A young girl around sixteen, seventeen years old wakes up and starts the new day off happy and joyful.  She starts her morning routine, eating breakfast, showering, brushing her teeth, doing her hair and makeup, etc.  She realizes that she has a couple minutes until she has to leave for school, so she starts to go through her social media.  As she is scrolling she starts to think to herself, “why don’t I look like these girls? Why am I so ugly?’  She keeps scrolling and realizes that she is not the perfect model type, and she begins to slip into a sadness.  She goes about her day, checking her social media when she can, get more and more discouraged.  She does not eat anything the whole day except one granola bar and some water.  She goes to sleep that night and the whole cycle starts again the next day. 

From a young age, most people are taught to love themselves and love others no matter what.  They are taught that it does not matter where you come from, what you believe in, what your skin color is, or even your physical statue. While people are raised to be loving of others, no one begins to think about people loving themselves, and the effect that negative body image may have on them and society as a whole.  Negative body has become an acute problem in the world today, with the main perpetrator being social media. 

First, in order to talk about body image, it has to been defined.  Body image is basically how you see yourself and what you believe you look like in your mind.  This can include, what you believe about your looks, how you feel about the actual height, shape, weight, etc, how you feel your body moves or how you feel in your body and more.  There is negative and positive body image.  With negative body image, or body dissatisfaction, the person has a distorted image of themselves in their minds, they feel ashamed, self-conscious, uncomfortable, awkward, etc.  With positive body image, the person has a clear idea and view of their body.  They appreciate their body and feel proud, comfortable, and confident. Most people begin to have positive body image early on in life, but as they get older and get more involved with social media, negative body image thoughts start to arise. 

 According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary social media is defined as, forms of electronic communication (as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (as videos).

Social media is an easy way to connect people from different parts of the world and share experiences, opinions and express ideas. But it can have a negative effect for body image of the users. It affects the perceptive of many teens women, and men in our society.  People are supposed to love whom they are whether they are “fat” or “petite,” according to societal norms.  Viewing pictures in social media that show thin, curved, attractive women and muscular, lean men cause body dissatisfaction.

The first social media site was Six Degrees, and it was created in 1997.  Users were allowed to upload a profile and have friends with other users.  Six Degrees was used to connect people from all around the world and allowed people to meet others that they would have never had contact with in real life.  So how has this small website that was created to simply connect with other users turned into one of the leading causes of body dissatisfaction? According to an article by Robert J. Williams & Lina A Ricciardelli, not only is social media an issue, but media as a whole is the issue.  For example, music, television, movies, etc. The whole article is based off of Richard Perloff’s theoretical perspectives and idea that the effects of social media have on women’s body and the concern that arises from it. Perloff says that although social media does have an obvious effect, it is no different than the body image concerns mass media brings about in the society.   Some of these concerns include, “exposure to unrealistic body images; modelling; pressure to conform; gender-typed socialization; objectification of the body; internalization of appearance ideals; increased negative affect that results from viewing unrealistic images of the body; social comparisons; interactions with peers and other normative influences; the adoption of appearance management behaviors and body change strategies to improve oneself; and compensatory motivations such as disordered eating as a way to validate one’s self-concepts” (Williams, Robert, and Lina Ricciardelli).  All of these are indicators or negative body image, and tend to take over the mind.  

What exactly is the ideal body image? What is beauty? What makes someone beautiful?  Most people will describe beauty as someone who fits societal norms of what beautiful should look like.  That is what most people base anything off of, societies opinion as a whole.  But, it is not reliable to base someone’s looks based off of what society says, because what society says changes throughout history.

“In the 1920's through magazines and in the new medium of film, a thinner, almost androgynous female form was promoted, epitomized in the flat-chested flapper.  The ideal female form became curvier during the hard times of the Great Depression in the 1930's, although it remained relatively slender through World War II. The postwar revival of domesticity led to the media hyping heavier, ultra-feminine images such as Marilyn Monroe, with larger breasts and hips but small waists. This was only a temporary interruption of the century's trend toward increasingly thin bodies as the ideal. Models shrank more throughout the 1980's and 1990's. In these latter decades, models also became fitter, adding muscles and tone to the preferred image. Images of men have followed the same pattern since the 1980's with male models displaying slightly less fat, much more muscled bodies.” (Spettigue, Wendy, and Katherine A. Henderson.)

