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It’s Not Just About the French Fry

The purpose of this article is to explore idiom of distress and its application to overweight and obese adolescent boys. This case study suggests that avoidance, as an idiom of distress, offers self-protection from suffering among this population. Fieldwork included 55 face-to-face contact hours, 25...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of men's health 2011-11, Vol.5 (6), p.517-523
Main Authors: Morrison, Zachary J, Gregory, David M, Thibodeau, Steven
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:The purpose of this article is to explore idiom of distress and its application to overweight and obese adolescent boys. This case study suggests that avoidance, as an idiom of distress, offers self-protection from suffering among this population. Fieldwork included 55 face-to-face contact hours, 25 virtual contact hours (i.e., text messaging, e-mails, phone calls), and 16 person-centered interviews. The daily suffering experienced by this group of boys, and their collective enactment of avoidance as a self-protective strategy, offer an understanding of their lives beyond their obese bodies. Avoidance behaviors, however, can result in negative social consequences such as isolation. Recognizing avoidance as an idiom of distress permits parents, teachers, health professionals, and researchers to interact with overweight and obese adolescent boys in a profoundly different way. Attending to the personhood of these vulnerable boys was an important finding of this qualitative study.
ISSN:1557-9883
1557-9891
DOI:10.1177/1557988311415092