How Social Media Affects the Body Image of Female College Students

Billions of people across the world use social media. Because a large portion of those users are college students between the ages of 20 and 22, this study sought to explore social media's effects on a female college student’s body image. The study’s research questions are: How does social media affect female college students’ feelings about their physical selves, and do such effects differ across platforms? Interview data are analyzed based on theories of social comparison, normative influence, narrative-induced transportation, media richness, and social presence. Results reveal that social media affects female college students' perceptions of physical images, and overall this effect is more often negative than positive. Also, Instagram offered a more perfectionist visual culture than Facebook and Twitter.