PROJECT LEADERS
PI: Sophia Choukas-Bradley
Understanding the roles of social media and gender in adolescents' body image and self-objectification is a major focus of our lab. Dr. Choukas-Bradley recently published a theoretical paper in Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, "The perfect storm: A developmental–sociocultural framework for the role of social media in adolescent girls' body image concerns and mental health," co-authored by TAYA doctoral students Savannah Roberts and Annie Maheux, and by longstanding TAYA collaborator Dr. Jacqueline Nesi of Brown University.
Our lab has recently begun a series of studies that will use eye-tracking technology to examine adolescents’ eye gaze while using social media. The broad goal is to understand connections between visual attention toward social media photos and adolescents’ mental health and well-being. We have completed data collection for our first pilot study, focused on adolescent girls’ body image: Project TAGS. This pilot study is funded in part by the American Psychological Association’s Division 7 Early Career Grant in Developmental Psychology and a grant from the University of Pittsburgh’s Central Research Development Fund. We recently applied for federal funding to conduct a larger-scale study combining our eye-tracking paradigm with a longitudinal study design that incorporates ecological momentary assessment (EMA), to understand how daily fluctuations in adolescents' social media experiences are linked to fluctuations in body image concerns and mental health symptoms.