6 Seemingly Innocent Trends That Can Be A 'Slippery Slope' To More Harmful Ideologies, According To A Social Worker
Young women should be aware of the type of content that they're consuming.
AleksandarNakic | Getty Images Signature With most people being chronically online these days, it's easy to get sucked into the various trends that make the rounds on social media. While most are just fleeting, a former social worker turned content creator named Jess Britvich explained how even the most seemingly innocent trends can be a "slippery slope" to more harmful ideologies.
Social media algorithms are strategically designed to keep people in the apps. When left unchecked, these algorithms create a sort of echo chamber that can lead us deeper and deeper into the dark underbellies of trends. Britvich, who uses her online presence to discuss the connection between internet culture and politics, explained that these "rabbit holes" can lead to dangerous territory.
1. Clean beauty and clean eating
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While there's nothing wrong with young women wanting to use beauty and skincare products that have the best and healthiest ingredients, or wanting to eat a balanced and nutritious diet, there's definitely a fine line between engaging in content that "promotes distrust around regulatory bodies."
Britvich pointed out that it may seem harmless at first, but young women can quickly find themselves doing things that have zero benefits to their bodies and instead promote harmful ideologies and beliefs on what it means to be "clean."
2. Tradwife content
"While it starts off as romanticizing homemaking, this quickly can slide into a conversation about promoting very rigid gender norms," Britvich pointed out. She explained that this type of content can quickly veer into anti-feminism and things that are associated with Christian nationalism and even white supremacy.
There's nothing inherently wrong with traditional gender roles, which may work better for some people than others. However, many women have come forward to shed light on how the "trad wife" lifestyle can lead to financial insecurity and, in some cases, abuse.
3. Skinny-tok and diet culture
There's an entire side of TikTok where skinny culture is being pushed onto naive and impressionable young girls and women. Britvich explained that these trends started off positively with women sharing their fitness routines and urging other women to take care of their bodies so they feel good, in whatever way that looks like for them. However, it's always a slippery slope when assigning superiority to thinness, which can then be traced back to eugenics, Britvich said.
Promoting the idea that being thin is desirable also leads to mental health struggles. Young women being exposed to this kind of belief only further drives things like body dysmorphia and even eating disorders, while also being inherently fatphobic.
“Intentional weight loss is sometimes the right thing to suggest, and I’ve seen people say [SkinnyTok] has made them more aware of what they put into their body,” Dietitian Andrea Mathis told TODAY.com. “Maybe it starts one way, but the more you do it with that mindset, it can turn into obsession."
4. Homesteading and homeschooling
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"While gardening, being closer to our food sources, and taking a hands-on role in your child's education is great," Britvich explained. "It can quickly lead to mistrust in institutions overall, a mistrust in public schooling, like public schooling isn't good enough."
With how targeted the Department of Education has been under this current presidency, this problem can only get worse. It's important that we're teaching young women the value that exists within the public school system because not everyone has the means or the capacity to homeschool.
5. New age spirituality
Britvich claimed that tarot, crystals, and any new age spirituality things should only be sold to young women by people who are actually passionate about them. She insisted that too many people who are running crystal shops are usually bigots of some kind, even recalling when she spent $200 at a specific crystal shop only to later find out the owner was anti-Semitic.
Britvich explained that this is a rampant issue within the spirituality space. Young women not only need to be aware of where they're spending their money, but also that new age spirituality is something to research before following blindly.
6. Soft life living and feminine energy
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"While there [are] some important conversations here around rejecting hustle culture, this quickly leads to ideas about women needing to submit to their husbands," Britvich noted. "Back to these really traditional gender roles."
We should be encouraging young women to get rest when they need it and not overwhelm themselves when it comes to work, but also remind them that their value doesn't sit within the rigid confines of traditional femininity.
We need to start being cognizant of the rabbit holes that we fall into when it comes to online culture, because nine times out of ten, the content we're consuming can shape our beliefs in ways we didn't anticipate.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor's degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
