The relationship between social media, body image and gender drawing on interviews with teenagers

A UK based survey (March 2019, conducted jointly by YouGov and Mental Health Foundation) found that 31% of the 1,118 teenagers that responded felt ashamed in relation to their body image and 40% of teenagers noted that images on social media caused them to worry about their body image. Whilst numerous studies look at quantitative information, qualitative research on social media and body image is still surprisingly scarce. This research is based on semi-structured interviews with 20 young people aged between 14-21 years and highlights how taking control of social media is important in relation to body image concerns.