Sexy Photos on Facebook May Cause Young Women to be Seen as Less Competent

Careful what you post on Facebook and other social media sites; scientists have found that girls and young women who post sexy or revealing photos are viewed by female peers as less physically and socially attractive and even less competent to perform tasks.

"This is a clear indictment of sexy social media photos," said Elizabeth Daniels, who studies the effect of media on girls' body image, in a news release. "There is so much pressure on teen girls and young women to portray themselves as sexy, but sharing those sexy photos online may have more negative consequences than positive."

In order to see the effect that "sexy" photos might have on people's perceptions, the researchers created two mock Facebook profiles for a fictitious 20-year-old by the name of Amanda Johnson. In both versions, Amanda liked musicians such as Lady Gaga, books such as "Twilight" and movies like "The Notebook." The only differences between the two profiles were the profile photos. One showed "Amanda" wearing a low-cut red dress with a slit up one leg to mid-thigh while the other showed her wearing jeans, a short-sleeved shirt and a scarf draped around her neck.

After creating the profiles, the researchers recruited 58 teen girls and 60 young adult women no longer in high school. The participants were each assigned one of the profiles and asked questions based on that profile. More specifically, they were asked to assess Amanda's physical and social attractiveness and her task competence.

In the end, the researchers found that the non-sexy profile scored higher in all three areas. This indicated that female peers viewed the non-sexy version of Amanda as prettier, more likely to make a good friend, and more likely to complete a task.

The findings reveal the possible consequences of putting photos that are "sexy" online. They can greatly influence the perception of an outside individual.

"Don't focus so heavily on appearance," suggests Daniels, as she explains why young women and girls shouldn't strive for the "sexy" look on social media sites. "Focus on who you are as a person and what you do in the world."

The findings are published in the journal Psychology of Popular Media Culture.