Because of the desire to own a sharp, angular face, a Tiktok user used a hammer to hit his face.
This extremist action is a clear illustration for the rise of loooksmaxxing – the online trend encourages unproven, sometimes dangerous techniques, in order to increase the attractiveness of the opposite sex and arouse sexual desires.
Influencer (influential people) of the Looksmaxxing movement – part of the online ecosystem called “Manosphere” – increasingly popular on social networks, taking advantage of the insecurity of young men who are looking forward to improving their appearance.
On Tiktok, Instagram and YouTube, they often share scientific methods to achieve characteristics such as thick lips, long chin, or almond -shaped eyes called “hunter eyes”. At the same time, they also take advantage of the fame to make money through promoting many consumer products.
At a more extreme level, the Influencer also encourages the use of steroids, cosmetic surgery, even the procedure to extend the body to make the body more attractive.
Women often easily go to cosmetic experts or buy beauty products. Meanwhile, many men choose to tinker with simple tools.
“What are you doing in the bathroom for so long?” – It is the caption in a Tiktok video on the trend, recording the scene of a man with a hammer hitting his cheek, calling it a “skin care habit”.
Below the video, dozens of comments warned that the technique of “bone smashing” or “using a hammer” is dangerous, while others praised this is a reasonable way to have a sharp face.
In another video, Oscar Patel – an English Influencer – promotes the “Mewing” technique, pressing the tongue into the palate to improve the jaw and face structure, although there is no scientific evidence to prove.
He said to nearly 188,000 followers on Tiktok, such tips could turn them into “PSL god” – the term for men with men with perfect appearance and symmetry.
Dillon Latham, a Tiktokker from the US, once advised 1.7 million followers to whiten teeth with hydrogen peroxide – chemicals that can be harmful if used improperly. Some dentists warn that the use of peroxide purchased at a store can damage tooth enamel and gums.
Siddharth Venkataramakrishnan, analyst at the London Strategic Dialogue Institute, said the Looksmaxxing trend is promoting the wave of Influencer promoting the body and the perfect face – often to benefit themselves.
“For men, this trend is accompanied by the attitude of women. Many people tend to blame women about their own insecurity. This combination is extremely toxic,” he added.
The video recording an Influencer is hitting his own face to have an angular face. Image: AFP
Many Influencer has a financial motive, taking advantage of the fame to promote everything from cleanser, Pheromone perfume, to a fake watch from China.
Looksmaxxing originated from the “Involuntary Celibate (unexpected), a form of network culture, where many men have the thought of women’s discrimination and think that their emotional failures are caused by women and feminism movements.
Anda Solea, a researcher at the Department of Criminal and Criminal Justice, University of Portsmouth, said: “The Incel ideology is being renamed Looksmaxxing on Tiktok”.
In a study, Solea found many accounts inspired by Incel and had the rules of hostile speech censorship on Tiktok. They do this by switching to Looksmaxxing and using the terms that sound more positive as “self -improvement”.
“Men are under a lot of pressure. We should protect women from gender violence, but also need to pay attention to men and young men,” Solea said.
The “Maxxing” trends are also emerging as “Gymmaxxing”, “Moneymaxxing” (Moneymaxxing ” – all to increase sexual attraction.
Many Influencer pursue Looksmaxxing models like Jordan Barrett (Australia) and Sean O’Pry (USA). Thanks to the social network algorithm that diffuses their content to millions, they quickly attracted huge tracks.
Experts warn that these algorithms can lead to actual consequences. The danger is illustrated in the movie Netflix Adolescence Recently, the story of a 13 -year -old teenager was charged with killing classmates after exposure to the online women’s discrimination.
The film refers to the theory of “80/20” – a popular hypothesis but there is no basis that 80% of women are only attracted by 20% of men.
In a 2024 study, researchers at Dublin City University (Ireland) created fake accounts as teenagers. They realized that after only a short time, Tiktok and Youtube began to fill the content of the men’s extremes and the idea of women discrimination. These videos quickly occupy the entire power supply.
“Speaking broadly, this leads to malicious beauty standards, affecting both men and women. It makes people believe that if not like the Hollywood star, do not dream about love is an extremely dangerous message,” Venkataramakrishan said.