As social media remains a dominant force in society, it fuels various beauty trends, standards, and ideals related to the body, height, and weight, which can influence one’s perception and feelings about one’s body or body image. Hence, the primary purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between social media usage and body image. This study was grounded in Social Comparison Theory (SCT), introduced by Leon Festinger (1954), with social media usage as the independent variable and body image as the dependent variable. The study’s respondents were 30 college students chosen through purposive sampling based on specific inclusion criteria set by the researchers. A quantitative approach was employed, utilizing a descriptive-correlation research method to measure the variables of the study through a survey using standardized questionnaires, specifically Jiyoung Chae’s Social Media Questionnaire and David A. Rowe’s Body Self-Image Questionnaire-Short Form (BSIQ-SF). The null hypothesis at the 0.05 alpha level of significance was tested to identify the influence of social media usage on the body image of college students. The Pearson R correlation coefficient analysis revealed no statistically significant relationship between social media usage and body image. Implications of the study for future programs based on the findings were discussed, and recommendations for future research were suggested.
Keywords: Social Media, Social Media Usage, Body Image.
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