In light of recent studies demonstrating the detrimental effects of social media use on young women’s body image, we examined the racial composition of young women’s Instagram followers, as well as the racial composition of the individuals in young women’s followed Instagram accounts, in relation to their appearance ideals and body image. Based on social identity theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1979), we tested two main propositions. First, women who have racially similar followers and followed accounts will be more likely to internalize body ideal preferences that are relevant to their in-group (i.e., thinness for Asian-American and White women; curviness for Black and Latina women). Second, following and being followed by people of one’s racial identity in-group will have ameliorative effects on young women’s body image (i.e., more body appreciation; less body dissatisfaction). Our sample included 533 U.S. women who identified as Asian-American (n = 97), Black (n = 101), Latina (n = 98), or White (n = 237). The results provided more support for the notion that racially similar followers and accounts followed are related to better body image outcomes rather than to the internalization of body ideals. Specifically, following a higher percentage of racially similar accounts was positively associated with body appreciation among Asian-American and White participants and negatively associated with body dissatisfaction among Asian-American participants. Likewise, being followed by a higher percentage of racially similar others was positively associated with body appreciation among Asian-American, Black, and White participants, and negatively associated with body dissatisfaction among Latina participants. The findings are discussed in light of social identity theory.

鉴于最近的研究表明社交媒体的使用对年轻女性的身体形象产生有害影响，我们研究了年轻女性 Instagram 粉丝的种族构成，以及年轻女性关注的 Instagram 账户中个人的种族构成，以及她们的个人形象。理想的外表和身体形象。基于社会认同理论（Tajfel & Turner，1979），我们测试了两个主要命题。首先，拥有种族相似追随者和关注账户的女性更有可能内化与其群体相关的理想身材偏好（即亚裔美国和白人女性的苗条身材；黑人和拉丁裔女性的曲线美）。其次，在群体中追随或被同一种族认同的人追随会对年轻女性的身体形象产生改善作用（即更多的身体欣赏；更少的身体不满）。我们的样本包括 533 名美国女性，她们被认为是亚裔美国人 ( n  = 97)、黑人 ( n  = 101)、拉丁裔 ( n  = 98) 或白人 ( n  = 237)。结果为以下观点提供了更多支持：种族相似的关注者和关注的账户与更好的身体形象结果相关，而不是与身体理想的内化相关。具体来说，关注种族相似账户的比例较高与亚裔美国人和白人参与者的身体欣赏呈正相关，与亚裔美国参与者的身体不满意呈负相关。同样，在亚裔美国人、黑人和白人参与者中，跟随种族相似的其他人的比例较高，与身体欣赏呈正相关，而与拉丁裔参与者的身体不满意呈负相关。根据社会认同理论对研究结果进行了讨论。