Spellbound by beautiful appearances

Full lips, smooth skin, high cheeks: This is what successful female influencers look like on the social media platform Instagram. Many girls and young women model themselves on this image. However, there is a catch: the «Instagram face» is an illusion, made possible by digital optimisation, and does not correspond at all to the real appearance of these stars. Significantly, Instagram already offers filters by default with which a face can be «optimised» at the click of a button.

While we adults already struggle to differentiate between reality and appearances, this is even more difficult for children and young people. They increasingly orientate themselves towards an ideal of beauty that is impossible to achieve in real life. Self-doubt - already a constant companion during puberty - is fuelled, with potentially fatal consequences.

This is where parents can and should intervene to help. Simply rejecting Instagram stars outright is useless. In my opinion, it is much better to get to the bottom of the unrealistic art world together. Have your daughter explain to you what she finds so great about an influencer. Playfully try to pick up on this thread: Why not change the image of your own mum (or dad) with various filters? And ask yourself the question: Why have all the wrinkles suddenly disappeared? (Assuming there were wrinkles before.)

Troubleshooting together

Some influencers take a critical look at the beauty craze on Instagram (keyword «exposed profiles») by also showing unedited pictures. On this basis, parents and children can try to work out the sometimes absurd changes together. This is entertaining and shows that we are well advised not to take things for real just because they are online.

Ultimately, most influencers are ad-financed. They don't just present themselves; «quite by chance», for example, personal care products can also be seen in the picture. Discuss this part of Instagram with your children: What products do you see clustered in the photos? These role models are not just beautiful, they are simply doing an advertising job with their appearance. Sometimes this mundane truth helps to take a more relaxed view of the whole thing.
On Medienstark you will find tips and interactive learning modules for the competent use of digital media in everyday family life. swisscom.ch/medienstark