Appearance-Related Social Media Consciousness: Assessment of Factor Structure and Relations With Disordered Eating and Ethnic Identity Among Latine Undergraduate Women

Abstract

Social media use is ubiquitous amongst college students and may be related to body image disturbances and endorsements of disordered eating attitudes and behaviors. Appearance-related social media consciousness (ASMC) is a novel body-related construct operationalized as the extent to which an individual’s thoughts and behaviors reflect ongoing awareness of whether they might look attractive to a social media audience. Latine persons have often been excluded from the limited research on body image and social media. As the ASMC construct is novel, its factor structure and relations with disordered eating outcomes have not been assessed in a sample of Latine undergraduate women. Protective factors such as ethnic identity may mitigate the risk of ASMC on disordered eating, especially for ethnically minoritized samples who may have nuanced experiences with body ideals. The current cross-sectional study centered Latine undergraduate women’s experiences (n = 173; Mage = 19.87) with ASMC and disordered eating. CFA results indicated the data fit a three-factor correlated factor structure (i.e., imaginary audience, objectification, self-presentation) of ASMC better than a unidimensional structure. The data also fit a two-factor ASMC structure with a combined imagined audience and objectification factor better than a unidimensional model. The combined factor reflected cognitive components of ASMC. The two-factor model was best for utilization in latent path analyses. Path model results indicated the combined imagined audience and objectification factor predicted all disordered eating factors above and beyond the behavioral ASMC factor. Findings suggest the need for continued research on a multidimensional factor structure of ASMC in diverse samples, with potential implications for tiered and targeted interventions for Latine young women coping with disordered eating.