Abstract
Pro-Ana are websites that are designed to promote and support Anorexia Nervosa (AN) and other eating disorders. Common features of these websites include forums and chat rooms, tips and tricks, ‘thinspirations’, as well as links to other Pro-Anorexia websites. One of the most common and disconcerting aspects of these websites is the detailed instructions for initiating and maintaining the illness, AN. Pro-Ana members join a special target-based virtual community in order to encourage one another in losing weight and creating a social environment that does not denounce self-starvation, but rather support and strengthens the disordered behavior. The aim of this chapter is to try to identify the characteristics of the Pro-Ana community, to understand the motivations underlining the engagement in these websites and accordingly to suggest clinical and research implications for therapists and researchers.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Bio-Psycho-Social Contributions to Understanding Eating Disorders |
| Editors | Y. Latzer , D. Stein |
| Publisher | Springer International Publishing |
| Pages | 155-167 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9783319327426 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9783319327402 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Jan 2016 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016.
Keywords
- Anorexia nervosa
- Eating disorders
- Internet websites
- Pro-Ana
- Self-help
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine
- General Psychology
- General Social Sciences