Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-77f85d65b8-7lfxl Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-04-20T17:51:37.040Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 119 - Social Media Appearance Preoccupation Scale (SMAPS)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 November 2025

By
Melanie J. Zimmer-Gembeck
Edited by
Virginia Ramseyer Winter ,
Tracy L. Tylka  and
Antoinette M. Landor
Virginia Ramseyer Winter
Affiliation:
University of Minnesota
Tracy L. Tylka
Affiliation:
Ohio State University
Antoinette M. Landor
Affiliation:
University of Missouri
Get access

Summary

The 18-item Social Media Appearance Preoccupation Scale (SMAPS) has three subscales that measure social comparison (6 items), self-presentation (7 items), and general activity (5 items) related to appearance when engaging in visual online content, especially using social media. The subscales can form a total score or be used to focus on one or more of the three subscales of online appearance preoccupation, which allows for a shorter measure. The SMAPS was designed with five issues in mind: 1) image sharing activity, 2) investment and self-presentation, 3) social comparison, 4) active versus passive social media use, and 5) negative responses to social media. The SMAPS can be administered online or in-person and has been included in research with adolescents and young adults. The SMAPS is free to use. This chapter begins with a discussion of the development of the SMAPS from item generation to psychometric analyses, which is followed by sections with psychometric information, including the factor structure and invariance, and evidence of reliability and validity. Additional sections cover administration and scoring, the response scale, the items in their entirety, instructions for administration and scoring, and permissions, copyright and contact information are provided.

Keywords

Social Media Appearance Preoccupation ScaleSMAPSappearance concernsbody imagesocial mediaappearance-related social comparisonself-presentationappearance anxietyscale developmentfactor structurereliabilityvalidityadministration

Information

Type
Chapter
Information
Handbook of Body Image-Related Measures , pp. 352 - 354
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Choukas-Bradley, S., Nesi, J., Widman, L., & Higgins, M. K. (2019). Camera-ready: Young women’s appearance-related social media consciousness. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8, 473–481. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000196.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Festinger, L. (1954). A theory of social comparison processes. Human Relations, 7, 117–140. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/001872675400700202.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frederickson, B. L., & Roberts, T. A. (1997). Objectification theory: Toward understanding women’s lived experiences and mental health risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21, 173–206. http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.1997.tb00108.x.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holland, G., & Tiggemann, M. (2017). “Strong beats skinny every time”: Disordered eating and compulsive exercise in women who post fitspiration on Instagram. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 50, 76–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/eat.22559.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Webb, H., & Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J. (2014). The role of friends and peers in adolescent body dissatisfaction: A review and critique of 15 years of research, Journal of Research on Adolescence, 24, 564–590. http://doi.org/10.1111/jora.1208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Webb, H. J., Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., Farrell, L., Waters, A., Nesdale, D., & Downey, G. (2017) “Pretty pressure” from peers, parents, and the media: A longitudinal study of appearance-based rejection sensitivity. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 27, 718–735. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12310.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., Hawes, T., & Pariz, J. (2021). A closer look at appearance and social media: Measuring activity, self-presentation, and social comparison and their associations with emotional adjustment. Psychology of Popular Media, 10(1), 74–86. https://doi.org/.1037/ppm0000277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., Webb, H. J., Farrell, L. J., & Waters, A. M. (2018). Girls’ and boys’ trajectories of appearance anxiety from age 10 to 15 years are associated with earlier maturation and appearance-related teasing. Development and Psychopathology, 30, 337–350. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0954579417000657.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed

Accessibility standard: WCAG 2.0 A

Why this information is here

This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.

Accessibility Information

The HTML of this chapter conforms to version 2.0 of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), ensuring core accessibility principles are addressed and meets the basic (A) level of WCAG compliance, addressing essential accessibility barriers.

Content Navigation

Table of contents navigation
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Index navigation
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.

Reading Order & Textual Equivalents

Single logical reading order
You will encounter all content (including footnotes, captions, etc.) in a clear, sequential flow, making it easier to follow with assistive tools like screen readers.
Short alternative textual descriptions
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.

Visual Accessibility

Use of colour is not sole means of conveying information
You will still understand key ideas or prompts without relying solely on colour, which is especially helpful if you have colour vision deficiencies.

Structural and Technical Features

ARIA roles provided
You gain clarity from ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) roles and attributes, as they help assistive technologies interpret how each part of the content functions.

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×