The tendency for muscle dysmorphia : what makes men want more muscle?

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to understand the experience of body building from a firsthand experience, and what it is like to have symptoms of muscle dysmorphia. Muscle Dysmorphia (MD) is a condition in which men strongly believe that they are not muscular enough and may lead to a pathological obsession with lifting weights. MD is a relatively under-researched condition and there is currently debate as to where it should be classified in the DSM-V. Six semi-structured interviews were carried out with men who have been practising body-building for over a year. Interviews were then analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The emergent themes sum up the main experience of practising body-building. Results showed what motivated participants to start the sport, what they and other people think about their routines as well as how they felt about the media's influence. Limitations to the study are presented as well as recommendations for future research in this area.