Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Pro-Ana Versus Pro-Recovery: A Content Analytic Comparison of Social Media Users’ Communication About Eating Disorders on Twitter and Tumblr

Branley, Dawn; Covey, Judith

Pro-Ana Versus Pro-Recovery: A Content Analytic Comparison of Social Media Users’ Communication About Eating Disorders on Twitter and Tumblr Thumbnail


Authors

Dawn Branley



Abstract

Objectives: To compare how people communicate about eating disorders on two popular social media platforms – Twitter and Tumblr. Material and Methods: Thematic analysis was conducted to characterise the types of communications posted, and a content analysis was undertaken of between-platform differences. Results: Three types of content (pro-ana, anti-ana, pro-recovery) were posted on each platform. Overall, across both platforms, extreme pro-ana posts were in the minority compared to anti-ana and pro-recovery. Pro-ana posts (including ‘thinspiration’) were more common on Twitter than Tumblr, whereas anti-ana and pro-recovery posts were more common on Tumblr. Conclusions: The findings have implications for future research and health care relating to the treatment and prevention of eating disorders. Developers of future interventions targeting negative pro-ana content should remain aware of the need to avoid any detrimental impact on positive online support.

Citation

Branley, D., & Covey, J. (2017). Pro-Ana Versus Pro-Recovery: A Content Analytic Comparison of Social Media Users’ Communication About Eating Disorders on Twitter and Tumblr. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, Article 1356. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01356

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jul 25, 2017
Online Publication Date Aug 11, 2017
Publication Date Aug 11, 2017
Deposit Date Sep 23, 2016
Publicly Available Date Aug 15, 2017
Journal Frontiers in Psychology
Print ISSN 1664-1078
Electronic ISSN 1664-1078
Publisher Frontiers Media
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 8
Article Number 1356
DOI https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01356
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1397076

Files

Published Journal Article (246 Kb)
PDF

Publisher Licence URL
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Copyright Statement
Copyright: © 2017 Branley and Covey. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.





You might also like



Downloadable Citations