Snapchat dysmorphia

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Snapchat dysmorphia, also known as "selfie dysmorphia", is a trending phenomenon used to describe patients who seek out plastic surgery in order to replicate and appear like their filtered selfies or altered images of themselves. [1] The increasing availability and variety of filters used on social media apps, such as Snapchat or Instagram, allow users to edit and apply filters to their photos in an instant – blemish the skin, narrow the nose, enlarge the eyes, and numerous other edits to one's facial features. These heavily edited images create unrealistic and unnatural expectations of one's appearance, showing users a "perfected" view of themselves. [2] The disconnection between one's real-life appearance and the highly filtered versions of oneself manifest into body insecurity and dysmorphia. [3] The distorted perception of oneself can potentially evolve into an obsessive preoccupation with perceived flaws in one's appearance, a mental disorder known as body dysmorphic disorder (or BDD). [4] BDD has been classified as part of the obsessive-compulsive spectrum and it is currently affecting one in 50 Americans. [5]

Contents

Illustration of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) Is this me mental disorder of looking.jpg
Illustration of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)

Relationship between social media use and cosmetic surgery

In 2018, many newspaper outlets questioned the rising impact of social media applications on the choice of plastic surgeries for users. [5] Researchers from the Boston Medical Center (BMC) wrote in a JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery essay that with the rise of Snapchat in 2011, there has been increasing cases of patients going into the cosmetic doctors’ offices to request for surgeries to look like filtered versions of themselves, similar to how they appear through Snapchat filters. [3] These filters create a dysmorphic illusion in which the unattainable filters establish a disconnection from the realities of how individuals look like and what they desire to look like. Hence, the filtered photos from social media apps encourages users to drive for constant improvements to their appearance based on the filters. The pressure to achieve this impossible aesthetic look may be a casual factor in triggering BDD, [2] and individuals with BDD tend to engage in heavy plastic surgery use. Based on a 2022 survey results from the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS), 79% of plastic surgeons reported a trend of patients seeking improvement in their physical appearances with the desire to look better in selfies. [6]

The British cosmetic surgeon Tijion Esho coined the term “Snapchat Dysmorphia” to explain the increasing trend of patients seeking cosmetic surgeries to achieve the filtered versions of themselves. [7] Esho noticed that with the rising popularity of social media platforms and filters, more patients were coming into consultations with filtered images of themselves. [8] In the past, patients would show up to clinics with photos of celebrities or models they wanted to look like, but in this new filtered age, patients were now making use of their heavily edited selfies as references for their cosmetic procedures. [9] We are now living in a generation where both women and men are more visually aware than ever before [7] and due to the accessibility of these filtered images through social media, our feelings of self-worth may be highly determined by the number of likes and followers we receive through these social media applications. Researchers have found that users that engage in image-heavy social media platforms, such as Instagram, are more likely to consider undergoing plastic surgery. [9] As we receive and share highly curated images, these images are publicly displayed and readily judged by peers, family, and even strangers – making us more critical of our appearances and how we present ourselves online. Therefore, filtered images creates and maintains unrealistic expectations of beauty ideals which drives a greater demand for cosmetic surgeries and procedures. [10]

Negative impact on adolescents

Because of the prevalence of digital imaging and sharing, members of the "selfie generation" can hyper-fixate and obsess over minor or even nonexistent flaws in their appearance, and that can lead to lower self-esteem and higher self-dissatisfaction as well as dysmorphia. [11] Social media platforms provide users with an online space to not only control the ways in which they present themselves, but they can go far as to curate idealized versions of themselves. These filters reinforce a new standard of unattainable beauty, including “Instagram Face”, in which users can adjust their facial features and conform to an unrealistic version of themselves through social media: high cheekbones, poreless skin, cat-like eyes, plump lips, and small nose. [9]

Today, more young people, especially adolescent girls, are using these filters through social media that “beautify” their looks which promise to deliver an enhanced version of their appearances. Specifically, with the rise of selfie culture, Snapchat claimed that there are “200 million daily active users that play with or view Lenses every day to transform the way they look”, [12] with more than 90% of young people in the U.S., France, and the U.K. currently using Snapchat filters. Body image expert Jasmine Fardouly, argues that there is a strong relationship between negative body image and the use of photo editing. Social media provides users with the tools to control how they appear online, and the constant investigation into one's self-presentation and alteration of one's images can be harmful to users’ self-esteem and body satisfaction. [13] McLean et al. (2015) showed that adolescent girls who had higher engagement in manipulation of and investment in self-images tend to be more preoccupied with their appearance and body image, as well as association with greater eating and body-related concerns. [14]

