know that will just grow and if I go into child and adolescent psychology I hope to be like the role models that have helped me.