Personal Social Media Experience and Self-Esteem

Shifting from Exterior to Interior: Embracing True Self

Growing up in the society in which we do now, almost everyone owns a smartphone. Smartphones, obviously, encompass a variety of benefits to the modern human; However, along with a smartphone, it is almost a given that individuals will exploit themselves to social media. Social media poses as a platform to share one’s personal content. Having said that, in recent times, these sites have become nearly manipulative to the youth. They have become sites that hold humans to virtually impossible standards of grandeur.

This was the case for me, at least. If you are included within the seemingly immense population of those who are associated with any form of social media, you are likely to scroll through your feed and find yourself in an envious state while fixedly staring at all of the fashion models/actors/athletes who appear to be flawless. Once again, I am able to say that I have encountered that situation multiple times.

With all of that being said, as hard as it may seem, I would consider myself fairly confident in this superficially strict society. Confidence is a quality that I strive to always be in possession of. I find it so intriguing that nobody in this world is made the same. Everybody is truly different. On Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter (etc.), it is only apparent that I am a five-foot-four, brown-eyed, blonde girl.

But, along with that, I would deem myself to be a very caring, optimistic, fun, humorous, and easygoing individual. Those are very salient aspects that someone could not discover about me based solely on those applications. The point in which I am trying to propose is that one’s physical appearance shouldn’t matter, nor should it stand as the only focal point of importance to anybody. As cliche as it sounds, it is what is on the inside that sincerely matters.

The previously stated fact is unfortunately being diminished, and social media content is one of the aspects that is put to blame. This is an extreme misfortune, as followers of social media platforms are incapable of viewing the intellectual beauty that one may possess. The “follower” is only brought upon by the physicality of the individual. This leads to and raises false judgment, as well. In other words, think of this case in point to a comparison of simply seeing a complete stranger while out in public one day.

Constructed on merely nothing but their clothes and outside image, would you be able to determine a perfectly accurate conjecture in regards to what kind of person they are? Would you be able to tell if they were thoughtful? Would you be able to tell if they were humorous? I feel as though we are all restricted to perceiving each other in this way over social media networking, and it is so unhealthy to maintain not only a positive body image but also a secure confidence in general.

In conclusion, based upon my personal experience in relation to social media and how it affects self-esteem and body image, my goal is to suggest a sincere realization to each reader to appreciate their individuality. I hope that they will be able to withstand the beauty standards that are placed on humans today.

References:

1. Fardouly, J., Diedrichs, P. C., Vartanian, L. R., & Halliwell, E. (2015). Social comparisons on social media: The impact of Facebook on young women’s body image concerns and mood. Body Image, 13, 38-45.
2. Perloff, R. M. (2014). Social media effects on young women’s body image concerns: Theoretical perspectives and an agenda for research. Sex Roles, 71(11-12), 363-377.
3. Turkle, S. (2011). Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other. Basic Books.
4. Sales, N. (2016). American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers. Knopf.
5. Smith, A., & Anderson, M. (2018). Social Media Use in 2018. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2018/03/01/social-media-use-in-2018/
6. Shapira, I. (2020). The impact of social media on body image. Cleveland Clinic.
7. Perloff, R. M. (2014). Social Media Effects on Young Women’s Body Image Concerns: Theoretical Perspectives and an Agenda for Research. Common Sense Media.