TOPSY-TURVY ON TIKTOK
IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S YOUR BRAIN. THE INVERTED FILTER ON TIKTOK FLIPS THE MIRROR IMAGE WE’RE USED TO SEEING IN OUR FRONT-FACING CAMERAS, AND IT’S NOT HELPING ANYONE’S SELF-ESTEEM.
If you think you always look better in the mirror than you do in photos, one of the latest TikTok trends probably won’t make you feel any better. The trend uses the app’s inverted filter to flip your smartphone’s front-facing camera — and by extension, flip that same image you’re used to seeing every morning.
For most, the phenomenon has proven a surefire way to kick confidence levels down a notch. But why does it feel like you’re looking back at a less attractive stranger when you see a non-reflected version of yourself?
When you’re looking at a mirror, you’re actually looking at a flipped image. The inverted filter presents you with an “unflipped” image of yourself, or the version that everyone else sees. As a result, inverted pictures or videos can feel like a completely different version of our faces. Part of this is because our faces aren’t symmetrical. While the two halves of your face may not look too different at first, seeing a straight-on image of yourself feels unnerving because your features might not line up the way you’re used to seeing them. Plus, the app’s ability to rapidly toggle between flipped and unflipped images shines a spotlight on these asymmetries.
And according to the mere-exposure hypothesis, people prefer what they see and encounter most often. When it comes to our selfperception, this means that we prefer our mirror images instead of our true images, or our reflection as opposed to what others see. This aligns with the findings of a study conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1977: When people were presented with photos of their “true” image and their mirror image, they preferred the latter. Perhaps less surprisingly, their friends and romantic partners preferred their true image. When participants were asked to explain their preference, they even pointed out differences between the photos — like hair length and head tilt — that didn’t actually exist, because the photos were made from the same negative.
Even if the new filter makes you cringe, take comfort: Everyone else is already used to seeing you that way, and actually likes that version more.
People prefer what they see and encounter most often.