In a new media landscape, social media have become a new way of interacting for internet users. It has also given birth to new professions and new empowerments. One of the new existing players in the modified field of media is influencers.  Influencers affect people in a variety of ways, for instance in commerce and opinions. They do this on different platforms and with different tools of persuasion. International researchers have been studying general media use on social media, influencing marketing and what motivates the choices of social media users. They have also investigated the motives when it comes to why users choose to follow influencers. The Swedish research field in this area isn’t as satisfying as the international research, though. Swedish researchers have been studying influencers from an influencer point of view. This study’s vision is, therefore, to broaden the influencer research, with a user perspective. The theoretical framework uses and gratifications is a common way to investigate users, and their motivations to make certain choices, using media. A survey was conducted and sent to grown up females. The survey focused on what motivated them to follow influencers on Instagram, and whether they had been influenced by the influencers in any way. The result of the study gave us different insights. A factor analysis showed that there were four different motivations for following influencers, and that the strongest motive was entertainment. The entertainment motive also contained the most highly valued item which was the motive to be amused. The factor analysis also found the motives; socialization, social status and new trends. The study also showed that there weren’t any strong correlations between the four motives and the users’ history in being affected by the influencer. However, there was a correlation between the affected-variable and the two items following new trends and to keep updated about new products.

Drawing on previous literature in cultural gerontology, ageism and age relations, and cultural appropriation this study analyzes the recent grannyhair trend on instagram. Recently, younger women have been coloring their hair combinations of white, silver, and gray and posting images of their style on instagram with the #grannyhair designation. In this study we use an intersectional approach to age and gender relations to explore this phenomenon. Previous studies show that women's behaviors and presentations of aging are policed by cultural standards of age-appropriate appearance and performance, particularly in regards to their hair. Qualitative content analysis of #grannyhair images are examined to assess the extent of age-based stereotypes and policing of age-appropriate behavior and appearance. This study found that instagram users engaged in this trend did not challenge age relations. Rather, boundaries of age-appropriate behaviors enacted in the #grannyhair trend are largely set by younger users. The ways in which young users utilize ageist stereotypes as a way to emphasize the contrast between their stylistic choices and their status as young attractive women framed the #grannyhair trend as one of appropriation. That is, young women adopted gray, white, and silver hair as a cultural symbol and changed its original meaning as a marker of old age. Conversations among both young and old instagram users echoing previous literature that details the contentious relationships old women have with their aging bodies, and hair specifically. / Master of Science

The rapid growth of visual microblogging platforms, such as Instagram, has created new opportunities for brands to communicate with stakeholders. As these platforms evolve, brands have had to adapt in order to use the available social media platforms to gain visibility in the millennial audience. Recently brands have turned to online 'celebrities' known as a social media influencer (SMI) to distribute information and influence consumers' product perceptions. This specifically has become a common tactic in communication and marketing efforts with the fashion and beauty industry. Ample research is available on the effects of celebrity endorsements but currently there is a gap in research pertaining to the consumer's perspective towards SMIs and SMIs effects on consumers. The online experiment completed in this thesis addressed how promotion of a product by a SMI affects perceptions of consumers on Instagram by measuring social comparison and self-congruity. This is accomplished by comparing participant's product perception to promotional posts on Instagram by a SMI, brand, and unbranded retail source. A three-condition experiment (SMI, Brand, Control) compared effects of product perception, social comparison, and self-congruity. A questionnaire consisting of 48 questions pertaining to SMI, self-congruity, social comparison, and product perception was completed by 151 participants. Significant relationships were found between the source of the promotional post (SMI, Brand, Control) and product perception. There was also a correlation between self-congruity and social comparison towards the SMI as well as product perception. Results suggest that the post source influences product perception. Results also indicate consumers' perception of the SMI effects product perception. These results provide practical implications for communication practioners who utilize social media. The rapid growth of visual microblogging platforms such as Instagram, is creating new opportunities for organizations to communicate with stakeholders. Brands have used social media platforms in order to gain visibility in the college age audience. Currently there is a gap in research pertaining to SMI and their effects on consumers. This online experiment will address how promotion of a product by an SMI affects perceptions of consumers on Instagram through social comparison and self-congruity theory by comparing responses to a product promoted by an SMI to the same product promoted by the promoted by the brand and to an unbranded retail source. A questionnaire consisting 34 of questions pertaining to SMI, self-congruity, and social comparison will be asked to 180-240 participants. The participants will be randomly assigned one of nine Instagram posts to accomplish stimulus sampling across the three conditions: three from SMI, three from brands, and three from an unbranded retail source / Master of Arts

