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Updated: Sep 2, 2025

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design
Published on: May 31, 2021
The effects of body-positive Instagram posts on body image in adult women
Sophie L Nelson1, Jennifer A Harriger1, Cindy Miller-Perrin1
1Department of Psychology, Pepperdine University, USA.
Abstract:
While recent studies have examined the effects of viewing body-positive social media content on body appreciation and satisfaction in young adult women, research has yet to include older adult women. The current study assessed the effects of viewing body-positive Instagram content on body image in 205 adult women (18-76 years old) who were randomly assigned to view either body-positive, thin-ideal, or appearance-neutral Instagram content. Our findings demonstrated that exposure to body-positive Instagram content resulted in greater levels of body appreciation and body satisfaction compared to exposure to thin-ideal and neutral Instagram content, while no significant differences were found between any of the conditions on self-objectification. Finally, age was only a significant moderator for one variable (self objectification) and condition (thin ideal), indicating that exposure to body-positive social media content may improve levels of body appreciation and satisfaction in adult women, regardless of age.
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