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Cited by 5Eating Disorders and BehaviorsBody Image and Dysmorphia StudiesGender, Feminism, and Media

The Effects of Instagram Influencers and Appearance Comparisons on Body Appreciation, Internalization of Beauty Ideals and Self Esteem in Women

Open access
Bauer, Juliane·2020
DOI 10.15760/honors.929
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Abstract

The current study investigated how exposure to thin bodies on different (social) media platforms affect body appreciation, internalization of beauty ideals, and self-esteem in female and non-binary participants. The participants (N=116) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: exposure to content from a) Instagram influencers, b) models in magazines, or c) peers. Participants completed an online survey, answering questions about their feelings towards the women depicted in the media content as well as appearance comparison tendencies, body appreciation, self-esteem, internalization of body ideals, and BMI. Overall, significant differences between groups were found for the internalization of body ideals and how attainable participants believed the body of the depicted women to be. No significant differences between conditions were found for self-esteem, appearance comparisons, or body appreciation.

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  • Social media bloggers and influencers were found to be more relatable to women under study than traditional models.

    “Social media bloggers and influencers were found to be more relatable to women understudy than traditional models.”

    From How False Social Media Beauty Standards Lead To Body Dysmorphia (2023) · cites this paper as Bauer, 2020

    The introduction (page unavailable) describes influencers as more relatable than traditional models, and the Appearance Comparison results report that participants compared themselves with influencers more often than with magazine models. But the study did not establish that its participants found influencers more relatable: its Experimental Condition results found no significant difference in perceived appearance attainability between the influencer and magazine-model groups. The claim presents the introductory idea as a finding about the women studied. (LLM, conf=0.86)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Women suffering from low self-esteem after spending hours on social media sites reported having a greater desire to look like influencers.

    “The study found that women, suffering from low self-esteem after spending hours on social media sites, reported having a greater desire to look like influencers.”

    From How False Social Media Beauty Standards Lead To Body Dysmorphia (2023) · cites this paper as Bauer, 2020

    The Discussion (page unavailable) reports that participants with lower self-esteem had a greater desire to look like the women depicted in the study images. It does not establish that spending hours on social media caused their low self-esteem, and the images included peers and models as well as influencers. (LLM, conf=0.89)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Women internalized the thin ideal after being exposed to social media sites.

    “Women also internalized the thin ideal after being exposed to social media sites.”

    From How False Social Media Beauty Standards Lead To Body Dysmorphia (2023) · cites this paper as Bauer, 2020

    The Internalization of Body Ideals results (page unavailable) report higher internalization scores among participants who spent more time on social media, and the study measured internalization after exposure to images. But this association does not show that exposure caused women to internalize the thin ideal; internalization did not differ significantly between the Instagram-influencer group and either comparison group. (LLM, conf=0.87)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

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Cites

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Research works printed but not linked: 27

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Authors
Bauer, J.
Affiliations
Portland State University (US)
Corresponding author
Bauer, Juliane
Publisher
Portland State University Library
Published
2020-05-22
DOI
10.15760/honors.929
OpenAlex
W3039387433
Cited by
5
References
3
Citations by year
2025: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 1
Type
dissertation
Language
en
Open access
Locations
PDXScholar (Portland State University) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Body Image and Dysmorphia Studies
  • Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Gender, Feminism, and Media
Keywords
Instagram influencers, appearance comparison, body appreciation, self-esteem, thin ideal, social media exposure, peer comparison, women, body image

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