This study analyzes the self-representations of Russian-speaking women with anorexia on YouTube. Using multimodal interaction analysis, the research focuses on how the explanatory model of anorexia and the representation platform influence the narratives produced by vloggers who have experienced or are experiencing anorexia. It is concluded that anorexia is mainly represented in these videos as a weight-related mental health disorder. Although the explanatory model of anorexia shapes self-representations on YouTube, the platform plays an even greater role in the construction of such narratives. This study’s findings fill gaps in the existing literature by revealing the joint structural influences that shape storytelling regarding the anorexia experience. The theoretical perspective utilized in this article could be further applied in research examining media representations of other mental health conditions.

这项研究分析了在 YouTube 上讲俄语的厌食症女性的自我表现。使用多模态交互分析，研究重点关注厌食症的解释模型和表示平台如何影响已经或正在经历厌食症的视频博主所产生的叙述。得出的结论是，厌食症在这些视频中主要表现为与体重相关的心理健康障碍。尽管厌食症的解释模型塑造了 YouTube 上的自我表现，但该平台在构建此类叙事方面发挥着更大的作用。这项研究的发现通过揭示影响厌食体验故事讲述的联合结构影响，填补了现有文献中的空白。