Abstract
Previous research has investigated the relationship between self-esteem and social comparison issues within social media users. Individuals who had social media accounts for a long period of time were found to have higher inauthentic, which we refer to as deliberate alteration (i.e., editing photos of oneself to emphasize or manipulate natural features), in online presentation presumably as an attempt to impress or attract others. The purpose of the current study was to further understand deliberate alteration on social media, including exploring the relationship of self-esteem, social comparison, and appearance motivation with deliberate alteration. This study asked U.S. undergraduate students from a small liberal arts university (N = 147) to complete surveys related to their online behaviors and usage of social media including their self-esteem, social comparison, appearance motivation, and deliberate alteration. We predicted that lower self-esteem, higher social comparison, and higher appearance motivation would correlate with more frequent deliberate alteration. Multiple linear regression showed that social comparison and appearance motivations predicted the frequency of deliberate alteration while self-esteem did not. Contrary to popular opinion, it appeared that self-esteem was not the dominant predictor of altering image on social media.
Presenters
Megan NagleStudent, Bachelor of Science in Psychology (May 2023), Stevenson University, Maryland, United States Richard Metzger
Retired, Psychology, Stevenson University, Maryland, United States Colleen Spada
Associate Professor, Clinical Psychology, Stevenson University, Maryland, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
KEYWORDS
Social Media, Self-Esteem, Social Comparison, Appearance Motivation, Deliberate Alteration
