Fat shaming, feminism and Facebook: What ‘women who eat on tubes’ reveal about social media and the boundaries of women’s bodies

Alberti, Fay Bound

doi:10.1177/13675494211055499

Cited by 13 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Either way, it may be difficult to align the participant perceptions here with existing discourse on body image in the West. Although health systems and governmental discourse clearly differ, both the UK and the US currently assert the existence of an ‘obesity crisis’ and fat shaming—which is historically gendered—is endemic, normalized and pervasive [ 68 , 69 ]. Within this context, the comments from Bagel and Julia in particular (‘You just need to be confident’) perhaps resonate with what the UK scholars Gill and Orgad [ 70 ] have called the gendered address of ‘confidence culture’—a popular ‘feminist’ pushback against the gendered policing outlined above.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the West, there is a long history of feminist work which examines the gendering of female appetite and food consumption which has at its core a ‘relationship between morality, sexual control and desire’ [ 68 ], and this has been taken up repeatedly in work on EDs [ 20 , 21 , 23 ]. Within this context, and despite the cultural polarisation of AN and BN, they are understood to represent inseparable ways of coping with cultural imperatives of slenderness and the greater regulation of female appetites [ 29 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A feminist approach to eating disorders in China: a qualitative study

Holmes,

2023

J Eat Disord

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Background As women continue to be more at risk from eating disorders, gender has often been a focus of concern in transcultural research. Yet feminist, qualitative studies which prioritize the voices of women/girls remain rare within transcultural work suggesting the need for greater interaction between these fields. This article seeks to contribute to the exploration of the applicability of feminist paradigmslargely developed in the West—to experiences of EDs in non-western contexts. Methods This article draws on semi-structured interviews with 12 women from urban China with self-reported experience of Bulimia Nervosa (BN) and binge eating disorder (BED) in order to explore the complex ways in which gender may be implicated within eating/body distress from a transcultural point of view. The data is analysed through Reflexive Thematic Analysis. Results The data analysis suggested two broad themes: (1) Chinese versus Western codes for judging female appearance: from surveillance to liberation (2) Discipline, appetite and control: the gendered/cultural meanings of binging and purging. In terms of the first theme, many participants had spent time in the West which was understood as a less regulated context in terms of gendered body surveillance and eating. Complicating existing assumptions about the ‘Westernisation’ thesis, different communication codes and peer interactions across Chinese and Western contexts played a central role in how participants experienced their bodies. In the second theme, binging and purging emerged as a way to manage a number of contradictions surrounding Chinese femininity, including respecting familial food cultures, contradictory discourses on female ‘appetite’, and the need to display a female body which signified cultural imperatives of self-restraint and discipline. Conclusions The data emphasises the importance of examining the culturally specific meanings of eating problems and their gendered contexts, whilst there is clearly much that echoes Western feminist work on Western samples. Although limited, the study crucially points to the importance of examining how ED subcategories other than AN can be explored from a transcultural and feminist point of view.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A feminist approach to eating disorders in China: a qualitative study

Holmes,

2023

J Eat Disord

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“…This is less controversial as generally negatively construed as discipline-transformed-into-harm (Billingham and Parr, 2020;Fritz, 2021;Frye, 2021), but nonetheless attempting to shame people into conforming with norms remains a prominent activity. Shaming may be aimed at immigrants (Rohlfing and Sonnenberg, 2016), white supremacists (Milbrandt, 2020), people with criminal convictions (Dunsby and Howes, 2019), fat people (Ravary et al, 2019;Spratt, 2021), senders of "dick pics" (Paasonen and Sundén, 2021), sexually-active women (Jane, 2017;Van Royen et al, 2018), women who eat on public transport (Alberti, 2021), those who over-use water during droughts (Milbrandt, 2017), entitled white women ("Karens") (Negra and Leyda, 2021), welfare recipients (Brooker et al, 2015), those behind on school lunch money payments (Oravec, 2020), those who use their volunteering experiences to get dates (Laywine, 2021), and even doctors trying to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic (Dolezal et al, 2021).…”

Section: Privatised Disciplinementioning

confidence: 99%

Digital Modernity

O’Hara

2022

FNT in Web Science

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Modernity" is a social, cultural or historical descriptor for a certain type of society or set of social arrangements. This monograph reviews narratives of digital modernity, without endorsing them; as narratives, they selectively discuss aspects of our sociotechnical context, descriptively, teleologically or normatively. Digital modernity narratives focus on the possibilities of the data gathered by an ambient data infrastructure, enabled by ubiquitous devices such as the smartphone, and activities such as social networking and e-commerce. Some emphasise continuities with 20th century modernity narratives, while others emphasise discontinuity, such as theories of the singularity. Digital modernity is characterised by: a subjunctive outlook where people's choices can be anticipated and improved upon; the valorisation of disruptive innovation on demand; and control provided by data analysis within a virtual realm (cyberspace or the metaverse) which can be extended and applied to the physical world (in such applications as the quantified self and the smart city). The synergies and tensions between these three aspects are explored, as are the opportunities for and dilemmas posed by misinformation. Five principles emerge from the study of relevant texts and business models: (1) the quantity of data being produced in the world has enabled, and been enabled by, technological, social, economic and

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“…However, the emphasis on bodies and beauty has increased due to the popularity of image-based social media platforms such as Instagram [6]. Users frequently post images of themselves, exposing their bodies to criticism and encouraging comparison [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Social Media on Women's Body Image Perception: A Meta-Analysis of Well-being Outcomes

Xu Jiaqing,

Mumtaz Aini Alivi,

Siti Ezaleila Mustafa

et al. 2023

Int. J. Interact. Mob. Technol.

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This study examines the correlation between female body image and social media usage, focusing on the impact it has on overall well-being. The popularity of social networking sites (SNSs) has significantly impacted our digital culture, providing options for self-expression, engagement, and communication. However, SNSs also bring certain drawbacks, such as the potential for body dissatisfaction and negative psychological effects. Gap: While previous research has examined the relationship between social media use and body image, there is a need for a comprehensive analysis that specifically focuses on the effects on female well-being. This study aims to fill the gap by providing a comprehensive exploration of the effects of social media use on female body image and its influence on overall well-being. The objective of this study is to examine the correlation between social media usage and female body image, specifically focusing on the detrimental effects on well-being and mental health. By analyzing academic papers and research findings, this study aims to contribute to the understanding of the intricate relationship between social media, body image, and well-being. The preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) framework was used to compile relevant literature. Data from Scopus sources was analyzed using the RStudio 4.2.1-win program. Various factors, such as the publishing year, author details, keywords, and document categories, were considered to identify important patterns and insights. It is recommended that awareness and educational campaigns be developed to promote a healthy body image and address the potential negative consequences of social media use. The analysis significantly contributes to the body of knowledge by offering a thorough examination of the connection between female body image on social media and usage, highlighting the detrimental effects on well-being and mental health.

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Fat shaming, feminism and Facebook: What ‘women who eat on tubes’ reveal about social media and the boundaries of women’s bodies

Cited by 13 publications

References 31 publications

A feminist approach to eating disorders in China: a qualitative study

A feminist approach to eating disorders in China: a qualitative study

Digital Modernity

The Impact of Social Media on Women's Body Image Perception: A Meta-Analysis of Well-being Outcomes

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