The Negative Effects of Instagram on Female Adolescents

by: Samantha Villanueva (19386760)

Curtin University Dubai

Abstract:

Instagram is a photo and video-sharing platform that is one of the top social media platforms today with over 1 billion users, in which 51% are female users. This paper will discuss negative effects of social media on its users, more specifically, the effects of social networking site, Instagram, on female adolescents that frequent the platform. Drawing on academic research done within this scope of social media studies, this paper will discuss the psychological/mental effects, physical effects, and mental effects that evoke physical effects from its users when looking into the negative impact of Instagram on female adolescents.

Keywords: Instagram, psychological effects, mental effects, physical effects, self-schema, self-discrepancy, social comparison theory, social networking sites, cognitive eating disorders, FOMO, fitspiration, photo editing, photo filters, body surveillance, orthorexia nervosa

Introduction

Social media is known for having positive and negative effects on adolescents, who make up majority of their active users. For adolescents, it is a place for communication and staying connected, making friends and providing a sense of belonging, a place of expression, which in return may help them speak up about issues that need social movement and action (Knorr, 2018). However, with upsides, there are evident downsides to social media as well and many have been presented to the public before through published studies. This conference paper will be focusing on the downsides and negative effects of the social networking platform, Instagram, on female adolescents. It will first introduce the social networking site Instagram, and then it will tackle topics within psychological/mental effects, physical effects and topics that cover both mental and physical effects in relation to the Instagram usage of female adolescents.

Instagram

Instagram is a photo and video sharing social media platform and mobile phone application that was introduced in the year of 2010 through founders Michel Krieger and Kevin Systrom (Lup, Trub & Rosenthal, 2015; Iqbal, 2021). It was initially released as a photo sharing platform, with video sharing introduced in 2013 and Instagram Stories introduced in 2016 wherein photos and videos posted would disappear after 24 hours (Iqbal, 2021). Currently, it has over 1 billion users, with 51% being female users and 49% being male users, 70% of the users being under 35 years old (Iqbal, 2021).

What makes Instagram stand out from Facebook is through its easy features that just involve posting photos and videos, it also allows users to make use of its in app filters and editing tools to help enhance content they will be posting (Lup, Trub & Rosenthal, 2017). Similar to other social networking platforms, Instagram also allows its users to become ‘produsers,’ allowing them to interact with their friends and followers through liking and commenting on their posts along with the ability to share visual content (Miñano, Maclsaac & Rich, 2019; Lup, Trub & Rosenthal, 2017).

Ahadzadeh, Sharif & Ong’s (2017) study briefly mentions the problem with social networking sites like Instagram, as users carefully choose which parts of their lives and which ideal pictures of their appearance to present in social media, users are also exposed to a variety of ideal appearances and lifestyles that may evoke negative emotions within adolescents who are more susceptible to this. This will be further discussed in the following paragraphs.

Psychological/Mental Effects

Self-schema & Self-discrepancy

Self-schema, specifically appearance schema is a representation of one’s meaning attached to the role of appearance and its importance in one’s life, while self-discrepancy occurs when there is a difference between one’s actual self and ideal self (Ahadzadeh, Sharif & Ong, 2017). These two concepts are important in making sense of the many psychological effects of Instagram on female adolescents as they produce negative emotions towards the body such as higher negative mood, anxiety, depression, body satisfaction, and lower self-esteem, appearance evalutation (Ahadzadeh, Sharif & Ong, 2017). The cognitive process of Instagram use leads to the psychological state of self-schema and self-discrepancy, which then results in the negative emotions towards one’s body as mentioned above (Ahadzadeh, Sharif & Ong, 2017).

Social Comparison Theory

Similar to a combination of self-schema and self-discrepancy, social comparison theory is the tendency to compare one’s own characteristics and abilities to the characteristics and abilities of others (Hendrickse et al., 2017). Social comparison theory is widely used in explaining the main psychological effects of Instagram on female adolescents as majority of the studies used for this paper mentioned that the extensive use of Instagram results in higher negative comparisons (Hendrickse et al., 2017).

Due to the image centric nature of the application, its female adolescent users are constantly exposed to unrealistic beauty standards that being thin and toned are praised and regarded as the ‘ideal’ body even if highly edited and filtered (Yurdagul et al., 2019; Hendrickse et al., 2017). The frequent use of Instagram and the constant consumption of these body ideals then increases negative social comparisons of users with celebrities and influencers, which results in a variety of negative psychological effects for female adolescents (Yurdagul et al., 2019; Sherlock & Wagstaff, 2019). Lower self-esteem and body dissatisfaction are frequent negative psychological effects of negative social comparison seen in the studies used in this paper (Hendrickse et al., 2017; Jablonska & Zajdel, 2020; Yurdagul et al., 2019; Sherlock & Wagstaff, 2019). The next negative psychological feelings caused by increased social comparison seen in female adolescents are depression or depressive symptoms, anxiety (both general anxiety and social anxiety) and lower daily mood (Jablonska & Zajdel, 2020; Lup, Trub & Rosenthal, 2015; Yurdagul et al., 2019; Haller, 2020; Sherlock & Wagstaff, 2019). Lastly, one study stated that lower life satisfaction was also a negative psychological effect of negative social comparisons (Jablonska & Zajdel, 2020).

