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Accounts of experiences of bulimia: A discourse analytic study
Author(s) -
Brooks Anna,
LeCouteur Amanda,
Hepworth Julie
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
international journal of eating disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.785
H-Index - 138
eISSN - 1098-108X
pISSN - 0276-3478
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1098-108x(199809)24:2<193::aid-eat9>3.0.co;2-9
Subject(s) - sociocultural evolution , psychology , ideology , personality , context (archaeology) , social environment , social psychology , bulimia nervosa , power (physics) , developmental psychology , eating disorders , sociology , clinical psychology , social science , politics , paleontology , physics , quantum mechanics , anthropology , political science , law , biology
Objectives: To identify the variety of versions of bulimia constructed by participants, to suggest functions and consequences of these constructions, and to examine the sociocultural ideologies evident in participants' discourse. Methods: Ten women and one man were interviewed about their experiences of bulimia. Transcribed interviews were analyzed using a discourse analytic approach. Results: Five dominant ways of talking about bulimia were identified: Individuals were constructed as victims of bulimia, women were constructed as victims of social stereotypes, bulimia was constructed as a damaging action one performs on oneself, bulimia was constructed as a personality trait of individuals, and bulimia was marginalized as abnormal and disgusting. Discussion: Sociocultural ideologies evident in participants' accounts included the valuing of individual will‐power and self‐mastery and the construction of a mind‐body dichotomy entailing the need to control the latter. The analysis emphasizes the importance of considering the sociocultural context within which psychological problems occur. © 1998 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 24: 193–205, 1998.