It seems popular to showcase a healthy lifestyle today. Microblogging apps like Instagram are utilized to share pictures of the gym, healthy food and results from various exercises, but what is really considered healthy in today's society? The aim of this thesis was to examine why and how individuals create representations of health in the realm of Instagram. We examined representations of health, what it means to be healthy to Instagram users, and their intentions with their picture-posting. This thesis is based on social constructivist theory, theories concerning narcissism and identity, Goffman's dramaturgical theory and Bourdieu's theory concerning social capital. We used observations and semi-structured interviews to collect data, and qualitative content analysis to categorize and analyze it. Our examination concludes that health is represented by depictions of food and selfies showing the photographer exercising, and that the most common intention with posting pictures representing health is to inspire and motivate others and oneself. / Varför är det idag så populärt att dela med sig av sitt hälsosamma liv? Mikrobloggverktyg som Instagram används för att dela med sig av bilder föreställande gymmet, grönsalladen och resultat av löparrundor, men vad är egentligen hälsa idag? Detta fick oss att vilja undersöka presentationer av hälsa inom Instagram. Undersökningens syfte var att studera hur och varför individer förmedlar bilder av hälsa genom Instagram. Vi studerade hur hälsa presenteras, vad hälsa är för Instagramanvändare samt vad olika individers intention är med bilderna. Vi utgick ifrån teorier som socialkonstruktivism, narcissism, Goffmans dramaturgiska perspektiv samt Bourdieus kapitalbegrepp i vår dataanalys. Som metod har vi använt observation och semistrukturerade intervjuer. Datan tematiserades genom kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultaten visar att hälsa till majoritet representeras av bilder föreställande mat samt självporträtt av individer i träningssammanhang. Vi kan även konstatera att den starkaste intentionen med publicering av bilder representerande hälsa är att inspirera andra och motivera sig själv.

Användningen av sociala medier för att framföra budskap i form av bilder, fortsätter att ökavarje år. Foton anses kunna förmedla ett kraftfullare meddelande och på en mindre yta,jämfört med text. Dock är det svårare att exakt kunna precisera hur bilder som publicerasuppfattas av mottagarna, då varje person gör sin egna fria tolkning. Enligt Aakers teorierpåverkar allt som sänds ut från ett företag dess varumärke, vilket gör det svårt att bestämmavilka bilder som egentligen bör användas. I ett försök att koppla ihop bild, sändare, mottagareoch varumärke har två restauranger samt tio deltagare intervjuats. Den empiriska data syftadetill att upptäcka hur restaurangerna använder sig av Instagram och vad tanken är bakom varjepublicerad bild. Detta jämfördes sedan med mottagarnas syn på bilderna och hur dettapåverkade restaurangens varumärkeskapital. Resultatet visade att en mängd olika orsakerpåverkar mottagarens perception av publicerade bilder. I många avseenden lyckasbildkommunikationen mellan sändare och mottagare, men specifika punkter gällande bildersutformning, motiv och känsla bör tas i åtanke. Den slutgiltiga analysen bidrar till en djupareförståelse för sambandet mellan bilder och hur det påverkar varumärket. / The use of social media to convey information in the form of images, continues to increaseevery year. Images are considered to deliver powerful messages, and on a smaller areacompared to text. However, it is difficult to precisely define how recipients perceivepublished images, as each person makes their own interpretation. According to the theories byAaker, everything that is broadcasted from a company affects its brand, making it difficult todetermine which images that should be used. In an attempt to connect the link between theimage, transmitters, receivers, and the brand, two restaurants and ten participants has beeninterviewed. The empirical data aimed to discover how restaurants use Instagram and the ideabehind each published image. This was then compared with the recipients' opinions regardingthe photos and how it affected the restaurant's brand equity. The result showed that a varietyof reasons affected the recipient's perception of published images. In many cases, the imagecommunication between the transmitter and the receiver works as intended, but specificreasons regarding the design, motives and feel of the images should be considered. The finalanalysis will contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between images and howit affects the brand.This thesis is written in Swedish.

