Study Status
Ongoing
Project Team
Principal Investigator(s): Anahi Collado, PhD
Research Team Members: Kylie Sambirsky; Bree McCarty, BA
Community Partners: N/A
Alignment with Crown Institute Vision
This project advances the Crown Institute’s vision by promoting environments in which young people can develop healthy relationships with themselves and their communities by addressing how to shield young people from the digital pressures that shape body image and mental health. The findings inform scalable, youth-centered tools that empower adolescents to navigate social media with confidence and compassion, contributing to a world where every young person feels supported to flourish.
Background & Context
Young women experience high rates of body dissatisfaction and unhealthy weight-control behaviors, with more than half reporting harmful practices such as skipping meals or purging. Social media has become a major driver of these concerns; platforms like Instagram and TikTok expose youth to idealized appearance imagery, promote comparison, and reinforce narrow beauty norms. These pressures are especially influential during adolescence and early adulthood, developmental period characterized by heightened sensitivity to peer evaluation and emerging identity exploration. Despite the growth of prevention programs, little is known about the extent to which these programs protect young women from the ongoing impact of appearance-focused social media exposure, a critical gap given that teens spend several hours per day engaging with highly curated digital content.
The present study seeks to address this gap by evaluating core components of the As You Are curriculum, particularly appearance bias awareness, mindfulness skills, and their combined delivery to determine how exposure to idealized social media content shapes adolescents’ interpretations and emotional responses, and the extent to which these strategies offer protection. By testing these components independently and in combination, the project aims to identify the mechanisms of protection that are most effective for young people navigating today’s social media landscape, thereby advancing prevention science in ways that reflect contemporary digital realities.
Primary Aims
This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of delivering the mind, body, and voice components of the As You Are program through an online platform and to examine the extent to which selected components protect adolescents from harmful effects of appearance-focused social media exposure.
Research Methods
This study used a mixed-methods, longitudinal design to evaluate the efficacy of delivering the mind, body, and voice components of the As You Are program through an online platform and to examine the extent to which selected components (appearance bias awareness, mindfulness skills, and their combined delivery) protect against harmful effects of appearance-focused social media exposure. Participants were young women ages 18–24 from across the United States.
Data collection included three online phases. First, participants completed a baseline assessment of body image, body appreciation, and related constructs. In the second phase, participants were randomly exposed to the assigned core components followed by idealized social media content, after which they completed questionnaires assessing immediate cognitive, emotional, and body image responses. The final phase included a follow-up assessment to evaluate short-term changes and the persistence of intervention effects.
Quantitative and qualitative data were collected at each stage and analyzed to assess feasibility, acceptability, preliminary effectiveness, and implementation considerations. These findings will guide iterative refinement of a potential virtual version of the program, ensuring it meets the needs of young people in diverse digital contexts.
Key Findings & Publications / Presentations
This project is ongoing.
Contact to Learn More
References
Fardouly, J., Willburger, B.K., & Vartanian, L.R. (2018). Instagram use and young women’s body image concerns and self-objectification: Testing mediational pathways. New Media & Society, 20(4), 1380-1395.
Fritzson, A. E., Schrag, B. H., Park, B., Strife, S., Teeters, L. A. P., Lischwe, E. H., ... & Dimidjian, S. (2024). Enhancing body image satisfaction and well-being among early adolescents: Feasibility and preliminary outcomes of the mind. body. voice. program. Eating Behaviors, 53, 101875.
Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2005). Can we simultaneously work toward the prevention of obesity and eating disorders in children and adolescents? International Journal of Eating Disorders, 38(3), 220-227.
Tiggemann, M. & Slater, A. (2014). NetTweens: The internet and body image concerns in preteenage girls. Journal of Early Adolescence, 34(5), 606-620.