'The Miracle of St Eligius', 15th century, by Hans Leu the Elder, Landesmuseum, Switzerland (Baldi, 2020).
Image licenced under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Deed.
New Edith Cowan University (ECU) research has explored how facial filters, pop culture and centuries-old stereotypes are shaping how people see their faces.
The study investigated the way the nose is represented on social media, and how this connects to a long history of gender and race politics.
Researcher Dr Laura Glitsos said that while the nose is a vital sensory organ, digital platforms have reduced it to an idealised visual feature, often conforming to narrow Eurocentric beauty standards.
"Facial filters, photo-editing tools and beauty trends consistently reshape noses towards a small, straight, Western ideal," Dr Glitsos said.
"This reinforces the idea that certain noses are more acceptable than others, an idea with very deep historical roots."
The research links social media practices, such as Instagram filters, AI photo manipulation and contouring tutorials to much older visual traditions found in fairy tales, film and religious folklore.
Dr Glitsos said from witches marked by exaggerated noses to villains in classic cinema visually coded as 'other', the nose has long been used as a shortcut for moral judgement and difference.
"Social media hasn't invented these ideas," Dr Glitsos said.
"It has inherited them and amplified them at an unprecedented scale."
Analysing nearly 1,000 posts from Reddit's r/Noses community, the study showed how these visual pressures affect people's self-image.
"Many users believed their nose 'ruined' their face after years of exposure to filtered images and beauty influencers," Dr Glitsos said.
"Others reported learning to appreciate their nose only after stepping away from these online standards."
However, the study also highlights how social media can also act as a space of resistance.
Dr Glitsos said communities like r/Noses celebrate nasal diversity, allowing people to share pride in noses linked to family heritage, ethnicity and identity, including noses historically targeted by racism or sexism.
"People use these spaces to unlearn shame and support each other," Dr Glitsos said.
"The nose becomes a place where personal history, ancestry and identity are reclaimed rather than erased."
Dr Glitsos said by tracing the nose across history, popular culture, social media and lived experience, the research shows why this organ can have a profound impact on identity, self-worth and wellbeing in the digital age.
"The nose is not just an organ, it's where history, culture and politics leave their mark on our bodies," she said.
The paper 'Looking at the Nose: Gender, Jewishness, and the Politics of Visual Mediation' was published in the journal Body & Society.
