Advertisements on Instagram can adversely influence young girls’ perceptions of their own bodies and push them to engage in appearance-altering behaviors, according to a study published in the Journal of Psychology. The study concentrated on girls between the ages of 17 and 19. It was discovered that when female Instagram users are exposed to advertisements displaying skinny or voluptuous models, they may develop a physical inferiority mentality. The findings support a prior study that found that exposure to idealized body types in the media can lead to body dissatisfaction and possibly unhealthy behavior.
The study wanted to know how exposure to Instagram ads showing thin and curvaceous models influenced the subjects
The study included 284 young women between the ages of 17 and 19, who were all enrolled in a psychology course at an Australian university. They were chosen from a pool of research participants and had to match certain criteria, such as being regular Instagram users and not having eating problems or body dysmorphia. The study wanted to know how exposure to Instagram ads showing thin and curvaceous models influenced the subjects. The researchers used a variety of measures to assess the impact of this exposure, including participants’ body image preferences (whether they preferred thin or curvy body types), how frequently they compared themselves to these idealized images, their level of body satisfaction, and their willingness to take actions to achieve a thinner or curvier body.
Participants who had more exposure to skinny or curvy models through Instagram advertisements were more likely to favor those body types, according to the findings. This shows that Instagram adverts have the potential to impact people’s preferences for certain body types. Furthermore, exposure to these body standards was connected with a stronger motivation to take particular activities to achieve them, according to the study. Those who desired slender bodies were more receptive to steps such as dieting or surgery to reduce their waist size, whereas those who preferred curvaceous bodies were more likely to explore operations to increase the size of their breasts and buttocks.
The study also found that youngsters’ dissatisfaction with their physique influenced their desire to change their appearance. Psypost described study author Jannatul Shimul Ferdousi, a Ph.D. student in Griffith University’s School of Applied Psychology, as adding that updated policies and government engagement are needed to combat this threat. “This highlights the need for updated policies and interventions so that they take into account the impact of newer advertising platforms and body ideals on body image,” Ferdousi stated.
