1,721,122 research outputs found
Introduction: Masculinities, discourse and men’s health
Full text linkIn 1978, the Journal of Social Issues published an article titled, ‘Warning: The Male Sex Role May Be Dangerous to Your Health’. The author, James Harrison, had noted the ‘growing differential in life expectancy between men and women’ (1978, p. 65) in the United States (US) during the twentieth century and wanted to critically review existing research in order to understand what factors might be contributing to this trend. He identified two explanatory perspectives: a ‘biogenetic’ one and a ‘psychosocial’ one. Harrison examined the evidence for both perspectives and concluded that ‘the best available evidence confirms the psychosocial perspective that sex-role socialization accounts for the larger part of men’s shorter life expectancy’ (ibid.). In other words, societal expectations of men were found to be more harmful for their health than any ‘biogenetic’ characteristics that might be attributable to them. Fast-forward to the twenty-first century, and the disparities in life expectancy between men and women have maintained (World Health Organization, 2019)
Searching for the unspeakable: An iterative approach to designing a corpus of texts about a taboo topic
No full textTaboo topics tend, by their definition, to be censored in language use, and are thus often absent from discourse. When such topics are discussed, they tend to be referred to indirectly, for example through euphemistic language. This presents a challenge for the design and construction of topic-specific corpora, then, when the topic being investigated might be considered taboo within the culture and/or discourse context under study. In this article, we explore the challenges involved in attempting to construct a corpus of news media texts that are ‘about’ a taboo topic. Focusing on the case of incest – an issue deeply entrenched in social and linguistic taboos – we present an iterative, corpus-assisted approach to designing, assessing and (re)constructing a corpus of UK newspaper articles about this topic. As well as contributing to our understanding of the representation of incest in UK news media, this article underscores the importance of transparency and reflexivity in the process of (iterative) corpus design and serves to demonstrate how the reporting of this process might proceed in other studies whose data similarly represent a product of iterative design
Discursive acts of resistance : Discursive acts of resistance: a multimodal critical discourse analysis of All-Poland Women’s Strike's social media
Full text linkOgolnopolski Strajk Kobiet (All-Poland Women's Strike) is a grassroots campaign established in Poland in 2016 in response to the proposed tightening of abortion laws but which also engages with broader social, feminist and women's rights issues. Using a critical approach to multimodal discourse analysis, this article analyses the postings of the campaign on its main social media platform, Facebook, investigating closely the types of multimodal speech acts, referred to here as 'communicative acts', employed therein. The article examines the forms that such communicative acts take and the broader functions they fulfil within the (online and offline) context of the campaign. The observed communicative acts contribute towards and indeed enact the protest quite directly, forming an important part of the campaign's discourse of feminist dissent
Corpus, Discourse and Mental Health
No full textSituated at the interface of corpus linguistics and health communication, Corpus, Discourse and Mental Health provides insights into the linguistic practices of members of three online support communities as they describe their experiences of living with and managing different mental health problems, including anorexia nervosa, depression and diabulimia.In examining contemporary health communication data, the book combines quantitative corpus linguistic methods with qualitative discourse analysis that draws upon recent theoretical insights from critical health sociology. Using this mixed-methods approach, the analysis identifies patterns and consistencies in the language used by people experiencing psychological distress and their role in realising varying representations of mental illness, diagnosis and treatment. Far from being neutral accounts of suffering and treating illness, corpus analysis illustrates that these interactions are suffused with moral and ideological tensions sufferers seek to collectively negotiate responsibility for the onset and treatment of recalcitrant mental health problems.Integrating corpus linguistics, critical discourse analysis and health sociology, this book showcases the capacity of linguistic analysis for understanding mental health discourse as well as critically exploring the potential of corpus linguistics to offer an evidence-based approach to health communication research
New men? The medicalisation of men’s bodies on the Numan website
Full text linkMen’s health is big business. For example, at the time of writing, the global erectile dysfunction drugs market is estimated to be worth 2.3 billion US Dollars (Grand View Research, 2021), while the men’s hair loss prevention and treatment product market is around three times bigger (Marketwatch, 2022). In this chapter, we explore the discourses that constitute the website of one of the United Kingdom’s (UK) leading peddlers of men’s health products: Numan. As an online service provider, Numan’s website effectively performs the function of point-of-sale advertising. Not only can website users purchase Numan’s products through its website, but the site also complements Numan’s television and other online marketing campaigns to inform its audience, mainly men, about its products, which include treatments for hair loss and erectile dysfunction, vitamin supplements, and health tests. Guided by a multimodal approach to Critical Discourse Analysis, in this chapter we explore how Numan discursively represents itself, its patient-consumers, their health, and its products, which are of course put forward as solutions to men’s health concerns. As our analysis will show, such representations draw upon and propagate particular discourses around masculinity, health, ageing and neoliberalism, all of which conspire to medicalise (and, in turn, pharmaceuticalise) aspects of men’s bodies and experiences, ultimately offering a particular version of what a ‘healthy man’ is
Applying corpus linguistics
No full textThis chapter sets the scene for the volume by exploring the application of corpus linguistics across established and emerging contexts, examining its evolving role and methodological innovations both within the academy and beyond it. It discusses how corpus linguistics has expanded from foundational work in language pedagogy to address interdisciplinary needs, including social justice initiatives and policy influence. The chapter highlights diverse perspectives on what it means to ‘apply’ corpus linguistics, noting that this notion is shaped by the various cultural, institutional, and disciplinary contexts in which it is taken up. The chapter emphasises the importance of engaging with stakeholders and adapting corpus methods to new domains, from education to media and law enforcement, aiming to achieve social impact through research. Additionally, it reflects on the relational, social, methodological, and institutional dimensions that characterise the practical application of corpus linguistics today. The authors call for critical reflection on these dimensions to inform future applications, ultimately positioning corpus linguistics as a versatile and impactful methodology and field for addressing complex linguistic, professional, and societal challenges
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