Social Networking Sites Activities/Usage

According to Yang (2016), social networking sites (SNS) activities/usage can be categorized into active, passive and interactive activities. Within Instagram and it’s ‘produser’ user concept due to user-generated content means that its users are actively posting photos and videos as well as interacting with friends’ posts, which are two of the SNS’ activities mentioned above (Miñano, Maclsaac & Rich, 2019; Yang, 2016).

In Yang’s (2016) study, Instagram broadcasting or posting (active SNS activity) on the application resulted in higher loneliness and lower social connectedness as psychological effects on female adolescents. This occurs when users do not receive their expected likes and comments, also known as social acceptance and validation, on their posts which leads to the feeling of lack of support from friends and followers resulting in feeling of loneliness or isolation (Butkowski, Dixon & Weeks, 2019; Yang, 2016).

Yang’s (2016) study also stated that interaction of users with friends’ posts (interactive SNS activity) can also lead to a higher feeling of loneliness due to social comparison with the amount of likes and comments their friends may receive compared to them.

Cognitive Eating Disorders

In Wayles’ (2020) study, frequent Instagram usage resulted in a higher adoption of cognitive eating disorders within female adolescents, these are not necessarily indicators of physical eating disorders, but refer to a negative relationship with food mentally. Examples of cognitive eating disorders are negative relationship with food through negative mental thoughts such as a strong yearning to lose weight or the fear of gaining weight (Wayles, 2020). Wayles (2020) states that the repetitive exposure to unrealistic body and beauty standards can significantly affect the way one views themselves and the cognitive eating disorders.

FOMO: Fear of Missing Out

Another psychological effect of Instagram on female adolescents is FOMO, defined as “a pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent” (Moore & Cracuin, 2020, p. 4). In this paper, people with a low satisfaction with lower life satisfaction and poor mental state are more susceptible to FOMO (Moore & Cracuin, 2020). Higher levels of FOMO were also found in Instagram as compared to Facebook due to how the platform worked: Instagram users only personally knows a small percentage of the people they follow, they follow celebrities and public figures, and unlike Facebook, there is a possibility of a one way friendship due to users following someone who may not follow them back (Moore & Cracuin, 2020). With Instagram users being exposed to the glamorized lives of celebrities and influencers, as well as the lives of their peers that are carefully selected for social media, FOMO is evident on Instagram as well as negative feelings of depression (Moore & Cracuin, 2020).

Physical Effects

‘Fitspiration’ Trend

Fitspiration, a combination of the words fitness and inspiration, is a social media trend more commonly seen on Instagram wherein influencers and other users post images and videos that are meant to inspire their followers to live a healthy lifestyle by eating well and exercising (Holland & Tiggemann, 2017).

However, problems still arise from what looks like a healthy lifestyle advocacy of this trend as it only promotes one acceptable body type: thin and toned, it encourages fitspiration for appearance purposes rather than its health benefits and it has some similarities with the problematic ‘thinspiration’ trend wherein there are indications of eating disorders (Holland & Tiggemann, 2017).

Drive for thinness is a concept introduced in Butkowski, Dixon & Week’s (2019) study, it is defined as the “desire to achieve a thin physique through dieting and weight loss.” The exposure to fitspiration posts increases the drive for thinness within female adolescents, which is a negative physical effect as fitspiration posts idolizes weight loss, rationalize dietary restriction, disordered eating patterns and compulsive exercising (Holland & Tiggemann, 2017; Butkowski, Dixon & Weeks, 2019). Compulsive exercise or over exercising can also lead to other physical effects such as fatigue and injuries (Holland & Tiggemann, 2017).

Disordered Eating Behaviors

Disordered eating behaviors were briefly mentioned in Haller’s (2020) study which states that frequent Instagram use causes higher social comparison to posts they see on the application which results in lower daily mood and possible disordered eating, which is a physical effect on female adolescents. With the image driven nature of Instagram and its frequent use by female adolescents, as well as females’ human nature to see self worth through appearance, this means that there is a higher opportunity for female adolescents to be exposed to photos and videos that may trigger disordered eating behaviors (Haller, 2020).

