Sociala mediers inflytande över gymnasieelevers kroppsuppfattning och självkänsla

Abstract

Introduction; Access to social media and computers has increased among young people in recent years and there is a clear link between young people’s dissatisfaction with their own body and use of social media. By looking from public health science perspective, it is important to investigate how young people feel when it comes to body perception and self-esteem because body perception can have a great impact on an individual's well-being. The purpose of this study is to investigate self esteem and body perception of high school students, together with their feelings about social media and its influence. Method; A qualitative study was conducted on 10 young high school students 6 boys and 4 girls in the age group 16 to 20 years , by using a semi-structured interview method, Results: The aquired data from interviews was divided into 4 main categories: The prevailing norm on Instagram, Requirements and expectations, Body ideal, & Does social media contribute to a healthy lifestyle? The results showed that the perception of the informants body is influenced by social media. Discussion; From a public health science perspective, we should be better at responding to individuals, especially young people, who show signs of mental issues, at this is classified as a public health problem. Conclusion; Adolescents experience high expectations from their surroundings because of the prevailing norm seen on Instagram. This in turn leads to low self-esteem, poor self-image but also bullying and exclusion. Young people need more knowledge of social media, which means that they can be more critical of the messages conveyed there.