The Effects Of Social Meida Use On Body Image Dissatisfaction For University Students

With the development of social media,the threshold for the public to get information,online self-presentation and social interaction has been greatly lowered.Social media dominated by pictures and videos has become increasingly popular,and media coding symbols has transformed from the language-centered mode into a visual image-oriented communication mode,which has also affected the way people receive and perceive information.In particular,the social media,Xiaohongshu,is full of popular aesthetic symbols such as "waist smaller than A4","skinny legs as those of girl bands" and "abdominal muscles".In the process of using Xiaohongshu,college students are prone to internalize these contents,resulting in upper comparison,which may lead to body image dissatisfaction,feeling dissatisfied about their own figure and appearance,and finally to behaviors such as weight loss or plastic surgery.Therefore,it is necessary to explore the influencing mechanism of social media use among college students.This study proposes an empirical model between social media and body image dissatisfaction based on socio-cultural theory and social comparison theory with questionnaire survey method to explore the correlation among social media use,social comparison,social appearance anxiety and body image dissatisfaction,and to propose some intervention measures.The study at the interpretation level found that: the body image dissatisfaction among college students in China is at a high level;the intensity of social media use and the passive use of social media have positive effects on the body image dissatisfaction of college students;social media use has a positive correlation with college students’ social appearance anxiety,and upward social comparison plays a mediating role;social media use has a positive correlation with body image dissatisfaction of college students,and social appearance anxiety plays a mediating role;Finally,the study puts forward some measures to reduce body image dissatisfaction on diverse dimension,from the social media,social media platforms can launch some marketing campaigns encouraging users to post real photos or videos of themselves,and encourage aesthetic diversity,and social media users to share themselves more actively for reducing upward social comparison or social appearance anxiety and avoid increasing levels of body image dissatisfaction;from the perspective of social environment,more social support,especially emotional support,should be given to college students.After receiving more social support,college students tend to have positive emotions,so as to reduce the upward social comparison and social appearance anxiety,and thus reduce their dissatisfaction with body image.For social media users,especially those with high levels of body image dissatisfaction,they should pay attention to the intensity of their own social media use and engagement level and actively share their good moments on the platform,so as to improve the upward social comparison or social appearance anxiety and avoid the body image dissatisfaction.