Ancient Greece (c. 500-300 B.C.), Italian renaissance (c. 1400-1700), Victorian England (c. 1837-1901), Golden Age of Hollywood (c. 1930s-1950s), and the Supermodel era (c. 1980s) were all eras in which the ideal body images were where the women was curvier and has a little larger figure.  Ancient Egypt (c. 1292-1069 B.C.), Han Dynasty (c. 206 B.C.-220 A.D.). Roaring Twenties (c. 1920s), Swinging Sixties (c. 1960s), Heroin Chic (c. 1990s), and Postmodern Beauty (c. 2000s-today) all are eras in which the ideal body image were women were thinner and smaller than the other eras.  This shows how the ideal body image has changed over time.  There are many generations that flip back and forth to the ideal body being curvier to the ideal body being more thin.  Although, this is not a complete and accurate history of the ideal body image, it gives an overview of the time periods and a good idea of what people and society thought were “attractive.”

Since social media is such a contemporary thing, websites and new articles such as Cosmopolitan, or BuzzFeed always have new articles and ideas about the issue of social media and body image.  In an article by Olivia Fleming, called “'Why Don't I Look Like Her?': How Instagram Is Ruining Our Self Esteem” on Cosmopolitan.  Fleming uses a lot on interview quotes in her article as well as actual statistically data and examples of people and organizations who support the body positivity movement. The body positivity movement is defined as a feminist movement that encourages people to adopt more forgiving and affirming attitudes towards their bodies, with the goal of improving overall health and well-being, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary.  There are a couple things in the article that would stand out to almost any women because they are so relatable.  One of these include the girl who admittedly asked her boyfriend to delete a picture he posted of them at the beach because she thought she looked fat.   There was also another girl who admitted to not post selfies of her whole face because she is self-conscious and does not like the way her eyes look “weird.”  A lot of women will have these insecurities but then have people telling them that they are beautiful and that there is nothing wrong with them.  Even though they have these people supporting them, they cannot help but to continue to have these thoughts and ideas about themselves.  Because of the way social media portrays the ideal body image, many women cannot fully feel comfortable in their own skin.  This is a huge problem in that this is a world where women should feel comfortable in their own bodies and do not have to worry about what other people may or may not think of them.  

Wykes and Gunter explained in their article, “The media and body image” that the fashion magazines are the most influential platform in social media especially to adolescent women who have dreams to became socialites and models in the future. Women spend more hours reading fashion magazines because they think magazines have valid information of beauty. Women and men who are exposed in social media find others really attractive and rate themselves low in terms of physical appearance and attractiveness. Therefore, men and women often use attractive women and men or models they see in an advert or in magazine as a point of comparison hence evaluating themselves by comparing their image to other people (Solomon ,2013).

There are two theories that suggest there are two types of social comparison, which consist of upward and downwards social comparison. Upwards comparison is when a person compares themselves to someone who looks far better than them, and by doing this it can make someone jealous or envy others and this will cause one to be dissatisfaction with their own image. A better example is where a social media user compares herself with a model that she has meet within the social network. This results to body dissatisfaction and low self-esteem (negative body image).

 While downward social comparison is when a person compares themselves to a man or woman whom they look less fortunate or less attractive. They can feel confident and boosting their self-esteem because they see themselves as the best comparing to less fortunate. This creates a high self-esteem and positive body image of the person.

There was an experiment done in 2010 on Australian female high school students.  In the study, they answered a questionnaire about what they thought about social media and body image.  In the end they found that “internet appearance exposure and magazine reading, but not television exposure, were found to be correlated with greater internalization of thin ideals, appearance comparison, weight dissatisfaction, and drive for thinness” (Tiggeman). Internet appearance exposure basically means any kind of website or social media site because those obviously derive from the internet.  

