FAQs

• What factors brought your phenomenon to your attention?  

Factors that brought this phenomenon to my attention includes girls on Instagram editing their photos to look different, but then looking completely different in real life. Also opening Snapchat or Instagram and seeing unrealistic body expectations set by influencers and posted by media or brands.

• What are the larger forces that shaped and continue to drive what currently happening?

The larger forces that shaped and continue to drive what is happening is the big social media companies and advertising companies. For example Instagram, Facebook, billboards, news, TV channels… basically anything that spreads news and media to the people. Inside the larger forces are the influencers or the actual people who promote unhealthy expectations for society. This continues to drive what is happening because everyone wants to look and live like what they don’t have.

• How and by whom has the phenomenon been shaped?

This phenomenon has been shaped over the years mostly by social media like Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram. Because we see real people, we all the sudden believe that whatever they are doing or look like is a real expectation we now need to meet. This phenomenon is being shaped by media influencers and famous artists that teens look up to.

• Who is affected and effected?

Anyone who has a smartphone or access to a computer, tv, or even billboards.  
“As many as 20 million American women and 10 million American men will experience an

eating disorder at some point in their lifetime, and a large proportion of those affected are

adolescents and teens. More than half of teenage girls and approximately 1/3 of teenage

boys engage in eating disorder behaviors such as crash dieting, taking diet pills or laxatives,

and self-induced vomiting.” (American addiction centers, 2017).

“Social media may be a significant contributor to such behaviors. An eating disorder treatment

center in Chicago revealed that 30–50% of its teen patients used social media as a means of

supporting their eating disorders.2 A 2011 study conducted by the University of Haifa revealed

that the more time teenage girls spent on social media websites like Facebook, the greater

their risk was of developing eating disorders and negative body images. Another study

conducted by Florida State University in 2014 also reported a correlation between Facebook

use and disordered eating behaviors.” (American addiction centers, 2017).

• What are the major cultural factors?

All though racism is slowly deteriorating in the 21st century it still occurs and there are many

influencers out there who instead of embracing their culture, try to change it. For example

when Michael Jackson essentially turned white, how do you think that affected any and all

of his fans that were African American and proud? Now everyone that looks up to him thinks

that they need to be white too. This still happens today (Blac Chyna with her new whitening
cream). Many adolescent look up to figures of their same culture or ethnicity because it’s
more realistic for them to look similar. But when plastic surgery, and skin pigment
changing comes into play that can really affect a young child’s self image and love.

• What are the major consumer and producer factors/issues and ramifications of the ph- enomenons?

The major consumer and producer factors and issues include not having enough money to do what others do to be pretty or live lavish. Ie: money for vacation, money for lip injections...