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Main Authors: Jacob Johanssen, Susanne Benzel
Format: Artículo Open Access
Published: Wiley 2025
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Online Access:https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/aps.70004
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author Jacob Johanssen
Susanne Benzel
author_facet Jacob Johanssen
Susanne Benzel
Jacob Johanssen
Susanne Benzel
collection Wiley Open Access
contents Performances of Eating Disorders on TikTok—A Case of Hysterical Modes of Externalization Jacob Johanssen Susanne Benzel International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies ABSTRACT An increasing number of videos on the social media platform TikTok show individuals who allegedly have or are recovering from an eating disorder. The videos depict particular performances and aestheticisations of eating disorders which are analyzed in detail in this article through an interdisciplinary perspective of psychoanalysis as well as media and communication studies. This analytical perspective focusses upon the dialectic of content and aesthetic form, while also taking into account the technical features of the platform. The guiding question is whether eating disorders can be analyzed using the psychoanalytic concept of hysteria which is applied to further unpack common qualities of the videos around performances of reinterpreting and remodeling of inner and psychosocial reality as a pseudo‐solution of conflicts. We argue that eating disorders staged and performed in the videos by the young women can be regarded as different forms of externalization in hysterical modes: attempting triangulation; repeating and acting out; representing a punishing super‐ego. We conclude that hysteria remains a vital and critical concept for understanding contemporary representations of the body in the context of mental health on digital platforms. 10.1002/aps.70004 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
doi_str_mv 10.1002/aps.70004
format Artículo Open Access
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institution Wiley Open Access
license_str_mv http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
publishDate 2025
publisher Wiley
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spellingShingle Performances of Eating Disorders on TikTok—A Case of Hysterical Modes of Externalization
Jacob Johanssen
Susanne Benzel
International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies
Performances of Eating Disorders on TikTok—A Case of Hysterical Modes of Externalization Jacob Johanssen Susanne Benzel International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies ABSTRACT An increasing number of videos on the social media platform TikTok show individuals who allegedly have or are recovering from an eating disorder. The videos depict particular performances and aestheticisations of eating disorders which are analyzed in detail in this article through an interdisciplinary perspective of psychoanalysis as well as media and communication studies. This analytical perspective focusses upon the dialectic of content and aesthetic form, while also taking into account the technical features of the platform. The guiding question is whether eating disorders can be analyzed using the psychoanalytic concept of hysteria which is applied to further unpack common qualities of the videos around performances of reinterpreting and remodeling of inner and psychosocial reality as a pseudo‐solution of conflicts. We argue that eating disorders staged and performed in the videos by the young women can be regarded as different forms of externalization in hysterical modes: attempting triangulation; repeating and acting out; representing a punishing super‐ego. We conclude that hysteria remains a vital and critical concept for understanding contemporary representations of the body in the context of mental health on digital platforms. 10.1002/aps.70004 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Performances of Eating Disorders on TikTok—A Case of Hysterical Modes of Externalization
topic International Journal of Applied Psychoanalytic Studies
url https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/aps.70004