Demarcating Social Practices: The Case of Weight Management

Abstract

The concept of weight management has gained currency in present political and social discourses on weight and health, organizing the various efforts to fight obesity and to assist individuals in controlling their weight. In this paper, we ask whether weight management is becoming rooted also in the everyday life of individuals. Adopting a practice-theoretical approach we study whether weight management constitutes an intelligible and distinct entity to people problematizing their weight. By analysing data generated by focus group discussions with Finnish consumers we investigate the ways in which people understand the concept of weight management, what kinds of techniques they use in order to manage their weight, and what kind of emotional and normative positions they take with respect to weight management. We analyse weight management in relation to eating, but acknowledge the role of another practices, such as exercising. We conclude that weight management is not a clearly defined entity, but located at the intersection of more established practices, healthy eating and slimming. We end our article by discussing the policy-implications of our findings.