Ateneo - UPO

Sociocultural analysis of food and the body; the social construction of health and illness; medicalisation and stigma; and the role of digital media and algorithms in spreading body ideals, eating practices, and discourses on well-being.

Lecture slides and supplementary open-access materials (academic articles, reports, and book chapters), which will be uploaded to the course DIR platform.

• Provide students with theoretical and analytical tools to deconstruct common-sense beliefs about the body, food, nutrition, appetite, and lifestyles.
• Develop the ability to analyse eating disorders and obesity also as socially constructed phenomena, with particular attention to processes of medicalisation, individualisation of responsibility, and stigmatisation.
• Critically examine the role of the media, digital platforms, and algorithms in the dissemination of body ideals, models of health, eating practices, and discourses on well-being.
• Develop the ability to conduct a structured sociological analysis of digital content and environments relating to the body, food, and nutrition.
• Promote the ability to interpret and communicate analytical findings using sociological concepts and to develop social media literacy proposals aimed at preventing stigma and fostering inclusive representations of health and bodies.

No prerequisites are required

Lectures, collective discussion of scientific texts and case studies, guided analysis of digital content, laboratory sessions, group work, and project presentations.

Students with disabilities, Specific Learning Disorders (SLDs), or Special Educational Needs (SEN) may request dedicated services and support by contacting the Career Development and Coordination and Student Services Staff and consulting the relevant page on the University website: https://uniupo.it/it/servizi/servizi-studenti-disabili-e-dsa. After contacting the relevant University Staff, students with disabilities, SLDs, or SEN may contact the course instructor to discuss appropriate adaptations to the examination arrangements.

Learning will be assessed through a one-hour written examination consisting of open-ended questions.
Admission to the final examination requires attendance at at least 50% of the module classes.

• Lesson 1: Food, the body, and lifestyles as social phenomena
• Lesson 2: Health, illness, medicalisation, and stigma
• Lesson 3: Media, digital platforms, and representations of the body and food
• Lesson 4: Introduction to the sociological audit of digital content
• Lesson 5: Analysis workshop: methodological and theoretical introduction
• Lesson 6: Sociological interpretation and preparation of group presentations
• Lesson 7: Presentation and discussion of group projects (Part I)
• Lesson 8: Presentation and discussion of group projects (Part II) and final synthesis

• Knowledge and understanding: Critical understanding of sociological theories applied to food, illness, and the impact of the media.
• Applying knowledge and understanding: Ability to apply sociological concepts and tools to the structured analysis of digital content and to assess possible social media literacy interventions.
• Making judgements: Ability to identify and critically assess normative representations of the body, forms of stigma, individualisation of responsibility, commercial interests, and exclusions in media content.
• Communication skills: Ability to present and discuss, clearly, sensitively, and on a sound scientific basis, the findings of a sociological analysis concerning the body, food, and eating disorders.
• Learning skills: Development of independent study skills for locating, interpreting, and synthesising scientific literature on eating disorders and the sociology of food.