Loosing weight online: A study of the #instafits universe

Authors

  • Bruna Sousa Madureira Pontifïcia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro
  • Junia Vilhena Pontifïcia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5380/psi.v21i3.49794

Keywords:

social media, sharing, weight loss

Abstract

The article aims to explore the women’s use of social media as a tool for losing weight. Instagram was integrated to the daily routine of women that were seeking to eliminate fat excess by opening an exclusive account to share their regular routine of exercises and diet. Data for this study were based on 38 interviews of Brazilian women aged between 1 9-40 years old, which reduced up to 80 pounds in one year just by sharing their virtual diary of pictures (contents of exercises and meals) on Instagram. The outcome results remark the importance of the group (likes, positive comments and shares) for the maintenance of the primary objective that, in many cases, expanded to the offline life. Furthermore, the daily record in the virtual screen diary of the body changes increased the belief that it would be possible to "tame" the body to achieve their main goal: lose weight.

Author Biographies

Bruna Sousa Madureira, Pontifïcia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro

Doutoranda da PUC-Rio.

Mestre pela PUC-Rio. 

Psicóloga pela PUC-Rio.

Pesquisadora associada do Laboratório Interdisciplinar de Pesquisa & Intervenção

Junia Vilhena, Pontifïcia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro

Profa. Dra Junia de Vilhena.

Professora associada do departamento de Psicologia da PUC-Rio.

Coordenadora do Laboratório Interdisciplinar de Pesquisa & Intervenção Social.

 

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Published

2017-12-02

How to Cite

Madureira, B. S., & Vilhena, J. (2017). Loosing weight online: A study of the #instafits universe. Interação Em Psicologia, 21(3). https://doi.org/10.5380/psi.v21i3.49794

Issue

Vol. 21 No. 3 (2017)

Section

Research Reports

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