Photo Editing & Filters

Instagram adolescent users are known for editing their photos and videos with in app Instagram filters or editing tools such as VSCO or other editing and enhancing applications on mobile phones before they post anything on the application (Martel, Powell & Murina, 2020). Face spots and skin wounds are usually what are edited out in photos and videos before being posted on Instagram (Martel, Powell & Murina, 2020). Acne and acne scars scored the highest in what is edited out most frequently on the body, topping white teeth and body shape (Martel, Powell & Murina, 2020).

Martel, Powell & Murina’s (2020) study shows that a higher percentage of those adolescents who edit skin wounds out of their pictures were the ones who visited a dermatologist or felt the need to visit one. The study also showed that those adolescents who gained greater awareness of their skin wounds in unedited social media photos through Instagram had higher motivations to visit a dermatologist and seek dermatological care (Martel, Powell & Murina, 2020). This proves their theory that female adolescents who want to look ‘picture ready’ at all times are those who seek cosmetic care for cosmetic help (Martel, Powell & Murina, 2020). Another study briefly mentions that investment in social media usage along with the use of Instagram filters and the editing software VSCO before posting photos or videos had higher considerations and acceptance of cosmetic plastic surgery (Chen et al., 2019). This shows that to seem presentable on social media and due to beauty standards female adolescents are frequently exposed to in social media, physical effects such as seeking dermatological care or cosmetic plastic surgery occur in order to fit into the mold of Instagram’s beauty standards.

Psychological/Mental & Physical Effects

Drive for Thinness & Body Surveillance

As defined before, drive for thinness is the need for a thin body, which can be achieved through a diet and weight loss, while body surveillance is defined as the constant observation of appearance and attractiveness (Butkowski, Dixon & Weeks, 2019).

Mental effects such as an increase in body surveillance and drive for thinness were evident in female adolescents that received body dissatisfaction from the lack of comments and likes on their Instagram posts, as well as a cause of a higher discrepancy between the actual self and the ideal self and higher negative social comparison (Butkowski, Dixon & Weeks, 2019; Ahadzadeh, Sharif & Ong, 2017; Hendrickse et al., 2017). These mental effects then resulted in physical effects such as planned and restricted diets, as well as compulsive fitness exercises as pushed by the drive for thinness (Hendrickse et al., 2017; Butkowski, Dixon & Weeks, 2019).

To explain further the concept of discrepancy between the actual self and the real self, in order to lower the discrepancy between the two, there is a higher drive for thinness (mental effect), which results in female adolescents engaging in risky and unhealthy health behaviors (physical effect) such as intense diets and purging (Hendrickse et al., 2017; Butkowski, Dixon & Weeks, 2019).

Orthorexia Nervosa

Orthorexia Nervosa is known as the unhealthy obsession with eating healthy food linked to healthy lifestyles, this puts importance in the quality of the food being consumed rather than the quantity (Turner & Lefevre, 2017). Examples of these are exercise, consuming more vegetables and fruits, buying groceries in healthy stores, etc (Turner & Lefevre, 2017). The mental obsession orthorexia nervosa has been linked with negative physical effects such as malnutrition, social isolation and specific diet restrictions (Turner & Lefevre, 2017).

In Turner & Lefevre’s (2017) study, they found that the frequent usage of Instagram results in its users to most likely develop orthorexia nervosa (mental effect) as their other finding was that there were higher levels of orthorexia nervosa symptoms (physical effects) within users of Instagram as compared to other social media platforms that were looked into as well.

The reasons for this, as stated in the study are, the central focus on images of Instagram which can encourage food posts, selective exposure to just the users’ selected following of people in which repeated exposure may make them believe that their dietary habits are healthy, and the following of health pages with higher numbers of followers which may make them seem as authority and trustworthy figures when it comes to healthy food consumption (Turner & Lefevre, 2017).

Conclusion

To conclude, social media does have negative impacts on adolescents that frequent these platforms and while this paper focuses solely on Instagram and its effects on female adolescents, it shows that there are more downsides that are present within the rest of the social networking sites on wider demographics not covered in this paper, such as male adolescents and those of older generations. This paper showed that there are psychological/mental effects on the female adolescents Instagram users such as social comparison theory causing negative emotions towards one’s body, social networking site activities causing loneliness, cognitive eating disorders and FOMO. Physical effects were also seen such as fitspiration’s encouragement of risky fitness and eating behaviors, eating disorder behaviors and seeking dermatological and cosmetic change to fit into society. Mental effects that also result in physical effects were seen as negative effects on female adolescents such as drive for thinness, body surveillance and orthorexia nervosa. All these negative effects on female adolescents who use Instagram shows that there are still ample of safety and security precautions that social media sites and applications can put into place in order to protect the youth and better their online experience.

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