How advertising and social media content impacts body positivity, issues of equality, diversity and self-acceptance in women : a qualitative study

Abstract

To this day, brand advertising is very much dependent on how and in which way women are portrayed in advertisements. Many studies show that advertising portrays body representations in a limited way, with models mostly being young, blonde and underweight (Freitas & Smith, 2017). In fact, there is a distinction between the models being used for brand adverts and what women truly look like (Aagerup, 2011). The purpose of this study is to delve deeper in the subjects of body image and body positivity, and understand how these have developed over time. This type of research is beneficial to both women’s studies as well as online research. When undertaking this type of academic research, one must keep in mind that data may change in a matter of years. Although the key question remains the same: is social media being used positively, thus encouraging women to feel good in their own skin, or is it being used negatively, consequently not allowing women to feel accepted and encouraged to do what they want to do, irrespective of how they look? What is certain is that, ethical and appropriate measures always need to be taken into consideration from the data that suffices. The following are the methodological strategies utilized to perform the empirical research: Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis, qualitative research, and primary data.