An investigation of the relationship between social networking site activities and muscle dysmorphia in young men

Abstract

While the connection between social networking sites (SNSs) and body image has been reported more broadly in prior literature, the link between SNSs and muscle dysmorphia (MD) is less understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the strength and nature of the relationship between MD and SNSs among men in the general population. With SNSs allowing users to view and interact with online content, this study focussed on three SNS activities: (a) viewing men’s celebrity and fashion content, (b) viewing fitness-related content and (c) the importance of received likes and comments. Young men (N = 95) completed an online questionnaire recording demographic information, SNS activities and MD symptomatology. A hierarchal regression revealed that the importance of received likes and comments significantly predicted MD symptomatology over and above demographic factors. These findings reflect a need to emphasise the interactive components of SNSs within body image literature.