Social media and psychology really go hand in hand... In the type of world we live in today, unfortunately we focus on likes on a picture, views on a video, and followers a person may have on Instagram.
Life coach from Germany, Dr. Katharina Stenger who is also a photo model travels the world to teach confidence and self love. Stenger's passion for traveling started after she worked in China for a couple of months. The life coach worked as a scientist for about 9 years (which she started during college) and she then opened her own practice this May.
"I always wanted to help people. Especially the ones that struggle with themselves. Having trouble finding their passion or fulfilling a dream they always had. I've always been interested in people, but I also was very shy (I still consider myself an introvert). Working as a photo model helped me a lot to connect with others. That‘s why I want to include photography into my coaching concept. I hope I can inspire others to feel comfortable in their skin and find happiness in their everyday lives", according to the German native.
Social media has a big influence on others in how they think they should look. According to online article from The Guardian, 15-year-old Maddie McGowan from Southampton stated she compares herself to other people all the time.
"As a young girl, I do feel I need to be perfect and compare myself to others all the time. My sister is stunning, so I look at her and think: I need to look like her. It’s so negative. In reality, everyone is perfect just the way they are. Girls are on social media all the time and follow celebrities and friends. But everyone portrays their “best self” on social media and it’s not accurate. They can use Photoshop and can change their appearance, and that sets people up to fail as they think they should look like that, but it’s not a realistic image" according to McGowan.
Dr. Stenger explained how we can hardly imagine a world without social media today. It plays an important role in the way we perceive others and ourselves. Although social networks like Instagram and Facebook are a quick and convenient way to communicate with others and to showcase our own lifestyle, we tend to forget that social media is… well, MEDIA! And that includes advertisement. Advertisement will always have a big impact on us and our lifestyle. Online, we are constantly exposed to demonstrations of the perfect life, the happy relationship and the healthy body.
The German native continued, "ads promise us that these things are right in front of us… if we purchase a certain product or service. Moreover, what we see on social media, has already been filtered and retouched to show us things that we consider as positive, related to the current beauty standard."
Additionally she described how beauty and health are popular topics in our modern day and age. "It is no surprise that while we strive for a healthy lifestyle, we particularly watch out for body-related posts on the social media channels. And when it comes to living healthy, it is easier for us to watch and listen to the fitness model while we scroll through Instagram than to our doctor who we only see once or twice a year...So, yes, social media highly influences the way we perceive and think about outer appearance."
When it comes to body image with social media, the life coach noted that it affects both men and women but she continued by saying how women are more open to talk about it, even on social media. They (women) are more sensitive to the topic because they tend to have a deeper connection to their own bodies. Research has shown that women pay more attention to their outer appearance and to body changes. They body shame more and are more likely to be shamed about their looks by others. Women also tend to compare themselves to others more often. Men, on the other hand, are usually more quiet about their body image, but that doesn't mean that they don’t reflect on it."
New research led by Jennifer Mills as associate professor in the department of Psychology
at Your University in Toronto Canada and Jacqueline Hogue, A PH.D student in the
department's clinical program examined the effects of social media on the self perceived body image of young women. They found that, They (the women) felt worse about their own
appearance after looking at social media pages of someone that they perceived to be more
attractive than them. Even if they felt bad about themselves before they came into the study
on average , they still felt worse after completing the task, Jennifer Mills said.
Dr. Stenger's take on this subject is she's glad to find more and more research on this topic. She also added that the results well designed and executed studies raise awareness for the downside of daily social comparison in the online world. Being exposed to overly fit, slim or trained bodies on social media results in upward comparison.
She continued by defining what upward social comparison is, "It's when we compare ourselves with like-minded users. For instance, if we are interested in a healthy lifestyle, we will compare ourselves to the IG-fitness model who seems to share our interest of living healthy and who has the "dream body“ that we want for ourselves", according to the photo model.
Dr. Stenger suggested that we don’t know if photos have been photo-shopped. We don’t know how much these models really works out on a highly professional and efficient level. Or if they just have good genes and bone structure to have a fit body.
Some people take social media cleanses while other people disable their accounts. The life coach's favorite tips in managing social media:
1. We all should be aware of the fact that online life doesn't reflect the offline
life. The candy colors, the happy faces and the constant sunshine are just a biased excerpt from a life that looks perfect, but it is not realistic. That includes flawless skin and slim, well-shaped bodies - courtesy of photo shop.
2. Social Media Detox: Spending a day without social media can be quite hard, but also very effective. This way, we learn how to re-focus on what matters in the offline life.
3. Keeping a journal: Good memories can not only be collected on the Instagram feed. A personal journal (online or offline) helps to pay attention to the little things that make our lives unique. Adding a daily list of things that we are grateful for, will enhance the shift away from public approval towards personal appreciation.
4. More control: We should cautiously choose what they see on their Instagram feed. That means adding more positive people to our feed and blocking everything that is not supportive and gets us down. This way, our feed won’t trigger our anxiety and it will make us feel good about ourselves.
5. Timeout for mobile devices: When having dinner with friends, it’s best to turn off the phone completely. Or all friends collect their devices and the first one who needs to check the phone pays the bill
6. Self-care: Especially after a stressful day, it’s better not to scroll through social media, but to relax and do the things that make us feel good. Self-care doesn't have to involve a lot of time and money. It can be listening to your favorite music playlist or a good book or cooking while your phone is turnt off.
7. The Mirror Exercise: A lot of people fear to look into the mirror because it makes them feel bad, but it can be healing too. It’s all about changing the focus. Instead of focusing on what we don’t like about our bodies, let’s try noticing what we have and what we like about ourselves.
8. Seeking out offline connections: Having many followers on social media doesn't mean that we feel sad and lonely once in a while. Arranging meet ups for lunch break, dinner or even co-working with others will help to satisfy our sense of belonging.
Fashion has changed in the sense of banning models and greater engagement to keep eating disorders of the radar but runways still showcase a lot of size zero models.
"Haute couture designers claim that clothing items look best on skinny models because bigger sizes might look good on one model, but not on the other. One can argue about that statement. However, I absolutely agree to include a variety of body shapes and sizes into the online marketing of fashion brands. Moreover, I would like to see more customer photos because followers can really identify with the model in the picture", according to Dr. Stenger.
Lastly she commented how we tend to forget how the digital world changes the way we perceive ad filter information in our daily lives. The life coach added,"We should pay more attention on our social media habits and try to disconnect once in a while. That is when real life is happening!"
People nowadays are so focused on social media that it has too become a way of life. It has been a blessing and a curse but once in a while we should put our phones away, take it all in, and count our blessings.
If you have any other questions you can contact Dr. Katharina Stenger:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkatharinastenger/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drkatharinastenger Website: https://katharina-stenger.de (the website is in German, but I offer my counseling in English too. I have an English online training that might be interesting: https://katharina-stenger.de/the-confident-introvert-online-training/ Email: info@katharina-stenger.de
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