Social media use in a sample of Portuguese adolescents: relationship with self-esteem, body image, and symptoms of body dysmorphic disorder

The widespread use of social networks has become a reality, especially among teenagers, who are using them as entertainment tools, but also as forms of communication and expression. This has been a subject of interest and concern within the scientific community to comprehend this problem and its repercussions, more so when it comes to a young group who, at this stage of their development, are developing their identity, while being exposed to platforms that place great emphasis on status, body image and ideal lifestyle. In this framework, a descriptive correlational study was carried out with 75 adolescents, mostly female, aged between 13 and 17, to explore the relationship between the use of social networks, self-esteem, body image and symptoms of body dysmorphic disorder. For this we applied a sociodemographic questionnaire addressing the use of social networks and the presence of symptoms associated with Body Dysmorphic Disorder, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and the Appearance Schema Inventory. The results reveal a statistically significant relationship between the use of social networks and body image (r = .361) and symptomatology associated with body dysmorphic disorder (rs = .258), as well as the relationship between the purposes of using social networks and self-esteem (X2 = 85.466). There were significant differences in terms of gender regarding body image (U = 471.500; p = .023) and body dysmorphic disorder symptoms (U = 445.500; p = .011), with the average order in the female group being higher. We discuss the implications of these results for intervention with this population.