År 1826, tog Joseph Nicéphore Niépce det äldst bevarade fotografiet. För att ta detta fotografi krävdes en exponeringstid på åtta timmar. En av Niépces största utmaningar var då att finna en teknik för att bevara fotografierna. Det blir väldigt tydligt att det förr var mycket komplicerat att ta ett fotografi, vilket kontrasterar till 2010-talet - där vi på ett ögonblick kan ta fram mobiltelefonen och fotografera en händelse. I denna studie har vi undersökt det sociala mediet och bilddelningstjänsten Instagram. Vi valde att studera eleverna i tre gymnasieklasser i åldersgruppen 18-19 år, på de kommunala gymnasieskolorna i Gävle - Borgarskolan, Polhemsskolan och Vasaskolan - vilka utgjorde urvalet i undersökningen. Vi besökte de tre skolorna och delade ut en enkät som eleverna fick besvara. Denna enkät innehöll frågor om bland annat självkänsla, hur de betraktar sig själva och hur de använder Instagram. Syftet med undersökningen var att se om nivå av självkänsla påverkade hur man använde Instagram. Vi ville också se hur användarna väljer att gestalta sig själva med Instagram som verktyg. Av resultaten fann vi bland annat att merparten av eleverna på alla tre skolor hade en bra självkänsla enligt dem själva. Majoriteten på samtliga skolor menar också att de själva inte använder Instagram som ett verktyg för att styra över hur andra ska se på dem - men de tror att andra människor gör det. / In 1826, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce captured the oldest preserved photography. In order to capture this photography, an exposure time of eight hours was required. One of Niépce’s largest challenges back then was to find a method which preserved the photographies. From this it gets apparent/obvious that it used to be very complex to take a picture, which contrasts to the present time where we in an instant can pick up our mobile phone to shoot an event. In this study we have examined the social media and photo-sharing service Instagram. We chose to research students within three classes at the municipal upper secondary schools in Gävle - Borgarskolan, Polhemsskolan and Vasaskolan, which consequently also composed our selection in the study. The topical age-group was 18-19. Further we visited the three schools and distributed the questionaire. This questionaire contained questions about self-esteem, how the students consider themselves and general Instagram usage. The purpose of the study was to see if the students level of self-esteem affected their Instagram usage in any way. We also wanted to distinguish how the Instagram users chose to frame themselves using Instagram as a tool. From the results we found that the main body of the students at all three schools had a good self-esteem according to themselves. The majority at all schools also argue that they do not use Instagram as a tool in order to control other peoples impression of them, but, they believe that other people do.

This thesis examines Instagram users and how they create an identity, and their interaction with other users. The aim of this study is to understand what we do with Instagram and what Instagram does with us in our everyday lives, and what the effects of the medium entails. This thesis is based on theories of identity, hyper- reality and effects of the development of social media. The method used in this study is qualitative focus group interviews with five women and five men, where the answers are transcribed and analyzed to gain an understanding of the effects and the impact of Instagram in their lives. We chose to interview both men and women, and therefore we have also had the gender issue in mind, but it has not been the main focus of this study. The results we reached in this study is that Instagram is mainly used to keep updated and that the medium provides both positive and negative effects. We also discovered that individuals are not one hundred percent themselves on Instagram. The conclusion we can draw is that people play different roles on Instagram of different purposes, and that we live in a hyper- reality that brings both good and bad. We can also conclude that even though people today have the power to present themselves in the way they want to, we see tendencies that gender representation is present in a stereotypical way.

