Expert Opinion? A Micro-Analysis of Eating Disorder Talk on Dr. Phil

Authors

Andrea LaMarre, University of GuelphFollow
Olga Sutherland, University of Guelph

Abstract

In this study, we explored how eating and identities of individuals diagnosed with eating disorders are constructed on a popular television talk show, Dr. Phil. Informed by conversation analytic and discursive psychological research traditions, we show how Dr. Phil, jointly with guests, constitutes guests as mentally ill and accountable for their illness. Specifically, we highlight Dr. Phil’s unilateral pursuit of a solution to the “puzzle” of the eating disorder, including its origins and meanings, as he enlists the guests’ endorsement of his versions of their situations and experiences. We examine broader implications of such a framing for societal understandings of the subjectivity of individuals diagnosed with eating disorders.

Keywords

Eating Disorders, Mental Illness, Conversation Analysis, Discursive Psychology, Mass Media, Talk Television

Publication Date

10-27-2014

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2014.1102

Recommended APA Citation

LaMarre, A., & Sutherland, O. (2014). Expert Opinion? A Micro-Analysis of Eating Disorder Talk on Dr. Phil. The Qualitative Report, 19(43), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2014.1102