Motives for using social networking sites: a uses & gratifications perspective amongst people with eating disorder symptoms.

Studies investigating motives for social networking sites (SNS) use amongst people with eating disorder (ED) symptoms are scarce. The uses and gratifications theory states that people actively select media content to gratify their individual needs and this may help to explain why individuals with eating disorder symptoms choose to expose themselves to specific media content and how they choose to respond. Some evidence exists that readiness to change may be a factor related to SNS use patterns in this population. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential relationship between readiness to change ED cognitions/behaviors and SNS use motives in individuals with current or past ED symptoms, employing a uses and gratifications theory perspective. Participants were recruited from ED recovery websites; 103 individuals (16-55 years old) provided complete data. As hypothesized, ED symptom severity was inversely associated with readiness to change and time spent on (specific) SNS was not associated with ED symptom severity. The results of hierarchical regression analyses further suggested that if individuals felt less capable of overcoming their dysfunctional cognitions/behaviors about their body/eating (i.e., were less ready to change), they were more likely to be motivated to use SNSs for the purpose of impressing others and reputation management. The clinical implication is that high amounts of SNS use may not necessarily be harmful for people with EDs or recovering from EDs, whereas using SNSs for the purposes of impression management could potentially be related to being less ready to recover.

People who feel they are capable of overcoming their dysfunctional cognitions and/or behaviours about their body and/or eating, are less likely to use social networking sites for impression management purposes. Motives for social media use like popularity, self-presentation, and social expectations may potentially hinder recovery form an eating disorder. Clinicians should discuss motives of SNS use with their clients, rather than total amount of screen time, to help prevent any negative media effects.

Follow, filter, filler? Social media usage and cosmetic procedure intention, acceptance, and normalization among young adults.

Today, young people spend much of their lives online where they encounter abundant appearance-focused content. In light of the important role that social media platforms like Instagram play in young people's attitudes towards the cosmetic surgery industry, this study investigates passive and active social media usage in relation to young adults' perceptions of cosmetic procedures. In a cross-sectional survey study among 470 Instagram users aged 18-25 years (Mage = 21.00, SDage = 2.26), young adults indicated a low cosmetic procedure intention themselves, but overestimated the prevalence of cosmetic procedures undertaken by others. Considering passive social media use, young adults who follow influencers who had undergone cosmetic procedures reported higher intentions to have cosmetic procedures themselves, and following influencers who had not undergone procedures was related to lower intentions. In terms of active social media usage, frequency of Instagram posting was generally insignificant in relation to acceptance of and intention to undergo cosmetic procedures. Yet, those who used filters to edit pictures more frequently reported increased cosmetic procedure acceptance and intention. Overall, this paper offers a nuanced perspective on the relation between young adults' perceptions of cosmetic procedures and their social media behaviors, highlighting the importance of specific appearance-oriented social media usage.

The effect of Instagram "likes" on women's social comparison and body dissatisfaction.

Photo-based activity on social networking sites has recently been identified as contributing to body image concerns. The present study aimed to investigate experimentally the effect of number of likes accompanying Instagram images on women's own body dissatisfaction. Participants were 220 female undergraduate students who were randomly assigned to view a set of thin-ideal or average images paired with a low or high number of likes presented in an Instagram frame. Results showed that exposure to thin-ideal images led to greater body and facial dissatisfaction than average images. While the number of likes had no effect on body dissatisfaction or appearance comparison, it had a positive effect on facial dissatisfaction. These effects were not moderated by Instagram involvement, but greater investment in Instagram likes was associated with more appearance comparison and facial dissatisfaction. The results illustrate how the uniquely social interactional aspects of social media (e.g., likes) can affect body image.

Brain activation upon ideal-body media exposure and peer feedback in late adolescent girls.

