Rannie Teodoro edited Abstract.tex  over 9 years ago

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\section{Abstract}  With the increasing prevalence of the pro-anorexic movement online, we present a study in which we analyze disclosures across different online contexts, specifically LiveJournal and Twitter. Pro-anorexia is a movement, ubiquitous in several online contexts, in which individuals support and advise those who wish to maintain anorexia. We sought to better understand the communication functions and nuances of these disclosures in different online venues. Therefore, we qualitatively analyzed a total of 2,000 messages from LiveJournal and Twitter. Six major themes emerged from the analysis reflecting relational, behavioral, and affective dimensions. Pro-ana disclosures showed distancing and affiliative language to maintain supportive and exclusive communities, made references to extreme behaviors, and used affective expressions to contextualize the pro-ana experiences. Our findings extend existing theoretical considerations on the self-disclosure of stigmatized health information, especially on the topic of pro-anorexia. It also has practical implications to better understand individuals who manage and cope with this mental illness.