There was another experiment done in 2015 that asked 101 seventh grade girls questions that they were to fill out themselves on a questionnaire. The questionnaire was designed to show the correlation between “social media use in general, and social media activities related to taking “selfies” and sharing specifically, with overvaluation of shape and weight, body dissatisfaction, and dietary restraint” (McLean). The results were that according to the study, girls who routinely or regularly posted selfies on social media reported “higher overvaluation of shape and weight, body dissatisfaction, dietary restraint, and internalization of the thin ideal” compared to other girls who do not post as much selfies. Also the girls who reported taking more selfies said to have tried to manipulate (photoshop) and edit these photos more than others. These girls who photoshopped and edited their pictures more were associated with have more body and eating concerns. 

Another study done in Canada by, Wendy Spettigue of Regional Eating Disorders Program, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario was a very similar study as the two previous ones describe.  The main difference in this study than the two previous ones is that it was done on people to try and correlate social media and the relation of eating disorders.  It also talks about how media could also be used to goodness to help spread awareness and prevention for eating disorders in the youth. 

Social media is not all bad, however.  It can be used for a lot of good as well. There are many celebrities and fashion brands that make it their point to spread positive body image and to show the world it is okay to be comfortable in your own skin, and that everyone is beautiful-no matter your shape, size, color, ethnicity, etc.  One of the biggest advocates for body positivity in the media today is supermodel Ashley Graham. "People Are Loving Supermodel Ashley Graham's Message About Her Cellulite” is an article from BuzzFeed that perfectly depicts what Graham’s whole case for advocacy is about.  The article is about how she posted a bikini picture that clearly shows her cellulite on her thighs, but instead of hiding behind clothes, filters, or photoshop, she posts a close-up picture of her leg.  She says that she is confident in her own skin and does not care what anyone thinks, and that everyone should feel the same.  She was also the first “plus-sized” model to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated, which is a big leap for the body positivity movement, because it shows that many fashion icons who are known to feature stick-thin models who all look the same, are starting to finally open their horizons and bring a little diversity into their company. There are also many fashion brands that make it their mission to promote body positivity.  One of the most popular that most people would know is the brand Aerie, from American Eagle.  Aerie does not retouch, airbrush, photoshop, edit, nothing to their models.  This shows that it is okay to actually have some flaws (which everyone does) and that you do not have to be perfect all the time, because no one is.  Aerie is not the only brand that promotes positive body image, some others include; Lululemon, H&M, Modcloth, and many other brands. 

While the body positivity movement is known as a good thing, and is used for a good cause, there are a few oppositions to this movement. In an article by Michelle W from CalorieBee, she gives thirteen reasons why the body positivity movement may not necessarily be a good thing.  These include reasons include: “that it is not that all-inclusive, meaning that most people that are talked about when it comes to body positivity are overweight white women, and that there is not a lot of different backgrounds of women being represented, that it encourages the sexualization of young girls, it contributes to more insecurity, it believes plus-size models are more realistic, it makes people vulnerable, it ignores men’s issues, it undermines and insults thin women, its obsessed with fictional women, it teaches narcissism, it teaches you to be shallow, it neglects healthy practices, it encourages entitlement, , and it exploits it followers financially” (W, Michelle).  While these are a couple of good, arguable reasons, they are far stretched.  The body positivity movement is meant to encourage other people that it is okay to not look like that model or that girl who seems perfect on your Instagram.  It shows that other people struggle with the same issues, but with others encouragement and love they are showed that you do not have to have negative thoughts about your body.

Social media is a very popular, extended thing which helps people to connect to other people everywhere in the world, but everything good has its downsides also. Men and women should know that there are critics in the community, and they should learn to overcome them and they should not be weak and ashamed with their body image. People should maintain a positive body image as it creates confidence in one self. When people begin to love who they are they will not hesitate to help others by encouraging and motivating people who feel like they have negative body image, and will help them begin to love themselves. Social media was created to connect people all around the country and world so that we may all bring our ideas, cultures, and values to others. It may take a while, and it may never fully go away, but through a lot of awareness and support this issue can be so minimal to society to the point where people can feel comfortable in their own body without fear of judgement. 
