Toxic TikTok
School Name
Chapin High School
Grade Level
11th Grade
Presentation Topic
Behavioral Science
Presentation Type
Non-Mentored
Abstract
My study examines the question, to what extent does liking TikTok videos that contain toxic body image content (possibly trigger an eating disorder or body dysmorphia) on the foryoupage affect the amount of toxic body image content seen on one’s foryoupage? TikTok has been known for showing its viewers videos with content that can lead to eating disorders and/or body dysphoria. Seeing videos that contain this type of content can cause users to attempt to change their bodies to fit this unrealistic standard. Users often go about this in an unhealthy way such as restrictive eating and over-exercise, which can be harmful to the body. My study looks into how interacting with the for you page in different ways affect what type of videos TikTok shows its users. I did this by performing three different types of tests. For each test, I liked the videos based on a different code to see if liking videos that contained toxic content led to more toxic content seen, and even if a user liked the content that was not considered toxic would the amount of toxic content increased.
Recommended Citation
Ward, Natalie, "Toxic TikTok" (2022). South Carolina Junior Academy of Science. 69.
https://scholarexchange.furman.edu/scjas/2022/all/69
Location
B&E 235
Start Date
4-2-2022 10:45 AM
Presentation Format
Oral and Written
Group Project
No
Toxic TikTok
B&E 235
My study examines the question, to what extent does liking TikTok videos that contain toxic body image content (possibly trigger an eating disorder or body dysmorphia) on the foryoupage affect the amount of toxic body image content seen on one’s foryoupage? TikTok has been known for showing its viewers videos with content that can lead to eating disorders and/or body dysphoria. Seeing videos that contain this type of content can cause users to attempt to change their bodies to fit this unrealistic standard. Users often go about this in an unhealthy way such as restrictive eating and over-exercise, which can be harmful to the body. My study looks into how interacting with the for you page in different ways affect what type of videos TikTok shows its users. I did this by performing three different types of tests. For each test, I liked the videos based on a different code to see if liking videos that contained toxic content led to more toxic content seen, and even if a user liked the content that was not considered toxic would the amount of toxic content increased.
