Beyond the screen: How social media highlights and hinders authenticity

Sevina Khangura started posting on TikTok just over a year ago, sharing videos about her life. Her content includes outfit ideas, shopping hauls, and mini vlogs from her days in Vancouver.

Khangura has now gained over 57,000 followers on TikTok, which has opened opportunities for brand collaborations and networking with other bloggers.

“I’ve also just been able to expand my account as much as possible, which is great,” Khangura says. “I definitely didn’t think I would get this far, especially this fast, and the amount of opportunities that I’ve gotten has just been so great.”

Khangura adds she did theatre in high school and now is studying business at the University of British Columbia (UBC). She hopes to pursue a career in marketing, which creating TikTok videos is helping her with.

“Since [it’s] such a competitive field to get into, I just thought it’d be really good to get some hands-on experience while I’m actually studying at school and see if this truly is something I want to get into,” Khangura says.

In 2024, over five billion people were using social media worldwide, a number projected to increase to over six billion in 2028. The leading social media networks include Facebook in first place, YouTube in second place, and Instagram in third, Statista found. In Canada, there are 31.9 million social media users, with TikTok being the fastest-growing platform in the country, Made in CA reported this year.

Despite the widespread use of social media around the world, it offers opportunities to show creativity, express oneself, and make connections, but it can also lead to negative effects such as losing touch with reality or admiring someone whose real personality may not be the same as their online one.

Khangura says when she posts on social media, people can always see the real her, despite receiving negative comments — whether it be under her videos or on a UBC Reddit confession page.

“I’ve never once changed who I am because I post on social media, nor do I change my personality [and] what I like just because I’m posting on TikTok. I wouldn’t say what I post is not the real definition of me,” Khangura says.

“I get hate all the time … but it doesn’t bother me because why would it? If it’s something I like doing and people are going to be judgy, it’s not really the end of the world, but it’s definitely irritating.” 

This is reflected in the brands she collaborates with, choosing those that align with her interests, Khangura says.

“I’m not just going to say yes to every brand because I want the money or I want the free product. I’m going to only agree to the brands that truly align with what I’d post.”

Khangura adds there are creators based in Vancouver whom she has met, and some of them seemed different from how they appear online based on their interactions.

“That’s why I don’t act like that because why would I try to have a double personality?”

Keyena Kler, a content creator in Vancouver with over 22,500 followers on TikTok, says it is the best feeling for her when she goes from the social media environment to events and meets people who are exactly the same as in front of the camera.

“I will say I feel like it’s rare just because I think, in general, it’s hard to put yourself out there,” Kler says. “I think there are some differences and it takes a lot for people to slowly chip away at being more confident.”

She adds that extroverts, who are more comfortable in social settings, tend to be more similar online and in person, while introverts may appear more different online compared to how they are in real life.

Kler started social media in 2020, near the time she won the Miss Teen Canada pageant contest. But due to COVID-19, she had to move all her work online instead of going to events or running charity organizations. This led her to start creating content about her life. She got a TikTok account in 2021 and has been doing it full time since then. 

“There’s a lot of pros and cons to it,” Kler says. “I personally love it — it’s definitely my dream job. I wake up excited to get to create content. I love coming up with ideas, filming, and I’m not as big on editing, but I love filming.”

In general, she finds that social media helps people with their self-expression. She can also see a difference in how people are less afraid to pursue their passions now compared to the time when she was in high school. 

“I feel like people are a lot more authentic to the things they like and they aren’t really afraid of being made fun of for doing things,” Kler says.

However, there is also a “trend culture” that has become a big part of social media and pressure “to catch” the trend and stay aware of everything that is going on online, Kler says.

It is easy to get pressured to do what everyone on TikTok or other social media platforms is doing, she says, adding she didn’t compare herself to other people until she started social media.

“I remember when I first started, I was always buying new things for the fashion trends. Now, I feel like I have more of my own personal style. So there’s definitely waves with that,” Kler says, adding if a trend doesn’t resonate with her now, she tries to adapt them to her niche. 

She says social media can affect users’ mental health due to the amount of content creators post every day.

“Social media is such a highlight reel, but then it’s also tough because content creators post so often. I think there is always that ongoing pressure for users to feel similar to content creators.”

Recent research from Simon Fraser University’s (SFU) Nancy Yang and Bernard Crespi 

analyzed over 2,500 publications on social media users and the psychiatric disorders related to high social media use.

The disorders include narcissistic personality disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, and depression, among others.

The research explains that social media makes it easier to measure oneself through likes, comments, views, or followers, so users might use it to feel better about themselves by paying attention to these numbers.

The excessive use of social media can also lead to feelings of dissociation with reality.

“Use of social media is an intrinsically dissociative experience, given that the individual is generally mentally detached from their current physical and bodily surroundings as they focus on the online content at hand,” the study reads. 

Crespi says social media is an “evolutionary novelty,” since people can interact with others while not being in physical proximity.

“The great majority of cases of evolutionary novelties result in problems with regard to health or well-being,” says Crespi, who is a biology professor at SFU and Canada Research Chair in Evolutionary Biology of Human Health and Disease.

One of the issues with social media is the lack of reality testing, where people can present themselves in ways that their followers cannot verify, Crespi says.

“[People] put their best foot forward and they make themselves look good. They also use social media as a way of building themselves up emotionally,” Crespi says.

He adds in the case of narcissism, for example, people may use social media to seek validation and boost their social status.

“[They’re] always trying to get more likes, more friends, and creating a self-identity, which is an online identity and not an identity that is created from interacting directly with other people,” Crespi says. 

Because it’s a virtual identity, Crespi says it can reflect psychological vulnerabilities in those who post the content, such as narcissism or body dysmorphia.

The research found that a total of 70 studies met the screening criteria for social media use and narcissistic personality disorder.

Narcissistic traits include higher social media use, posting and editing selfies, sharing self-promotional content, and frequently updating statuses. 

Many studies also found connections to problematic or addictive use, with a focus on gaining feedback and attention online, the research notes.

While social media has positives like staying connected with people, on a large scale, it’s also linked to anxiety and depression, especially in younger people who grew up with it, Crespi says.

He adds people should try to change how social media works and spend more time connecting face to face and building real friendships.

For Kler, it is always good to stay true to yourself, even if a person doesn’t necessarily get the outcome they were looking for.

“I think it’s really hard sometimes on social media because you want people to like you and resonate with your content, but you also have to be true to yourself and post the kinds of things that you want to post,” Kler says.

She adds one of the things that grounded her is a lot of authentic creators emerging in the last few years. 

“Big content creators like Emma Chamberlain, Alix Earle, [or] even Fernanda Ramirez … were really all in on being themselves on camera, and it paid off really well because they couldn’t be replicated,” Kler says.

“That’s something I try to keep in mind. In the long run, it’s better because if you are yourself, then no one can really try to replace you because no one can be you.”

She says long-form original video content that provides glimpses into a creator’s life can be a great way to highlight authenticity.

“You can’t really pretend to have a different life than you have when you’re filming all the time,” Kler says.