Photo collages by Jenna Podgorski
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Social media spurs a new culture of comparisons By Jenna Podgorski
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arents of today’s teens remember a time when social media meant passing notes on folded pieces of notebook paper, late-night whispered phone calls and school problems that stayed at school. That was then. Now, teens are exposed to never-ending streams of content. Social media have become an outlet that teens heavily rely on, and they’ve completely transformed the way we communicate. But when does the influence of social media become too overbearing? Social media like Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and Twitter influence users’ self-esteem, body image and confidence. The persistent, looming pressure to please everyone holds us to high, essentially unattainable, societal standards. Learning how to come to terms with the fear of not being perfect and staying true to ourselves while living an authentic lifestyle will help us become more courageous over time. “Everybody tends to post these ‘glamorized glimpses’ into their own lives. They don’t post everything. They just post the good stuff,” says
Catalina Toma, associate professor of communication arts at UW-Madison. Research studies have highlighted the influential power of “glamorized glimpses” on how we view ourselves, especially in terms of body image and self-esteem, Toma says. When carefully crafting an online presence, we try to adhere to the standards and norms of society, often fearing we are not good enough. Imperfection and perfection coexist. Toma says we never have enough insight and knowledge to understand the posting intentions of others — we only know our own habits. Shiela Reaves, professor of life science communication at UWMadison, says when we compare ourselves to others, we usually feel worse about ourselves. People will compare themselves to others because of what they see on social media. The pressure to be perfect instills this mindset in which we cannot be anything but perfect. Skylar Witte, former Miss Wisconsin 2017, is passionate about advocating and speaking out on the themes of social media, body image, authenticity and confidence. With
more than 13,000 Instagram followers and a well-known title, Witte thinks social media strongly affect how we see ourselves. “They always say that Instagram is your highlight reel, and I would say that is definitely true,” Witte says. “It just comes together to really be the creation of what society views as normal and society views as standards.” Even though social media and societal standards can sometimes be negative influences, they can also bring positive results. “Social media is kind of creating this standard, but I also think that it has the potential to be a really positive influence just because so many people use it and so many people use it often,” Witte says. According to Witte, social media can create an environment that promotes realness and inclusivity. Witte suggests taking our highlight reels and reworking them into highlight reals. If people stay true to who they are, she says, they can redefine the idea of perfection.
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