The Extent and Influence of Facebook Beauty Influencers on the Self-Esteem of College Students

This study investigates the extent of engagement with Facebook beauty influencers and their influence on college students’ self-esteem, with attention to differences by sex and year level. Using a descriptive–comparative design and statistical analysis of responses from 50 students across five academic programs, results showed that females comprised the majority of respondents (64%), with freshmen representing the largest year-level group (36%). Overall patronage toward Facebook beauty influencers was consistently high, yielding a grand mean of 4.566 (SD = 0.343), indicating frequent engagement in both time spent and financial allocation. Female students and those enrolled in media-related programs reported significantly higher levels of patronage. The influence of beauty influencers on self-esteem was rated “very high” across all domains, with sense of belongingness obtaining the highest mean (𝑥̄ = 4.754), followed by self-confidence (𝑥̄ = 4.60) and comfort (𝑥̄ = 4.34). These findings highlight the nuanced psychosocial effects of digital beauty culture in educational settings, underscoring the need for strengthened media literacy initiatives and the integration of self-esteem and mental health programs in schools to promote students’ well-being and critical engagement with social media content.