Impact of Idealized Online Content on Smile Satisfaction in Young Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background and Aims: The objective of this study was to explore the short-term impact of a brief, curated exposure to social networking site content on facial and smile dissatisfaction and face-related self-discrepancy among young adults. Additionally, the study aims to compare these effects with the use of appearance-neutral Instagram images. Methods: A randomized control trial was conducted at Altamash Institute of Dental Medicine for a duration of 1 month. Freshly inducted students with a Bachelor of Dental Surgery (first year) with no prior knowledge of smile parameters were asked questions about their satisfaction with their smiles. They were then divided into groups of 2 where both of the groups were shown images from social media. Half of the group was shown images of an idealized smile (#hollywoodsmile), whereas the other group was kept as control and shown images of nature (#nature). Both groups were asked to fill out the same questionnaire again to note down any difference this experiment made in their perceptions. Results: The study comprised predominantly female participants in both the experimental (74.1%) and control (70.4%) groups, with a mean age of 19.61 ± 1.86 and the majority (70.9%) spending one to 2 h on Instagram daily. Both groups maintained relatively stable OES scores from pre- to post-exposure, with no significant differences observed. Whereas the experimental group exhibited higher mean SACS scores (4.74 ± 1.75) than the control group (3.28 ± 2.07). Lastly, the SDI analysis of the experimental and control group post-exposure showed similar results. Conclusion: Our study suggests that despite frequent engagement with social media, individuals tend to report satisfaction with their smiles. Trial Registration: The study was registered at clinicaltrials. gov, date: 03/23/2023; identifier NCT05798650.