A Study on Instagram Usage, Social Comparison, and Self-Objectification in Young Adults

The aim of the study was to find out the relationship between Instagram usage, social comparison, and self-objectification in young adults. The sample comprised 150 young adults. The Social Network Usage Questionnaire (Bashir et al. 2015), the core instrument of the Iowa-Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure (Gibbons & Buunk, 1999), and the Self-Objectification Belief and Behavior Scale (Lindner & Tantleff-Dunn, 2017) were used as measurement tools. The results were drawn using descriptive statistics of data and reliability analysis for each scale, Pearson correlation, and independent sample t-test. The correlational analysis revealed that there was a significant relationship between Instagram usage, social comparison, and self-objectification in young adults. Moreover, the independent sample t-test indicated gender differences in terms of social comparison and self-objectification in young adults. The findings of this research will help to manage the social comparison and self-objectification faced by young adults so they can learn how to manage self-objectification problems through Instagram usage.