According to research with the Dove Self-Esteem Project, 60% of young girls felt upset that their actual appearance did not match the online, retouched version of themselves. [9] These girls who dedicated much time to photo editing felt more anxious, less confident, and less physically attractive after comparing themselves to their idealized versions of themselves. This conflicting gap between idealized expectations and harsh realities of appearance can lead to BDD, and BDD can often lead to mental health issues, including depression, anxiety disorders, substance abuse, and suicidal behavior. [15] By the age of 13, 80% of young girls manipulate and distort the way they look online through face-altering and editing filters. [16] Adolescents are at high risk of depression, body image concerns, and eating disorders through social media usage – with 52% of girls using social media filters every day. [9]

Prevention

With the rising debate about the potential negative impacts of social media filters and the increasing awareness of body dysmorphia, social media filters were heavily criticized for simulating explicit distortion effects to promote cosmetic surgeries. Third-party filters on Instagram such as FixMe allowed users to annotate their faces similar to how cosmetic surgeons may mark up areas for surgical improvement. After a public controversy around these distorted filters, in August 2020, a new policy banned filters that directly promoted cosmetic surgery. [12]

Meta, which operates Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, has made some attempts to restrict the use of distortion effects and filters through social media. Facial distortion filters no longer appear in Instagram's “Effects Gallery,” which displays the most popular filters at that time. [13] Any effects or augmented reality (AR) filters that explicitly encourage cosmetic surgery are not allowed on Instagram, as research has shown that face-altering filters can make users feel worse about their appearances. [17]

Dove's #NoDigitalDistortion campaign project supports young adolescents in building self-confidence and positive body image on social media. [16] For example, the Dove Self-Esteem Project created a Confidence Kit: an online resource guide for discussions surrounding social media usage and body image with young people.

A study in JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery has also emphasized the need for plastic surgeons to screen their patients for BDD before undergoing surgery procedures to check for underlying problems of body dysmorphia. [18] Cosmetic surgery is not a solution or treatment for BDD [19] and it is important for cosmetic surgeons to provide interventions and discussions around achievable aesthetic goals.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plastic surgery</span> Medical surgical specialty

Plastic surgery is a surgical specialty involving the restoration, reconstruction, or alteration of the human body. It can be divided into two main categories: reconstructive surgery and cosmetic surgery. Reconstructive surgery includes craniofacial surgery, hand surgery, microsurgery, and the treatment of burns. While reconstructive surgery aims to reconstruct a part of the body or improve its functioning, cosmetic surgery aims to improve the appearance of it. A comprehensive definition of plastic surgery has never been established, because it has no distinct anatomical object and thus overlaps with practically all other surgical specialties. An essential feature of plastic surgery is that it involves the treatment of conditions that require or may require tissue relocation skills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Body dysmorphic disorder</span> Mental disorder

Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), also known in some contexts as dysmorphophobia, is a mental disorder defined by an overwhelming preoccupation with a perceived flaw in one's physical appearance. In BDD's delusional variant, the flaw is imagined. When an actual visible difference exists, its importance is disproportionately magnified in the mind of the individual. Whether the physical issue is real or imagined, ruminations concerning this perceived defect become pervasive and intrusive, consuming substantial mental bandwidth for extended periods each day. This excessive preoccupation not only induces severe emotional distress but also disrupts daily functioning and activities. The DSM-5 places BDD within the obsessive–compulsive spectrum, distinguishing it from disorders such as anorexia nervosa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Body image</span> Aesthetic perception of ones own body

Body image is a person's thoughts, feelings and perception of the aesthetics or sexual attractiveness of their own body. The concept of body image is used in several disciplines, including neuroscience, psychology, medicine, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, philosophy, cultural and feminist studies; the media also often uses the term. Across these disciplines, there is no single consensus definition, but broadly speaking, body image consists of the ways people view themselves; their memories, experiences, assumptions, and comparisons about their appearances; and their overall attitudes towards their respective heights, shapes, and weights—all of which are shaped by prevalent social and cultural ideals.

Muscle dysmorphia is a subtype of the obsessive mental disorder body dysmorphic disorder, but is often also grouped with eating disorders. In muscle dysmorphia, which is sometimes called "bigorexia", "megarexia", or "reverse anorexia", the delusional or exaggerated belief is that one's own body is too small, too skinny, insufficiently muscular, or insufficiently lean, although in most cases, the individual's build is normal or even exceptionally large and muscular already.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cosmetics advertising</span> Promotion of cosmetics and beauty products

Cosmetic advertising is the promotion of cosmetics and beauty products by the cosmetics industry through a variety of media. The advertising campaigns are usually aimed at women wishing to improve their appearance, commonly to increase physical attractiveness and reduce the signs of ageing.

