Can Instagram contribute to the wellbeing and flourishing of Australian farming women in the midst of climate challenges?

Abstract

Climate predictions in the Australian farming industry are for higher temperatures and lower winter rainfall, which threatens productivity and profitability. Australian farming women are significant contributors, knowledge holders and change makers yet their direct voices are underrepresented in existing research focused on the impacts of climate change. Understanding how farming women negotiate and cope with the increased mental and emotional load of day-to-day climate challenges is important for resilience building at an individual and sector level. Based on interviews with Australian farming women (N = 10), this study investigates the potential contribution of social media to flourishing and wellbeing outcomes when living with climate extremes. We draw on a newly conceptualised positive psychology-based framework, Flourishing through Social Media, to explore the conditions underpinning flourishing outcomes from social media use, with a focus on Instagram. Thematic analysis shows that Australian farming women who actively chose to use Instagram and its design features to create and share content and engage with other like-minded users, experienced flourishing outcomes to varying degrees. This includes social support, increased social capital, identity building and mastery. These insights are important given there are proven links between social connectedness and finding meaning in experiences, to developing individual resilience during adversity. Practical implications for the agricultural industry include a better understanding of how and why social media may be a valuable contributor to farming women's resilience, and even flourishing, in the face of day-to-day climate challenges on the farm.