The Influence of Social Media Selfie-Related Activities on Young Women’s Beauty Image Concerns

Abstract

The behavior of posting edited selfies on social networking sites (SNSs) is becoming increasingly popular among young women. However, young women’s frequent engagement in this online behavior is found to increase their intention to take risky cosmetic surgery in real life. Given that, this dissertation aims to examine selfies behavior and its relationship with the intention for cosmetic surgery among young women. Previous studies have indicated three natures of selfie behavior, including the use of social media, individuals’ presentation of ideal self, and their relationships with social groups. Yet, rare research involves social media interaction while examining the use of selfie to present idealized image of self and develop social relationship. To fill the voids, the dissertation examines (a) how the social interaction in which people engage on social media motivates their selfie behavior to present the ideal side of self; and (b) how individuals learn others’ perspective of ideal image and use this perspective to manage their presentation in the virtual environment. Two long-standing social psychology theories—self-presentation theory and objectification theory—are selected as the theoretical frameworks for conducting three studies to provide empirical tests. The overall findings disclose the social meaning of selfie behavior, reveal the process in which individuals develop self-concept based on the social meaning of selfies, and discuss the relationship between online selfie behavior and offline cosmetic surgery. The theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed accordingly.

Date of Award	10 May 2022
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	City University of Hong Kong
Supervisor	Chih Yun Stella CHIA (Supervisor)