The Roles of Social Comparison Orientation and Regulatory Focus in College Students’ Responses to Fitspiration Posts on Social Media: Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Background Information shared via social media influences college students’ self-perceptions and behavior, particularly, “fitspiration” posts (ie, images of healthy food, people exercising, or fitness quotations). There are mixed findings regarding the mental health implications of fitspiration and its potential to motivate healthy behavior. Individual differences such as social comparison orientation and regulatory focus could aid in determining for whom fitspiration may be helpful versus harmful, though these characteristics have received limited attention in terms of students’ fitspiration perceptions. Objective This cross-sectional study examined associations between students’ fitspiration use (ie, intentional versus unintentional exposure while using social media), response tendencies (ie, feelings about the self and motivation to be physically active), social comparison orientation, and regulatory focus. Methods College students (N=344; 239/344, 69.5% women) completed an electronic survey in which they self-reported demographic information, the frequency of their social media use, exposure to fitspiration posts, typical feelings in response to fitspiration posts, and typical motivation for physical activity after viewing fitspiration posts. They also completed validated self-report measures of social comparison orientation and regulatory focus. Results College students reported frequent exposure to fitspiration posts on social media and that they experienced negative feelings in response to these posts more often than positive feelings. Average motivation for physical activity was rated as feeling motivated “some of the time.” However, students who reported more negative feelings after viewing fitspiration also reported greater motivation to be physically active after exposure. Associations between the frequency of intentional fitspiration use and motivation for physical activity after viewing fitspiration posts were moderated by social comparison orientation (b=−0.01, P=.03) but not by regulatory focus (b=−0.002, P=.67). Conclusions Negative feelings about the self may be motivating for students with weak social comparison orientation, as fitspiration may highlight a discrepancy between one’s real and ideal self that does not prompt dejection or disengagement. However, negative feelings for prevention-focused students might not be as motivating because there are no salient negative models to avoid. Further research into these associations is warranted and could inform future efforts to promote student health and well-being during college.

Social Media, Social Support, and Mental Health of Young Adults During COVID-19

“…However, other studies describe alarming negative effects of social media on mental health. Critics note that social media force young adults to constantly compare their lifestyles and body shapes with others' , causing deteriorating self-confidence and mental health problems (e.g., Vogel et al, 2014;Pasko and Arigo, 2021).…”

Fitspiration, related risks, and coping strategies: Recent trends and future directions.

“…Echoing Jerónimo and Carraça’s (2022) recent review about the effects of fitspiration content on body image, this current study discovered that most studies were conducted in female samples (Dignard & Jarry, 2021; Fioravanti et al, 2021; Krug et al, 2020; Lepesheva & Kholmogorova, 2021; Pasko & Arigo, 2021; Pilot & Stutts, 2022; Pryde & Prichard, 2022; Rafati et al, 2021; Wu et al, 2022; Yao et al, 2021). Some recruited mixed genders (Arigo et al, 2021; Bell, 2021; Limniou et al, 2021; Murashka et al, 2021), while research focused on examining fitspiration content among male viewers is comparatively rare (Tiggemann et al, 2020; Yee et al, 2020).…”

“…The existing literature coverage in fitspiration witnesses dominance in the Western contexts and on certain SNS platforms, Instagram in particular. A considerable number of studies focus on the fitspiration phenomenon and its impact in the United States (Arigo et al, 2021; DiBisceglie & Arigo, 2021; Pasko & Arigo, 2021; Pilot & Stutts, 2022; Rounds & Stutts, 2020), Australia (Prichard et al, 2020; Pryde & Prichard, 2022; Reade, 2021; Seekis et al, 2020; Tiggemann et al, 2020; Yee et al, 2020), Canada (Dignard & Jarry, 2021), and European countries, such as the United Kingdom (Bell, 2021; Limniou et al, 2021; Nazarali & Majumdar, 2020) and Italy (Fioravanti et al, 2021). Only a very few studies shed light on non-Western regions, such as Russia (Lepesheva & Kholmogorova, 2021), China (Duan et al, 2022; Wang et al, 2021; Yao et al, 2021), Malaysia (Ahadzadeh et al, 2022), and Iran (Rafati et al, 2021), or indicate a multicultural focus (Cataldo et al, 2021).…”

“…Different racial and ethnic groups promote different body ideals. Fitspiration and body image research outcomes from homogeneous samples, therefore, should avoid generalizing and be interpreted with caution, as they may not generalize for people from diverse backgrounds (Pasko & Arigo, 2021). Intercultural and comparative research could be conducted to investigate the phenomenon beyond one single region or the continental regions.…”

“…Most of the current fitspiration research focuses on the population of young adults (Barnes et al, 2023; DiBisceglie & Arigo, 2021), college students in particular (Arigo et al, 2021; Dignard & Jarry, 2021; Pasko & Arigo, 2021; Pilot & Stutts, 2022; Rafati et al, 2021; Yao et al, 2021). This could be owing to the approach of convenient sampling and researchers’ consideration of exploring the targeted population of frequent users on SNS platforms.…”