Body Image Facebook Group and the Impact on Body Acceptance

<p> </p> <p>    Growing evidence suggests that various factors influence body image, including social media. Research suggests that social media platforms such as Facebook promote unrealistic and unattainable ideals, proliferating negative body image (Grabe et al., 2016). While Facebook has been found to be problematic to body image, limited research does support utilizing private Facebook groups to promote body positivity (Stapleton et al., 2018). Although formal in-person body image groups have been shown to be effective in improving body positivity (Lewis-Smith et al., 2018, Diedrichs et al., 2016; Stice et al., 2021; Seekis et al., 2020), continuous technological advancements make it imperative to evaluate other ways to promote positive body image outside of traditional therapeutic approaches. Given this, the present pilot study evaluated the effectiveness of a condensed, self-paced, CBT-focused, online Facebook group on body acceptance in non-clinical adult (18+) females. The study consisted for 13 female participants, ranging from 20 to 60+ years old. Of the 13, six individuals were randomly placed in the experimental group and seven were randomly selected for the control group. The control group was delayed by one week, individuals in this group did not receive a parallel intervention during this time.</p> <p>     Baseline measures of body image were gathered for both groups. The experimental group then underwent the Body Image Facebook Group. Upon completion of the one-week intervention, both groups completed post-test measures to assess for changes in body acceptance. The delayed control group then underwent the same intervention. Effectiveness was measured again for this group, using a post-test survey assessing for body acceptance, body appreciation, and body image perception/flexibility.</p> <p>     The Body Image Facebook Group’s curriculum yielded statistically significant improvements in the experimental group’s body appreciation and bodily perception/flexibility. The delayed control group also exhibited statistically significant improvements in body image perception and flexibility, confirming the results. Conversely, the Body Image Facebook Group did not yield statistically significant improvements in body acceptance for either group, suggesting that a longer intervention may be necessary for the improvement of body acceptance. Despite these results, the Body Image Facebook Group exhibited promising characteristics of an effective intervention for the improvement of body image.</p>