Thesis (BA Communication Arts) -- University of the Philippines Mindanao, May 2016

New media is a flatform rich in images of hyperreality. Some of the images are targeted to women and how their physical appearance should look like. These standards of beauty presented in new media are highly unattainable to achieve for the average woman. Thus, this study tests the effect of hyperreal images of beautiful women in Instagram, a new media platform, on young female?s construction and self-appraisal of physical attractiveness. Here we show that hyperreal images increases the young woman?s standards of beauty and increases their level of awareness on beautiful people, favouring them more than their counterparts. The results of the study show the hyperreal images affect the respondents? internal dialogues about their appearance, but it does not affect related emotions and schemes. Also, body mass index (BMI) and self-esteem are two of the factors that significantly affect the young woman?s assessment of her physical appearance. The subjects? self-regulatory behaviors are predicted by age, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), body mass index (BMI), self-esteem, year level, income, internationalization of the beauty ideal, importance of beauty, concern for their appearance, and their perceived body shape. This research explores the perception and behavioral effects of hyperreality to the way women view their face and body. Hurthermore, it contributes to the knowledge and theory-building on view media and women studies, especially in the context of the Philippines where this study was conducted.