“Be your best self – but be hot while doing it”: influencers pairing motivational captions with sexualized images

Abstract

ABSTRACT Influencers are pairing motivational captions with sexualized imagery in a recent Instagram trend. The negative impact of thin-ideal social media images paired with fitspiration captions (i.e. fitness-based captions) or disclaimer captions (i.e. warning labels) on women has been established; however, this study explored a new caption: the motivational caption. Unlike their accompanying images that emphasize a sexualized, thin-ideal body, motivational captions do not mention appearance but instead provide (seemingly) uplifting content. Utilizing an experimental survey, 589 emerging adult women were randomly assigned to view sexualized photos paired with one of three caption types: sexualizing, motivational, or neutral. Participants reported mood pre- and post-exposure, appearance comparison, self-objectification, belief that sex is power, and impressions of models. Findings revealed mood worsened in the sexualizing caption condition pre- to post- exposure compared to neutral captions. Women in the motivational caption condition reported more positive impressions of the models than women in the sexualizing caption condition. The discussion explores the potential implications of an influencer’s sexualized image/motivational caption’s implied message: in order to achieve mental/emotional success, you must also achieve a sexualized physical self. Further, findings shed light on how alternative options for caption framing affect mood and well-being.