Online Social Comparison

The second issue is the menacing undercurrent that exists of social comparison with young people comparing themselves physically to people they have seen on social media. Throughout childhood, the opportunity for social comparison advances as children learn about their own abilities, differences, strengths and weaknesses. In later childhood, as children reach seven years of age, social comparisons become more evaluative and frequently used. At this time, children also demonstrate a decline in positive self-concepts and an increase in body dissatisfaction (Tatangelo & Ricciardelli, 2015, para. 2). By this point, girls' perceptions of body weight and appearance are often disproportionate to reality. Similarly, boys can develop unjustified obsessions around masculinity and muscle comparisons. Research on young children suggests that more time spent on social media (e.g., Facebook and Instagram) can be linked with inferior perception of body image and more depressive symptoms (Fardouly, Magson, Johnco, Oar, Rapee, 2018, para. 1). The danger of this is that people share their ‘perfect’ body images and so when children see these images they will aspire to be the same, causing them to diet, exercise to the extreme, develop unhealthy food relationships and in worst case scenarios will embark upon artificial enhancers. Body dissatisfaction is a vital predictor for eating disorders, which along with depression, can have a debilitating effect on every aspect of adolescents’ lives (Fardouly, Magson, Johnco, Oar, Rapee, 2018, para. 1). Some individuals will feel depressed about their body, wondering why they are not the same as these images, this will cause them to ask if the way they look is affecting their popularity. This social comparison can contribute to the development of depressive symptoms and specific insecurities about their own bodies.

Wildt, Melissa. (2015). The Mental Health Effects of Social Media Use. [Digital image].

  In contrast, some young people will want to post and share images of themselves on social media to get everyone's attention; this too can be damaging in the process of posting, when waiting for peers to comment, it can increase a young person’s anxiety. The influence of social media on social comparison with peers is likely to have an indefinite negative influence on children's middle childhood.