With the intention to fill a gap in the research field, this thesis porposes to illuminate privatepersons’ use of Instagram simply as private actors without any profitable interest. The users with a solely personal interest may in some cases attract thousands of followers in the scale ofcelebrity fan base. This thesis aims to map out what motivates and drives a thought-through, strategic use of Instagram, to discover if there is a strategic use of Instagram among the objects of study and also to share the objects of study’s reflections about their Instagram use. Through a selection based on the number of followers of a non-profitable Instagram profile, age and an involvement in the culture and/or media business, ten people were selectedto constitute the objects of study. Through a comparision of five users with many followers (more than 1000) and five with few (less than 500), a comparative study was made to discover differences and similarities in their use and attitudes to Instagram. With an abductive approach and a rich theoretical framework, focusing on theories concering self-presentationand personal branding, in-dept interviews were made to create a deep understanding of the subject of research. The intervew answers were processed through a content analysis that concluded astrategic use among all of the objects of study, motivated by personal satisfaction and hopes of being percieved in a certain way. The users with many followers all reflected on and experience negative psychologial concequenses from their Instagram use, but the reflections and effects were absent among the users with few followers. The study demonstrate user patterns amongst those observed that suggest that a greater commitment to Instagram is more likely to have an effect on mental health.

The purpose with this examination is to interpret and analyze interviews with a few chosen teachers and parents to find out what they think about using Instagram in preschool. My purpose of my study is also to see how preschools can improve parental interaction by using social media in their daily occupation.My questions for this study are: How can you use social media in preschool and what is the purpose with this? What does a few teachers thinking about using Instagram in preschool? What does a few parents thinking about using Instagram in preschool? Could it be any problems with the using of Instagram in preschool? What kind of material is published on a few chosen preschools Instagram account? To get answers to my questions, I have made qualitative interviews with three teachers and three parents. As a complement to my interviews, I have made an observation and description what preschools publish on their Instagram account. I have featured some research about parental interaction and the meaning of that. I have also presented some literature about social media. The result of my study shows that my informants are very positive to use Instagram as a parental connection in preschool. The teachers think it’s an easy implement to share daily activities with the parents and the parents think they get to know better what their children are doing at daily basis.

Denna studie undersöker vilka budskap som Beyoncé konstruerar på sin Instagram genom enbart bildkommunikation. Då kända profiler har möjlighet att vara opinionsbildare för sina följare är det intressant att studera vilka budskap utöver deras huvudgenre, som de väljer att konstruera. Detta då det kan påverka människor som följer henne så att även de anammar dessa föreställningar, värderingar och handlingar. Eftersom Beyoncé har ett stort följeslag på sin Instagram och då hon själv publicerar bilderna är hon en representant för det här fenomenet, som är att gå utanför sin huvudgenre och vara en opinionsbildare. I studien använder vi oss av en kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Vi undersöker Beyoncés Instagram-profil, där vi sedan genom ett strategiskt urval väljer ut sju bilder. Därefter analyseras bilderna utifrån vårt teoretiska ramverk med utgångspunkt i semiotik, genus, rasism, självpresentation och klädernas betydelse. Detta ger en djupgående analys som besvarar studiens syfte och frågeställningar. Resultatet visar på att Beyoncé både direkt och indirekt konstruerar budskap genom enbart sin bildkommunikation. Det är bland annat budskap om politik, feminism och familjesituationer. Hon framställer även sociala roller som kommer till uttryck i bilderna. Dessa sociala roller är till exempel mamma, artist och karriärkvinna. / This study examines what messages Beyoncé construes on her Instagram through merely visual communication. It is interesting to study what messages celebrities convey through their visual communication that is outside their own main genre, considering they have the opportunity to be moulders of public opinion. This is because they have the ability to influence their followers so that they also adopt to these ideas, values and actions. Beyoncé is a representative for this phenomenon because she publishes her own pictures on Instagram and has a big number of followers. In this study, we use a qualitative content analysis. First, we examined Beyoncés Instagramaccount and then chose seven pictures with the help of a strategic selection. Thereafter we analyzed the pictures with the help of our theoretical framework based on the theories of semiotics, gender, rasicm, self-presentation and the meaning of clothes. This makes a contribution to a profound analysis that addresses the issue studied and the aim of the study. The results show that Beyoncé does construe messages, both directly and indirectly through her visual communication. Some of the messages she conveys are about politics, feminism and family situations. She also constructs social roles through her pictures. These are roles such as a mother, an artist and a businesswoman.