Face Value: Looksmaxxing, Young Men’s Mental Health, and the Merchants of Masculinity
Exploring the pressures shaping young men’s body image, mental health, and ideas about masculinity in the age of social media.
From social media fitness trends to online communities promoting extreme appearance standards, young men are facing growing pressure to achieve an idealized version of masculinity. But who is driving these messages, and what is the impact on young men’s health?
Join the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS) and STRIPED for a virtual panel exploring looksmaxxing, young men’s mental and physical health, and how commercial marketers and extremist recruiters use appearance- and masculinity-related messaging on social media to target young men.
Hear from adolescent medicine physicians, mental health professionals, and advocates working to understand and respond to these pressures.
What the Panel Covers
- What looksmaxxing is and how social media is shaping young men’s perceptions of appearance, body image, and masculinity
- The potential mental and physical health consequences of extreme appearance-focused behaviors
- How commercial marketers capitalize on young men’s body insecurities
- How extremist recruiters use masculinity-related messaging to reach and influence young men online
- How healthcare professionals, mental health clinicians, and advocates are responding to these challenges
Who Should Attend
Researchers, healthcare professionals, mental health clinicians, public health practitioners, students, advocates, and anyone interested in young men’s health, social media, and the pressures shaping modern masculinity are welcome to attend.
Format
A virtual panel discussion featuring experts in adolescent medicine, mental health, and digital harms.
Panelist Information
- Gaby Vargas, MD – Center for Young Men’s Health, Boston Children’s Hospital
- Stefan Breitling, MD – Center for Young Men’s Health, Boston Children’s Hospital
- Trey Tucker – Content Creator and Mental Health Clinician, Rugged Counseling; Author of Tough Enough
- Imran Ahmed – Founder and CEO, Center for Countering Digital Hate
In the News: Why This Conversation Matters
Looksmaxxing is making headlines, raising questions about how social media influencers shape young men’s body image, self-worth, and health.
In a recent article from the Harvard Independent, Harvard’s student-run independent newspaper, STRIPED Director S. Bryn Austin discusses the rise of looksmaxxing culture, the algorithms amplifying extreme appearance standards, and the businesses profiting from young men’s insecurities.
Read: “Clavicular, Looksmaxxing, and the Price of Online Influence”
In a related interview with Harvard School of Public Health, Austin examines another troubling trend: social media influencers promoting unapproved synthetic peptides with claims to lead to muscle growth and augment appearance without evidence of their safety or effectiveness.
Read: “Peptides are all over social media and the news. Here’s what to know about them.”
These stories offer a timely look at the pressures, products, and profits at the center of our upcoming conversation.
Questions?
For questions about the event, please contact grace.pomeroy@childrens.harvard.edu.
ⓘ Harvard Chan School hosts a diverse array of speakers, invited to share both scholarly research and personal perspectives. They do not speak for the School, and hosting them does not imply endorsement of their views, organizations, or employers.