Graduation Year
2014
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
M.A.
Degree Granting Department
Sociology
Major Professor
Rob Benford, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Michelle Hughes Miller, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Laurel Graham, Ph.D.
Keywords
Content Analysis, Framing Techniques, NAAFA, Social Movements
Abstract
The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA), the largest size acceptance organization (Kwan 2009), recognizes and frames fat as an identity in need of protective policies. This framing is not without complication. Both the framing techniques utilized by this organization and the political context in which this organization exists are extremely complex. As a way to uncover this dynamic relationship, I analyze NAAFA's framing techniques (Snow and Benford 1988). Employing this social movement organization (SMO) as a case study (Snow and Trom 2002), I analyze the way this organization's framing and reframing (Benford and Hunt 2003) shifts across time in the face of opposition. In particular, the First Lady's initiative, Let's Move!, is in direct contradiction of NAAFA's goals. While numerous themes, techniques and processes can be observed through the framing and reframing tools implemented by NAAFA over the years, I explore the three most pronounced primary framing tasks in relation to Let's Move!. These three themes include: (1) the dieting myth; (2) discriminatory policy; and (3) children as collateral damage. NAAFA reframes their message directly against the Let's Move! campaign, which makes their framing clearer and more relevant to public discussion. This research helps social movement scholars understand the importance of context in framing and reframing techniques.
Scholar Commons Citation
Doughman, Veronica Kay, "Dieting, Discrimination, and Bullying: A Contextual Case Study of Framing in the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance" (2014). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/5008
