Pinterest and gender dysphoria

Pinterest is a visual platform where users collect images on themed boards.

Visual platforms

Pinterest is a visual platform where users collect images on themed boards. As far as is known, no targeted research has been done on Pinterest and gender dysphoria. There is, however, research on social media and image platforms in general, and on what young people encounter online about body and gender.

What the Cass Review says

The Cass Review names the influence of social media and peers as one of the possible explanations for the rise in the number of young people presenting to gender services. The report writes that the online experience in later childhood and early puberty can influence self-image and expectations of puberty and of gender, and that young people who already feel 'different' may see that feeling grow if they do not fit the images of masculinity and femininity they see online and elsewhere. The report also points to a systematic review of 20 studies in which social media use was associated with body image concerns and eating problems (source). At the same time, Cass writes that there is no single explanation for the increase: probably all the explanations mentioned play a part to a greater or lesser degree, and for each young person the mix is different (same source).

What parents themselves report

In a survey of 256 parents, Littman (2018, PLOS ONE) described young people whose gender dysphoria, according to their parents, had arisen suddenly during or after puberty. According to 86.7 percent of these parents, this coincided with increased use of social media and the internet, with a friend group in which others also began to identify as transgender, or with both (source). The study reflects what parents saw; it does not show that social media are the cause.

Body image and image platforms

More is known about image platforms and body image in general. Internal research by Instagram from 2019, which came to light in 2021, showed that a third of the teenage girls who said they struggled with their body image felt that Instagram made it worse; 22 percent said Instagram improved their body image and 45.5 percent saw no effect. This comes from Meta's own explanation, which stresses that it concerns girls who were already struggling with their body image, not a third of all teenage girls (source). deouders.nl summarises what research says about the role of social media in sudden trans identification among teenagers.

What parents can do

Without judgment, ask your child what they view and save online, and look at the boards together. Boards reveal a great deal about what concerns a teenager: what appearance they are pursuing and whether images of surgery are among them. A ban is usually less useful than a conversation about what the images show and what they leave out, such as scars, complications and doubts afterwards. See also TikTok and gender dysphoria, social media and gender and the guide for concerned parents.