The Rise of Fitspiration: An Examination of Social Media Influence, Body Image Concerns, and Online Harassment

Abstract

The fitspiration movement on social media has raised concerns about potential body image satisfaction issues and body standard internalization. The potential negative effects of body image dissatisfaction include disordered eating, excessive exercise, anxiety, depression, and a risk to online harassment victimization. This dissatisfaction from fitspiration is reinforced by pressures from family and friends. Relying on data from 347 respondents, the present study explores the potential relationship between fitspiration content consumption, body image dissatisfaction, social pressures, and experiences of online harassment. Bivariate correlations and regression analysis were employed to examine the connections between the variables. Results indicated that there was a significant, positive correlation between fitspiration and body image dissatisfaction. There was also a significant and positive correlation between body image dissatisfaction and online harassment. This is consistent with previous research, revealing larger, societal implications surrounding social media trends and their influence on thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Future research is needed to determine what avenues could mitigate body image dissatisfaction and the pressures from social media