social media diary: 

SOCIAL COMPARISONS

Authors: Addya Agarwal, Dania Carrilo, Nimunniasia Hengkaul, Tabitha Vega

Research Advisors: Andrea Gil, Montze Garcia-Bedolla

Overview

  1. Describe the nature of social media comparisons, including but not limited to body image, eating disorders, beauty standards, ageist content, cultural practices, and class differences

  2. Design a youth-centered approach to collect lived experiences while navigating social media platforms and create best practices

Social media diary study is a qualitative and quantitative research method used to collect insights about user behaviors, activities, and experiences over time using social media. During the diary study, youth reflected on their social media interactions and experiences using various social media platforms for 6 weeks. The social media diaries are broken down into four subtopics:

Social Media Usage Frequency: Name the social media platforms used, how many times you visited, and for how long.

Mental Health & Wellness: Identify whether the content you absorb or see on social media platforms positive or negative message. Document how you felt while scrolling on social media platforms.

Social Media Comparisons: Recall if you have seen content related to social media comparisons: body image/size, eating disorders, beauty standards, ageist content, cultural standards and practices, and class differences.

Comments and Community Engagement: Describe any activity you witnessed in the comment section of a post that stood out to you during the week.

Four or five HOPE youth coalition members participated in the social media diary study, where they submitted 6 social media diaries over the course of the 6-week period for a total of 33 social media diaries. Each social media diary participant met the following criteria:

  • Complete one diary entry per week for 6 weeks based on your own experience using social media platforms.

  • Spend a week on social media and take notes on your experiences, and screenshot any posts or content that touches upon your research questions. For example, spend M-Sun on social media and fill out your diary on Sunday.

  • Take up from 10-15 minutes to fill out the weekly form.

findings

Social media diary participants engaged in data analysis by analyzing 18 separate questions from the social media diary. Diary participants created findings for each separate question and narrowed their findings to the most relevant and important starting stats. Prevalent social media comparison findings include:

  • Online spaces have created unrealistic body image expectations and exacerbated eating disorders.

  • Social media has negatively shaped people’s mindsets about unrealistic lifestyles and expectations, especially for youth.

  • Social media influencers edit their physical appearances, which can lead to feelings of self-doubt and a lack of confidence.

Recommondation

Recommendations for youth:

  • Utilize third-party applications such as One Sec to monitor screentime habits.

  • Log off when you experience uncomfortable emotions and engage in self-care activities. Restrict or block content that stirs uncomfortable emotions.

  • Cleanse your social media feed with positive mental health content by limiting engagement with negative content.

  • Take a moment to reflect when they feel left out; evaluate their surroundings, and lean into the community.

Recommendations for social media platforms:

  • Detect negative content and limit the exposure on the youth’s social media feed, regardless if users interact with the negative content. 

  • Classify negative terms and filter negative content before reaching the youth’s social media.

  • No monetization for influencers who promote eating disorders or body shaming. 

  • Moderate the negative/hateful rhetoric in the comment sections. Social media platforms can build protective measures and enhance reporting systems to prevent cyberbullying.