Social Media Use and Its Association with Eating-Related Attitudes and Behaviors in Rural University Students
Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
Major
Nutrition and Dietetics
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Deanna Staskel, PhD, RD, LD
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Eating disorders are a class of psychiatric illnesses in which deviations from typical patterns of eating induce potentially deleterious physical and psychosocial consequences in affected patients. The prevalence of clinical eating disorders has increased globally in recent years, jumping from an estimated 3.5% to 7.8% between 2006 and 2018. Contemporary literature suggests that eating disorder onset typically occurs during adolescence and early adulthood, resulting from complex interactions between biological, psychological, and social factors. One such social factor is social media, an increasingly pervasive influence in the lives of many adolescents and young adults. Recently, researchers have attempted to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between social media use and the risk of eating disorder development. The present study examines how self-reported social media use intensity and social media activity relate to eating disorder risk among rural university students between the ages of 18 and 24 years old. The results of this study indicate that there is a weak correlation between social media use intensity and eating disorder risk (p = 0.00298, rs = 0.27004) and between social media activity and eating disorder risk (p = 0.01966, rs = 0.21363).
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Honors College Senior Thesis Presentations
Social Media Use and Its Association with Eating-Related Attitudes and Behaviors in Rural University Students
Eating disorders are a class of psychiatric illnesses in which deviations from typical patterns of eating induce potentially deleterious physical and psychosocial consequences in affected patients. The prevalence of clinical eating disorders has increased globally in recent years, jumping from an estimated 3.5% to 7.8% between 2006 and 2018. Contemporary literature suggests that eating disorder onset typically occurs during adolescence and early adulthood, resulting from complex interactions between biological, psychological, and social factors. One such social factor is social media, an increasingly pervasive influence in the lives of many adolescents and young adults. Recently, researchers have attempted to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between social media use and the risk of eating disorder development. The present study examines how self-reported social media use intensity and social media activity relate to eating disorder risk among rural university students between the ages of 18 and 24 years old. The results of this study indicate that there is a weak correlation between social media use intensity and eating disorder risk (p = 0.00298, rs = 0.27004) and between social media activity and eating disorder risk (p = 0.01966, rs = 0.21363).