hashtag goals: eating disorder recovery on instagram
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#GOALSEating Disorder Recovery on Instagram
Andrea LaMarre, MSc., PhD(c)Dr. Carla RiceNoura JabbourInthuya Wamathewan
No conflicts of interest to discloseAndrea LaMarre’s research supported by Vanier Canada Doctoral Scholarships – Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the University of Guelph
Please feel free to Tweet! @andrealala89
Learning Objectives1. Understand how those in eating disorder recovery are using
Instagram 2. Assess the positive, negative, and neutral aspects of
Instagram in representing eating disorder recovery3. Identify avenues for increasing the diversity and accessibility
of representations of recovery available to those with eating disorders and in recovery
Introduction Eating disorder recovery: poorly understood, variably defined Focus on bodies and food as “proof” of recovery Represented in popular media as easily achieved Clinical outcome literature suggests otherwise (e.g. 30-60%)
Introduction Instagram: image-based mobile social network Established in 2010 Over 150 million active users
Hashtags: categorizing devices “Allows users to insert their photo into a wider ‘hashtag
conversation” (Gibbs, Meese, Arnold, Nansen & Carter, 2015)
Research Objectives How is eating disorder recovery represented on Instagram? Critical feminist framework: posts do not represent inner
reality of experience but part of the performance of recovery Posts reflect interweaving of social dictates for recovery,
personal embodied experiences, and interpretations of clinical expertise
Methods Search of
hashtag #EDRecovery using Instagram
Methods Analyze first 100 posts for other co-occurring hashtags Select 4 additional hashtags:
Methods Search each hashtag on 3 days in December 2015 A Friday morning (10:30am) A Saturday afternoon (1:30pm) and A Tuesday afternoon (4:00pm) Select first 100 posts to appear under each of the 5
hashtags
Methods Create Storify for each selection of images
Methods
Remove duplicates, repeat images across hashtags & posts from users now private
Sort images & captions into table Analyze images & text using thematic analysis
Results Total posts gathered: 1500 Total posts analyzed: 1056 Most common images were of food, bodies, quotes, or a
combination of these Representations limited in terms of ethnicity, socioeconomic
status, gender, and body size
Theme 1: A Feast for the Eyes
Stylized images of food Users offer apologies for
“poor quality” photos Often, photos of foods
framed as “indulgent” in social imagination
Theme 1: A Feast for the Eyes Brand-name foods Overlap with #CleanEating
“Fear food” – not always as expected
Theme 2: Bodies of Proof Complicated relationships with bodies and gender in
captions:
Last beautiful flaw: Feminine Body! From a young age I was always ashamed of my body because I
developed so much younger than everyone else. It's difficult for a tall 10 year old in elementary school to
be dealing with puberty and a completely different body from everyone else. I thought there was
something wrong with me because the other girls were so small. (Guys too but guys are small until high
school) after losing so much weight it's like going through it again. I'm having gender identity issues,
shape issues, my boobs are growing so much and I don't know if I like it, but I will love myself
regardless. I will take care of myself and nurture my body while dealing with all of the other stuff.
Theme 2: Bodies of Proof Overlap with #Fitspiration hashtag Majority white, feminine, young users
Theme 3: Quotable Inspirational quotes Often individual-level Assumptions about who
suffers embedded in quotes Some exceptions, e.g.:
“When a flower doesn’t bloom you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower.”
Theme 4: (Im)Perfection Exploring normalcy or lack thereof Attempts at achieving balance, e.g. through the use of
hashtags like:
Theme 4: (Im)Perfection Striking awareness of
how ED behaviours do not serve them well – expressing discontent with feeling abnormal
Reaching out to Instagram community for help
Conclusion Embodying the contradictions of performing eating disorder
recovery in contemporary society Balancing messages about how to be healthy from dominant
society and from eating disorder treatment Limited diversity: where is there space for doing recovery
differently?
Conclusion Instagram can be a source of support and community as
users attempt to navigate contradictions Instagram representations of recovery are incomplete, but
partial pictures of the lives of those in recovery
Implications It may not be safe for all people to discuss mental health and
eating disorders, particularly in a public venue – this may partially account for the limitations in the representations of recovery
Instagram has both positive and potentially negative uses for those with eating disorders and in recovery
Before recommending looking at or using Instagram, take social location into account
