Exploring the role social media plays in female university student-athlete body image
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Date
2025-10
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University of New Brunswick
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore body image perspectives and experiences of female university student-athletes and how engagement with social media influences female athlete body image. Following van Manen’s (1990) phenomenological approach, purposive sampling was used to recruit 11 women between the ages of 18 and 23 who played a team sport at the U SPORTS level. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Detailed line-by-line approaches were used to isolate thematic aspects within the interview texts and to formulate four major themes: “Body Image Differences Across Training Seasons”, “Identity and Confidence Between Environments”, “Appearance Confidence and Performance”, and “Social Media and Peer Comparison”. Findings suggest that the student athletes have a self-awareness about their body goals, appearance, and differences that may act as a preventative factor to negative body image from unrealistic and idealized content on social media.