Reid Ewing is an American actor and musician known for his role as Dylan in the ABC comedy Modern Family and as Charlie Plunk in the TV series Zeke and Luther (2009–2011).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Instagram</span> Social media platform owned by Meta Platforms

Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters, be organized by hashtags, and be associated with a location via geographical tagging. Posts can be shared publicly or with preapproved followers. Users can browse other users' content by tags and locations, view trending content, like photos, and follow other users to add their content to a personal feed. A Meta-operated image-centric social media platform, it is available on iOS, Android, Windows 10, and the web. Users can take photos and edit them using built-in filters and other tools, then share them on other social media platforms like Facebook. It supports 32 languages including English, Spanish, French, Korean, and Japanese.

The feminine beauty ideal is a specific set of beauty standards regarding traits that are ingrained in women throughout their lives and from a young age to increase their perceived physical attractiveness. It is experienced by many women in the world, though the traits change over time and vary in country and culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selfie</span> Photographic self-portrait

A selfie is a self-portrait photograph or a short video, typically taken with an electronic camera or smartphone. The camera would be usually held at arm's length or supported by a selfie stick instead of being controlled with a self-timer or remote. The concept of shooting oneself while viewing their own image in the camera's LCD monitor is also known as self-recording.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Facetune</span> Mobile photo editing application

Facetune is a photo and video editing application used to edit, enhance, and retouch photos on a user's iOS or Android device created by Lightricks. The app is often used for portrait and selfie editing.

Cosmetic surgery, also referred to as aesthetic surgery, is a surgical procedure which endeavours to improve the physical aspects of one's appearance to become more aesthetically pleasing. The continuously growing field of cosmetic surgery is closely linked with plastic surgery, the difference being, cosmetic surgery is an elective surgery with the sole purpose to enhance the physical features of one's appearance. Plastic surgery is performed in order to rectify defects to reinstate normality to function and appearance. Cosmetic surgical procedures are generally performed on healthy functioning body parts, with the procedure being optional not medically necessary. The inevitable aim of cosmetic surgery is to enhance one's image, encompassing reducing the signs of aging and/or correction of a believed deviation on one's body in turn it is surrounded by controversy. Although the implementation of cosmetic surgery within Australian society is growing, the trade has struggled to find its place within the Australian culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Korean beauty standards</span>

Korean beauty standards have become a well-known feature of Korean culture. In 2015, a global survey by the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons placed South Korea in the top ten of countries who had the highest rate of cosmetic surgeries.

Snow is an image messaging and multimedia mobile application created by Camp Mobile, a subsidiary of South Korean internet search giant Naver Corporation. It features virtual stickers using augmented reality and photographic filters. Pictures and messages sent through Snow are only accessible for a short time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Body positivity</span> Movement advocating the mental quality that seeks to accept oneself and ones body

Body positivity is a social movement that promotes a positive view of all bodies, regardless of size, shape, skin tone, gender, and physical abilities. Proponents focus on the appreciation of the functionality and health of the human body, instead of its physiological appearance.

Culture of cosmetic surgery is a set of attitudes and behavior regarding making changes to one's appearance via plastic surgery. World War I left thousands of soldiers with unprecedented levels of facial damage, creating a massive need for reconstructive surgery. Harold Gillies of New Zealand developed methods to restore function and structure to the faces of soldiers and these processes rapidly gained popularity. During the 1940s and 50s, personal appearance became more emphasized in the United States. As beauty standards changed, new products and techniques were developed to meet those demands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social media and identity</span> Impacts of social media

Social media can have both positive and negative impacts on a user's identity. Psychology and Communication scholars study the relationship between social media and identity in order to understand individual behavior, psychological impact, and social patterns. Communication within political or social groups online can result in practice application of those identities or adoption of them as a whole. Young people, defined as emerging adults in or entering college, especially shape their identities through social media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selfie culture on Chinese social media</span>

With the spread of smartphones and the rise of social media in China, the act of taking selfies has become a new type of social culture that influences the economy, generating the "new form of self-disclosure" that affects the construction of individual identities and the existing beauty standards.

