Do Women Objectify Themselves More When Browsing Facebook?

Women may be subconsciously comparing their bodies to others when browsing Facebook or looking at models in magazines.

A new study published in the journal Psychology of Women Quarterly reviews how young women oftentimes devote an inordinate amount of time to viewing television, music videos and other forms of the Internet comparing themselves to unrealistic versions of "ideal" beauty.

"Our research shows that spending more time reading magazines and on Facebook is associated with greater self-objectification among young women and these relationships are influenced by women's tendency to compare their appearance to others, particularly to peers on Facebook," researchers said. 

For the study, researchers surveyed 150 female college students and staff between the ages of 17 and 25 years old. On average, the study authors found that women spent about two hours a day on Facebook accounting for around 40 percent of daily Internet use checking sites every few hours.

Facebook users often compared their appearance to their own images and then, to peers. However, the study results showed that viewers were less likely to look at celebrities than past images of themselves or friends.

Study authors believed that unlike television or music videos, this could be explained due to certain self-comparisons found on Facebook or greater self-objectification for women as they look at themselves literally as observers.

"Furthermore, self-comparisons to images of a previous self might engender a greater focus on specific body parts, also contributing to self-objectification," researchers added. 

To help young women stop comparing themselves and promote wellness, the researchers recommend that they post fewer images of themselves on Facebook and follow people on Facebook who post photos less frequently, as well.