The Moderating Role of Internalization of Appearance Ideals and Body Dissatisfaction in the Relationship between Social Media Use and Social–Physical Anxiety among Female University Students

Karbalaei Hassan, Farnaz; Tafazoli Aghvami, Sharareh

doi:10.22034/naes.2026.578207.1857

The Moderating Role of Internalization of Appearance Ideals and Body Dissatisfaction in the Relationship between Social Media Use and Social–Physical Anxiety among Female University Students

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Farnaz Karbalaei Hassan ¹

Sharareh Tafazoli Aghvami ²

¹ M.Sc. in Clinical Psychology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

² Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Psychology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

10.22034/naes.2026.578207.1857

Abstract

the present study aimed to examine the moderating role of internalization of appearance ideals and body dissatisfaction in the relationship between social media use and social–physical anxiety among female university students in Tehran. The study population comprised all female students enrolled in Islamic Azad University campuses in Tehran in 2024. Based on Cochran’s formula, a total of 384 female students from the Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, were selected using purposive sampling. To assess the study variables, the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire (Thompson et al., 2000), the Body Image Concern Questionnaire (Littleton et al., 2005), the Social Networks and Media Questionnaire (Jahani, 2018), and the Social–Physical Anxiety Scale (Hart et al., 2008) were employed. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and hierarchical moderation regression in SPSS version 27. The findings indicated significant positive correlations between social media use and social–physical anxiety, as well as between social media use and both internalization of appearance ideals and body dissatisfaction (p<0.01). Furthermore, internalization of appearance ideals and body dissatisfaction were found to moderate the relationship between social media use and social–physical anxiety (p<0.01). These results suggest that the relationship between social media use and social–physical anxiety is not a simple linear association and that internalization of appearance ideals and body dissatisfaction can influence this relationship.

Keywords

internalization of appearance ideals؛ body dissatisfaction؛ social media use؛ social&ndash

physical anxiety

Subjects