PubMed Health⌕ Search
Home/Archive/PubMed

PubMed · 2927788

The relentless drive to be ever thinner: a study using the phenomenological method.

M D Santopinto
View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

The relentless drive to be thinner is an experience lived by many individuals in the present sociohistorical context. Since fundamental questions concerning the structure of this lived experience remain unanswered in the literature, theory-based approaches to nursing practice have yet to be conceptualized for these individuals. The investigator was unable to find even a single nursing study related to the target phenomenon. The present study addresses the foundational question: What is it like to live the experience of the relentless drive to be ever thinner? Retrospective written and verbal accounts from two women who had lived this experience were analyzed using the Giorgi modification of the phenomenological method. The central finding of this study was: The relentless drive to be ever thinner is a persistent struggle toward an imaged self lived through withdrawing-engaging. This theoretical proposition was found to be congruent with Parse's theory of nursing. The study findings suggest directions for innovative nursing practice and support Parse's theory as a useful perspective for the investigation of health experiences.

Explore related subjects

Body ImageClinical Nursing ResearchHumansModels, TheoreticalNursing ResearchNursing TheoryWeight LossJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

M D Santopinto. 1989. The relentless drive to be ever thinner: a study using the phenomenological method.. https://doi.org/10.1177/089431848900200110

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related citations

PubMed2006

Outcome data from the LEAP (Live, Eat and Play) trial: a randomized controlled trial of a primary care intervention for childhood overweight/mild obesity.

OBJECTIVES: To reduce gain in body mass index (BMI) in overweight/mildly obese children in the primary care setting. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial (RCT) nested within a baseline cross-sectional BMI survey. SETTING: Twenty nine general practices, Melbourne, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: (1) BMI survey: 2112 children visiting their general practitioner (GP) April-December 2002; (2) RCT: individually randomized overweight/mildly obese (BMI z-score <3.0) children aged 5 years 0 months-9 years 11 months (82 intervention, 81 control). INTERVENTION: Four standard GP consultations over 12 weeks, targeting change in nutrition, physical activity and sedentary behaviour, supported by purpose-designed family materials. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary: BMI at 9 and 15 months post-randomization. Secondary: Parent-reported child nutrition, physical activity and health status; child-reported health status, body satisfaction and appearance/self-worth. RESULTS: Attrition was 10%. The adjusted mean difference (intervention-control) in BMI was -0.2 kg/m(2) (95% CI: -0.6 to 0.1; P=0.25) at 9 months and -0.0 kg/m(2) (95% CI: -0.5 to 0.5; P=1.00) at 15 months. There was a relative improvement in nutrition scores in the intervention arm at both 9 and 15 months. There was weak evidence of an increase in daily physical activity in the intervention arm. Health status and body image were similar in the trial arms. CONCLUSIONS: This intervention did not result in a sustained BMI reduction, despite the improvement in parent-reported nutrition. Brief individualized solution-focused approaches may not be an effective approach to childhood overweight. Alternatively, this intervention may not have been intensive enough or the GP training may have been insufficient; however, increasing either would have significant cost and resource implications at a population level.

Body Image↗
PubMed2006

[Some new aspects of the Klinefelter syndrome].

Klinefelter syndrome (KS) is the most frequent form of male hypogonadism. Still, at least 50% ofcases are not diagnosed, partly because of the great variation in the clinical symptoms, partly because physicians are unfamiliar with KS. Timely treatment with testosterone can contribute to a more positive body image and, consequently, to a healthier psychosexual development in men with KS. Men with KS experience significantly more health problems and an increased risk ofa malignancy. New reproductive techniques no longer automatically mean that men with KS will remain infertile. Treatment with testosterone is in principle life-long to prevent osteoporosis and loss of muscle mass and strength.

Body Image↗