Instagram is having a negative influence on young girls, according to internal reports at Facebook, the app’s parent company. For eighteen months, researchers at Facebook conducted “in-depth research into the mental state of adolescent girls,” reports the Wall Street Journal this Monday, relayed by BFMTV.
These studies aimed to understand what repercussions the application of sharing photos and videos could have on young girls. 40% of Instagram subscribers are girls aged 22 and under. “We worsen the appearance complexes of one in three young girls. Instagram is changing the image young girls have of themselves and their bodies, ”the researchers said during a presentation in 2019.
“All aspects of Instagram are in a vicious cycle”
According to the same study, “young people are aware that Instagram is harmful to their mental health, but feel compelled to spend time there for fear of missing something, a cultural or social trend.” Focusing on young Americans and Britons, another study claims that 40% of Instagram users have felt “unattractive” since using the platform.
The majority of young users would like to spend less time on the app, but according to them, they “lack the will to actually do it”. Several disorders are observed: increased anxiety, depression, eating disorders or suicidal thoughts. According to figures put forward, 13% of young Britons and 6% of Americans have already expressed the wish to end their life on Instagram.
In conclusion, the study underlines that “all aspects of Instagram are exacerbated between them, constituting a vicious circle”. The application reacted the day after the publication of the article in Wall Street Journal. “We are working more and more on comparisons [de son corps avec celui des autres] and negative body image, ”the platform said in a statement.
