Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

The Relationship Between Social Media Usage, Self-Esteem, and Eating Attitudes

Publication Date

Spring 2022

College

Sciences and Mathematics, College of

Department

Psychological Science, Department of

BURS Faculty Advisor

Linda Jones

Presentation Type

Oral Presentation

Abstract

Social media usage is a prevalent topic in research and has been for the past decade. Another pertinent topic of research has been the prevalence of disordered eating and the impact of self-esteem in young adults. Previous research has suggested social media usage may have an effect on disordered eating attitudes and behavior - especially among emerging adults with higher social media exposure (Santarossa & Woodruff, 2017; Tadena et. al., 2020).The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between media usage, self-esteem, and disordered eating. Participants were recruited from Introductory Psychology courses at a mid-sized southern university. They were asked to access their screen time and report their time spent on their social media platforms. Participants were then given the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale and the Disordered Eating Attitude Scale. Based on the previous literature, it was hypothesized that there will be a negative correlation between the amount of time spent on social media and self esteem. It was also hypothesized that there will be a positive correlation between the amount of time spent on social media and disordered eating attitudes. This study provided insight on the impacts of social media on wellbeing.

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