Repercussões de uma rede social na percepção e satisfação corporal e no comportamento alimentar de estudantes universitárias

Abstract

The media has been spreading an ideal type of beauty and body, in which the lean and delicately turned body is now understood as the only possibility of beauty, leading to a hegemony of this body pattern. In this context, the social network Instagram stands out, which has an expressive number of fitness profiles that promote the frequent exposure of images of bodies considered ideal and of strategies to reach it. The objective of this dissertation was to verify the repercussions of Instagram on the perception and corporal satisfaction and on the eating behavior of university students; and is composed of three studies. Study 1, which is an integrative review, followed the PICO strategy to investigate the repercussions of the use of social networks on the body image of its users. The searches were carried out in PubMed, MEDLINE, LILACS, PsycINFO and SciELO databases from January 2006 to August 2017. The corpus of the study was composed of 20 articles read in their entirety. Studies have shown that social networks have a predominantly negative repercussion on the body self-image of their users. The qualitative study 2 aimed to verify the repercussions of the Instagram fitness profiles on the perception and body satisfaction and on the dietary behavior of its followers. Fifteen university students were interviewed. The interviews were audiographed and submitted to content analysis, using the thematic analysis technique. It was observed that the body is currently seen as a moldable object, where the subject is considered solely responsible for the presentation of his physical appearance, and the profiles have shaped a new body type: it is not enough to be thin, it is necessary to have visible delicate muscles , but did not become masculinized. The fitness profiles spread a simplistic idea that the ideal body is within reach of all, if you have the dedication and willpower. Study 3, also of a qualitative nature, examined the content of comments associated with photos centered on body exposure, conveyed in an Instagram fitness profile. There was an intimate relationship between thinness, beauty, happiness, and as a source of inspiration and desire. In this light, there is a strong desire for (re) construction of the body, which is confused with the longing for (re) construction of one's own identity. Finally, it was observed that the desire for corporal remodeling reverberates in relation to feeding, which becomes distorted and a source of guilt, regret and need for pleasure control, which can culminate in dysfunctional eating behaviors. Based on the results of these three studies, one can conclude that the negative repercussions of social networks on body perception and satisfaction is related to how much the messages / photos disclosed in this medium are internalized. Added to this, the followers create the illusion that that corporal model is within the reach of all, as long as one has dedication and commitment; at the same time that feelings of sadness and frustration emerge when this ideal is not reached.