Media's prevailing thin-body ideal plays a vital role in adolescent girls' body image development, but the co-occurring impact of peer feedback is understudied. The present study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to test media imagery and peer feedback combinations on neural activity related to thin-body ideals. Twenty-four healthy female late adolescents rated precategorized body sizes of bikini models (too thin or normal), directly followed by ostensible peer feedback (too thin or normal). Consistent with prior studies on social feedback processing, results showed increased brain activity in the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC)/anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and bilateral insula in incongruent situations: when participants rated media models' body size as normal while peer feedback indicated the models as too thin (or vice versa). This effect was stronger for girls with lower self-esteem. A subsequent behavioral study (N = 34 female late adolescents, separate sample) demonstrated that participants changed behavior in the direction of the peer feedback: precategorized normal sized models were rated as too thin more often after receiving too thin peer feedback. This suggests that the neural responses upon peer feedback may influence subsequent choice. Our results show that media-by-peer interactions have pronounced effects on girls' body ideals.

"Skinny is prettier and normal: I want to be normal"-Perceived body image of non-Western ethnic minority children in the Netherlands.

While the prevalence of overweight and obesity is higher among children of some non-Western ethnic minorities than among their Caucasian counterparts, their body image is understudied. The current study examined the body image of Dutch children of non-Western ethnic minorities (i.e., Surinamese, Antillean, Moroccan, and Turkish). Sociocultural influences from school, media and home environments and their perceptions of overweight prevention programs were taken into account. Fifty-two non-Western ethnic minority children (aged 8-12 years) participated in semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Results showed that the children generally underestimated their current body size, which was often overweight, and preferred thin and 'normal' body sizes. Results further revealed important insights into culturally determined themes, relating to perceived preferences in media, peers, parents, and teachers, nutritional habits, and children's beliefs about school-based health interventions. We conclude that targeting culturally sensitive awareness about actual body size and healthy body images seems paramount in future interventions.

Boost Your Body: Self-Improvement Magazine Messages Increase Body Satisfaction in Young Adults.

The verbal messages that contextualize exposure to idealized body imagery may moderate media users' body satisfaction. Such contextualizing verbal messages often take the form of social comparison motives in fashion magazines, while body dissatisfaction is an important mechanism underlying various body image-related health issues like depression and unbalanced weight status. Hence, the present study applied social comparison motives as induced through magazine cover messages. Hypotheses were tested in an experimental design with social comparison motives (self-improvement vs. self-evaluation vs. control) and recipient gender as between-subjects factors and body satisfaction as within-subjects factor (N = 150). Results showed that self-improvement messages accompanying ideal body media models increased body satisfaction, compared to control messages and baseline measures. In contrast, the self-evaluation messages did not impact body satisfaction. Results imply that inconsistencies regarding effects from exposure to idealized body imagery are explained by the context in which media images are portrayed, evoking differential social comparison motives. Moreover, the findings imply that health communication interventions can use verbal messages on body improvement as helpful tools, if they draw on social comparison motives effectively.

A Dutch translation and validation of the Body Appreciation Scale-2: An investigation with female university students in the Netherlands.

This paper describes a Dutch translation and validation of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2; Tylka & Wood-Barcalow, 2015a), an instrument for assessing key components of positive body image. Dutch-speaking female university students (N=310, Mage=21.31, SD=3.04) completed the Dutch BAS-2. To assess its construct validity, participants also completed measures of appearance satisfaction, functionality satisfaction, self-objectification, self-esteem, and optimistic life orientation. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a one-dimensional factor structure of the Dutch BAS-2, substantiating the BAS-2 factor structure found in samples of U.S., Chinese, and Iranian university students and community adults. Dutch BAS-2 scores also demonstrated good internal consistency (α=.90), convergent validity, and incremental validity. In addition, lower body mass indices were associated with higher Dutch BAS-2 scores. The present findings support the cross-cultural equivalence of the BAS-2 and thus its promise in enabling research on positive body image in diverse cultural contexts.

A pilot study investigating whether focusing on body functionality can protect women from the potential negative effects of viewing thin-ideal media images.

