Reconstructing 'recovery' : a discourse analysis of women's accounts with a past diagnosis of 'anorexia nervosa'

• Main Author: Karoutzou, Sophia
• Published: University of East London 2004
• Subjects: 150
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.532557

In this study 10 women were interviewed about their experiences of 'recovery' from a past diagnosis of 'anorexia nervosa'. Participants were recruited from a local specialist service and each interview lasted approximately one hour. The interview schedule was semi-structured in nature covering (i) past experiences of 'anorexia' (ii) participants' constructions of 'recovery' and meanings attached to it (iii) their views on what helped or hindered the process of 'recovery' (iv) their views on the current images of women portrayed in the media. Interviews were audiotape recorded and transcribed verbatim. Participants were also asked to write a brief account of their experiences. The resulting transcripts were then analysed qualitatively using a Foucauldian discourse analytic methodology in order to identify the ways in which participants discursively constituted their experiences of 'recovery' and issues related to power and the wider cultural discourses available. In particular, this study focuses on an analysis of how the 'recovered' self is construed in participants' accounts and how this is shaped by the availability of discourses, in contemporary society, in terms of what it means to be a woman. The implications of participants' constructions and subject positions are discussed.