Journal of Controversial Ideas

(ISSN: 2694-5991) Open Access Journal
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Controversial Ideas 2024, 4(2), 11; doi: 10.35995/jci04020011

Obesity, Stigma, and Responsibility: Should the Concept of Agency be Abandoned?

1 Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK;
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 6 Jul 2023 / Revised: 25 Apr 2024 / Accepted: 6 Aug 2024 / Published: 30 Oct 2024
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Abstract

Appeals to individual agency and responsibility are increasingly viewed as antithetical to the goals of reducing stigma towards overweight and obesity and are sometimes even framed as anathema to civil discussion in academia. The current paper argues that this is a naïve view of agency and responsibility and, contrary to helping prevent or reduce stigma, removing these concepts from our conversations around obesity may instead worsen outcomes for those most at risk. This paper provides background for what follows and an introduction to the topic, before detailing and responding to the most common arguments for the futility of agency: from subconscious processes; from biological determinism; from free will; from obesity as a disease; and from framing and stigma. It then considers the impact on research of this proposed framing / perspective. The final section considers three key shifts in conceptualisation which I believe are necessary to highlight the importance of agency in weight management, whilst also providing the best care possible to patients and society at large. The proposed conceptual shifts are: agency is necessary but often not sufficient as it is constrained; diseases are not created equal; and there are multiple pathways to obesity. Acknowledging these fundamental realities can help us avoid the schism currently developing in researchers’ and clinicians’ conceptions of overweight and obesity.
Keywords: obesity; stigma; agency; responsibility; addiction; biological determinism
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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. (CC BY 4.0).
CITE
Duckworth, J.J. Obesity, Stigma, and Responsibility: Should the Concept of Agency be Abandoned? Controversial_Ideas 2024, 4, 11.
Duckworth JJ. Obesity, Stigma, and Responsibility: Should the Concept of Agency be Abandoned? Journal of Controversial Ideas. 2024; 4(2):11.
Duckworth, Jay J. 2024. "Obesity, Stigma, and Responsibility: Should the Concept of Agency be Abandoned?" Controversial_Ideas 4, no. 2: 11.
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