An Instagram face is a social trend for women to adjust their features to conform to a single template, either by applying filters to their photographs on social media, or via cosmetic surgery. The template face is young, with poreless, unwrinkled skin and plump, high cheekbones. It has catlike (uplifted) eyes and long lashes; it has a small, symmetrical nose and lush lips. It has a blank expression. According to Jia Tolentino, the face is exotic but distinctly white, and ambiguously "ethnic". The face has been described as "well-tanned, with South Asian brows and eye shape, African-American lips, Caucasian nose, and Native American/Middle Eastern cheeks."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Filter (social media)</span> Effects used to alter the appearance of a digital image

Filters are digital image effects often used on social media. They initially simulated the effects of camera filters, and they have since developed with facial recognition technology and computer-generated augmented reality. Social media filters—especially beauty filters—are often used to alter the appearance of selfies taken on smartphones or other similar devices. While filters are commonly associated with beauty enhancement and feature alterations, there is a wide range of filters that have different functions. From adjusting photo tones to using face animations and interactive elements, users have access to a range of tools. These filters allow users to enhance photos and allow room for creative expression and fun interactions with digital content.

References

  1. ↑ Cristel, Robert T; Dayan, Steven H; Akinosun, Moriyike; Russell, Parker T (2020-01-31). "Evaluation of Selfies and Filtered Selfies and Effects on First Impressions". Aesthetic Surgery Journal. 41: 122–130. doi:10.1093/asj/sjz362 . Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  2. 1 2 Ryding, C. F.; Kuss, D. J. (2019). "The use of social networking sites, body image dissatisfaction and Body Dysmorphic Disorder: A systematic review of psychological research" (PDF). Psychology of Popular Media Culture.
  3. 1 2 Boston Medical Center (2018-08-02). "A new reality for beauty standards: How selfies and filters affect body image". EurekAlert!. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  4. ↑ Cororve, Michelle B; Gleaves, David H (2001-08-01). "Body dysmorphic disorder: a review of conceptualizations, assessment, and treatment strategies". Clinical Psychology Review. 21 (6): 949–970. doi:10.1016/S0272-7358(00)00075-1. ISSN   0272-7358.
  5. 1 2 Ramphul, Kamleshun; Mejias, Stephanie G (2018-03-03). "Is "Snapchat Dysmorphia" a Real Issue?". Cureus. 10 (3): e2263. doi: 10.7759/cureus.2263 . ISSN   2168-8184. PMC   5933578 . PMID   29732270.
  6. ↑ Kugler, Thomas (2023). "New trends in facial plastic surgery". American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
  7. 1 2 Hosie, Rachel (2018-02-06). "People want to look like versions of themselves with filters rather than celebrities, cosmetic doctor says". The Independent. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
  8. ↑ Wigmore, Ivy (February 2019). "Snapchat dysmorphia". WhatIs. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Haines, Anna (2021-04-27). "From 'Instagram Face' To 'Snapchat Dysmorphia': How Beauty Filters Are Changing The Way We See Ourselves". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
  10. ↑ Shein, Esther (November 2021). "Filtering for beauty". Communications of the ACM. 64 (11): 17–19. doi:10.1145/3484997. ISSN   0001-0782. S2CID   239770270.
  11. ↑ Willingham, A. J. (2018-08-10). "Social media filters mess with our perceptions so much, there's now a name for it". CNN. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  12. 1 2 Ryan-Mosley, Tate (2021-04-02). "Beauty filters are changing the way young girls see themselves". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
  13. 1 2 Boseley, Matilda (2022-01-01). "Is that really me? The ugly truth about beauty filters". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2024-02-20.
  14. ↑ McLean, Siân A.; Paxton, Susan J.; Wertheim, Eleanor H.; Masters, Jennifer (December 2015). "Photoshopping the selfie: Self photo editing and photo investment are associated with body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls". The International Journal of Eating Disorders. 48 (8): 1132–1140. doi:10.1002/eat.22449. ISSN   1098-108X. PMID   26311205.
  15. ↑ Greywoode, Jewel (2020-01-23). "What is selfie dysmorphia?". Charlotte Eye Ear Nose & Throat Associates. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
  16. 1 2 "Building self-esteem in the social media age". Dove. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
  17. ↑ BBC (2019-10-23). "Instagram bans 'cosmetic surgery' filters" . Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  18. ↑ Ritschel, Chelsea (2018-08-06). "'Snapchat dysmorphia': Teenagers are getting plastic surgery to look like selfie filters". The Independent. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
  19. ↑ Migala, Jessica (2023-06-16). "'Snapchat Dysmorphia': Is the Stress of Social Media Driving Young People to Plastic Surgery?". Everyday Health. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
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