Abstract

This paper explores the growing influence of AI-driven filtering applications on the perception of attractiveness and self-worth, drawing on a broader doctoral study that used digital ethnography and in-depth participant interviews in its’ methodological design (Doyle, 2025). Central to this study is the 'pathologisation of attractiveness' - a concept whereby physical appearance becomes a diagnostic marker of health, value, and self-esteem (ibid). The effects of “diagnostic cultures” (Brinkmann, 2016) are prevalent to the findings of this research and the potential outcome of the 'pathologisation of attractiveness' in modern society. Further, this paper will argue that the marketisation of online cultural spaces, such as diet culture, and influencer culture (see Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport, 2022a), encourage the setting of (un)realistic goals set by social media users, based on societal expectations that come from the mass media, their family/loved ones, and through people of influence across their social media platforms.  Emerging themes include the normalisation of disordered eating behaviours, the role of algorithmic reinforcement of harmful content, and the shifting nature of support networks during events such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This research highlights how social media's evolution has intensified exposure to harmful beauty ideals, leading to self-diagnosis, internalised stigma, and, in some cases, clinical symptoms of anxiety or disordered eating. By examining the lived experiences of users navigating both online and offline diet culture, this paper offers critical insight into how digital platforms contribute to the medicalisation of appearance and the normalisation of harmful aesthetic benchmarks.