This pilot study explored whether focusing on body functionality (i.e., everything the body can do) can protect women from potential harmful effects of exposure to thin-ideal images. Seventy women (Mage=20.61) completed an assignment wherein they either described the functionality of their body or the routes that they often travel (control). Afterward, participants were exposed to a series of thin-ideal images. Appearance and functionality satisfaction were measured before the assignment; appearance and functionality satisfaction, self-objectification, and body appreciation were measured after exposure. Results showed that participants who focused on body functionality experienced greater functionality satisfaction and body appreciation compared to control participants. Therefore, focusing on body functionality could be a beneficial individual-level technique that women can use to protect and promote a positive body image in the face of thin-ideal images. Research including a condition wherein participants are exposed to (product-only) control images is necessary to draw firmer conclusions.

Negotiated media effects. Peer feedback modifies effects of media's thin-body ideal on adolescent girls.

The present study introduces a theoretical framework on negotiated media effects. Specifically, we argue that feedback of peers on thin-body ideal media images and individual dispositions guide effects on adolescent girls' psychosocial responses to media exposure. Therefore, we examined the thin-body ideal as portrayed in media and peers' feedback on such thin-ideal images in their combined effects on adolescent girls' body dissatisfaction, objectified body consciousness, and social comparison with media models. Hence, media models and peer comments were systematically combined as incorporated entities in YouTube-formats. Hypotheses were tested in a 3 (media models: extremely thin vs. thin vs. normal weight)×3 (peer comments: 6kg-underweight vs. 3kg-underweight vs. normal-weight)×2 (appearance schematicity: lower vs. higher) between-subjects design (N=216). Results showed that peer comments indicating that a media model was 'only 3kg-underweight' exerted most negative responses, particularly in girls who strongly process appearance relevant information. Peer feedback interacts with media models in guiding perceptions of what is considered an 'ideal' body shape. Results highlight the important role of peers as well as individual predispositions in view of understanding how thin-ideal media images may impact adolescent girls' body image concerns.

YouTube as a research tool: three approaches.

The present paper provides empirical data to support the use of social media as research environment. YouTube was chosen as a most appropriate format to target adolescents in experimental and cross-sectional designs given its popularity as well as its plasticity. We uniquely applied the YouTube format as (a) an environment to present manipulated media materials in controlled experimental designs; (b) an environment to study effects of peer feedback on various media contents; (c) a format to design a media-based questionnaire, specifically, the Media, Morals and Youth Questionnaire (MMaYQue). Various studies have been conducted that demonstrate the appropriateness of our YouTube transformations for each of these three purposes. The focus in the present paper is on the methodology of these studies to illustrate how we effectively transformed YouTube as a research tool.

Weight information labels on media models reduce body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls.

PURPOSE: To examine how weight information labels on variously sized media models affect (pre)adolescent girls' body perceptions and how they compare themselves with media models. METHODS: We used a three (body shape: extremely thin vs. thin vs. normal weight) × three (information label: 6-kg underweight vs. 3-kg underweight vs. normal weight) experimental design in three age-groups (9-10 years, 12-13 years, and 15-16 years; n = 184). The girls completed questionnaires after exposure to media models. RESULTS: Weight information labels affected girls' body dissatisfaction, social comparison with media figures, and objectified body consciousness. Respondents exposed to an extremely thin body shape labeled to be of "normal weight" were most dissatisfied with their own bodies and showed highest levels of objectified body consciousness and comparison with media figures. An extremely thin body shape combined with a corresponding label (i.e., 6-kg underweight), however, induced less body dissatisfaction and less comparison with the media model. Age differences were also found to affect body perceptions: adolescent girls showed more negative body perceptions than preadolescents. CONCLUSIONS: Weight information labels may counteract the generally media-induced thin-body ideal. That is, when the weight labels appropriately informed the respondents about the actual thinness of the media model's body shape, girls were less affected. Weight information labels also instigated a normalization effect when a "normal-weight" label was attached to underweight-sized media models. Presenting underweight as a normal body shape, clearly increased body dissatisfaction in girls. Results also suggest age between preadolescence and adolescence as a critical criterion in responding to media models' body shape.