Abstract
Background: Self-esteem is a critical factor in online impression management strategies and could play a crucial role in explaining women’s selfie-posting behaviours. Previous works examining relationships between self-esteem and self-presentation on social media have yielded controversial results. Objective: This study was performed to clarify the relationship between self-esteem and the frequency of taking and posting own, group and partner selfies on Social Networking Sites (SNS). Methods: A sample of 692 Italian young women (18-28 years old) completed questionnaires on self-esteem, satisfaction with life, body satisfaction and selfie posting bahaviours. The low self-esteem group was compared with the high self-esteem group. Results: Results showed that women with low self-esteem are more dissatisfied with their body image and life and significantly they post fewer types of selfies compared to women with high self-esteem. Conclusion: Findings from this study provide new insights into the relation between self-esteem and selfie impression management strategies.
Highlights
Self-esteem is a part of the psychological representation of individuals [1] and is the emotional evaluation of the person’s own worth, that is, the individual’s judgment of him/herself [2]
Several studies have shown a beneficial effect of selfies on self-esteem thanks to the possibility of selective selfpresentation on social media, such as editing one’s own Social Networking Services (SNS) profile [14]
Online-self presentation via SNS is much more controlled than self-presentation in offline spaces, since the former can be edited and rearranged before posting, with countless opportunities to manage the image perceived by others [17]
Summary
Self-esteem is a part of the psychological representation of individuals [1] and is the emotional evaluation of the person’s own worth, that is, the individual’s judgment of him/herself [2]. A large number of cross-cultural studies have provided strong evidence that across samples, and measures, women tend to have lower self-esteem than men [3]. A wide range of literature yields evidence of a close association between self-esteem and body image satisfaction [4], especially amongst young women [5]. One’s own online body image display has come widely into use due to the spread of Social Networking Services (SNS) such as Instagram or Face-. The present study aims to investigate, in a large sample of young women, SNS users, self-esteem (the psychological portrait) and its relationship with other self-related constructs such as body satisfaction (a mental portrait of the physical self). Previous works examining relationships between self-esteem and self-presentation on social media have yielded controversial results
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