TikTok, the importance of physical appearance, and anxiety: Let us TikTok about body image

With the ever-growing success of TikTok, new concerns arise about potential adverse effects that may accompany its use. Few studies have concentrated on exploring appearance-focused social media, such as TikTok. Previous research supports that social media, specifically Facebook and Instagram, can cause participants to experience anxiety and negative body image. Therefore, it is important to see if similar issues could arise with this new and growing platform. It was hypothesized that participants reporting maladaptive usage of TikTok would report a positive correlation with anxiety and a positive correlation with the importance of physical appearance. It was also hypothesized that participants' hours spent on TikTok would correlate with anxiety and the importance of physical appearance. This study's results supported the hypotheses. Additionally, a full mediation model was found between the following trends/influencers on TikTok and body satisfaction with physical appearance comparison, anxiety, and negative affect mediating the relationship.