E-Ana & E-Mia websites- Borzekowski, Schenk, Wilson & Peebles Flashcards
Pro-Ana
Websites that encourage the maintenance and development of anorexia
Pro-Mia
Websites that encourage the maintenance and development of bulimia
what are pro-eating disorder web sites?
A pro–eating disorder Web site is a collection
of Internet pages, all accessed through a domain
name or IP address, that deliver content about
eating disorder such as anorexia and bulimia.
What is the difference between Pro-ana websites and dieting ones?
Unlike healthy dieting, exercise websites these sites encourage purging behaviours or starvation and have an emphasis on trying to achieve an extremely thin or skeletal appearance.
Peebles et al 2010
There have been studies showing correlations between engaging with these sites and eating disorders
Social learning theory (Bandura)
Applied to this context, suggests that if vulnerable individuals can relate to these severely underweight models they are likely to engage in this behaviour themselves.
Cultivation theory (Gerbner)
When messages are pervasive, repeated and individuals have high exposure levels to pro-ana content they are more likely to accept these messages are normative
Noris et al highlighted common themes in pro-ana websites
These themes were:
success, control perfection and solidarity
Pro-ana pledges
Many websites in the analysis had pledges to stay thin and commandments of thinness.
How many were associated with recovery oriented content
13%
Overall it was found in Borzekowski, Schenk, Wilson & Peeble’s study that
The pro-ana sites were used as a venue of expression to voice poetry or art work, posting role model celebrity photos, suggestions on how to loose weight and how to hide their behaviour.
BUT nearly 1/3 of sites provided recovery material
