Social media and women's sexual self-concept: a scoping review of psychosexual, body image, and genital self-perception outcomes.

Abstract

Objective: Social media platforms have created digital environments that make women's bodies, sexuality, and self-presentation constantly visible, assessable, and comparable. Increasing evidence suggests that social media use can influence women's sexual self-concept through mechanisms such as appearance comparison, self-objectification, sexualized self-presentation, and genital self-perception. This scoping review aimed to map and synthesize the existing literature on the effects of social media use on women's sexual self-concept.

Method: The study was conducted in accordance with the scoping review framework with the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology. The PRISMA-ScR guidelines were used in the reporting process. A systematic search was conducted across MEDLINE (via PubMed), PsycINFO, CINAHL, Embase, Web of Science Core Collection, and Scopus. English-language studies examining the relationship between social media use and women's sexual self-concept, genital self-perception, digital sexual self-presentation, or related psychosexual constructs were included. Findings were synthesized using a thematic analysis approach.

Results: A total of 32 studies were included. The studies consisted mainly of cross-sectional and experimental research conducted with young women and adolescent girls. Instagram was the most frequently studied platform. As a result of the thematic synthesis, five main themes were identified: sexualized digital exposure and appearance comparison; self-objectification and self-sexualization processes; digital sexual self-presentation and online identity construction; genital self-perception and interest in labiaplasty; and sexual well-being, empowerment, and resistance mechanisms. Social media use was associated with body surveillance, appearance comparison, self-objectification, genital dissatisfaction, and interest in genital aesthetic procedures. Conversely, body-positive and vulva-positive content was associated with empowerment, resistance to restrictive beauty norms, and more positive self-perceptions.

Conclusion: The findings suggest that social media constitutes a multi-layered sphere of influence on women's sexual self-concept, operating through interconnected psychosocial processes that may have both negative and positive implications. While appearance comparison, self-objectification, body surveillance, and genital dissatisfaction may undermine sexual self-perception, body-positive and vulva-positive digital content may foster empowerment, resistance to restrictive beauty norms, and more positive self-perceptions. However, the current evidence base consists largely of cross-sectional, qualitative, and short-term experimental studies, limiting causal interpretation. Further longitudinal and intervention-based research is needed across sexual medicine, digital health, and psychosexual research.