Kyla Rudyk-de Leth

Kyla Rudyk-de Leth

A young woman with light skin, long, layered blonde hair, and brown eyes smiles gently, looking slightly off-camera. She is wearing a black ribbed turtleneck sweater, and her lips have a subtle reddish-brown tint. The background is plain white.

Kyla Rudyk-de Leth is a fourth-year Professional Communication student at Ryerson University with a double minor in Public Relations and Human Resources Management. Throughout her undergrad, Kyla has centered her writing and research around feminism by exploring topics including feminist approaches to social media and gender inequality and women in the workplace. Kyla has experience working in an award-winning marketing communications agency and freelancing for a variety of high-profile clients and is currently the Marketing and Communications Assistance in the FCAD Dean's Office. Kyla is continuing her studies at Ryerson University this September in the Master of Professional Communication (MPC) program where she hopes to continue researching the relationship between social media algorithms and the overrepresentation of female body ideals as well as other topics relating to feminism, media and communications.

Research

Feminine and masculine bodies are becoming increasingly recognized and manipulated by algorithms on social media, specifically Instagram. The actions of social media users such as liking, tagging, swiping, sharing, etc., are accumulated in databases and overtime become algorithms that manipulate the content users see. Instagram’s recent change from chronological to non-chronological format manipulates and further drives the overrepresentation of female bodies that reinforce the Western beauty ideal. User’s exposure to an influx of female bodies that fit unrealistic beauty standards result in women and men having a distorted view of the female body. In order to research attitudes about the presence of female bodies on social media and the manipulation of these images, 59 surveys and 3 qualitative interviews were conducted. Both research methods questioned participants on their social media usage and how the images they see on their feed affects their mental/physical health and wellbeing and relationship with their body.

Infographic titled 'Social Media Algorithms and the Overrepresentation of Female Body Ideals' by Kyla Rudyk-de Leth. It details a study's research (algorithms manipulate content), data (e.g., 71% see feminine bodies dominate feeds), methods (surveys, interviews with 18-24 year olds), and analysis, concluding that algorithms promote idealized female images for profit, distorting body views and affecting well-being. The lower portion features five vibrant, gradient-colored silhouettes of slender women in various poses.
Project Webpage

Project Tags

Communications, media, digital media, social media, Instagram, algorithms, female, feminism, body image, body, representation
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