Deviant or Normal? Female Bodybuilders' Accounts of Social Reactions

Abstract

In response to calls for more inclusive and nuanced studies of deviance, Heckert and Heckert (2002) developed a typology that incorporates both normative and reactive definitions. Their model accounts for negative deviance, positive deviance, deviance admiration, and deviant conformity (rate-busting). Through participant observation and in-depth interviews with ten amateur female bodybuilders at a university in the United States, we apply the typology to explain their perceptions of social reactions from a variety of audiences. Female bodybuilders' accounts of others' reactions to their increasingly muscular bodies, extreme dieting practices, and intense workout routines provide intriguing empirical examples of all four deviance types. Findings reflect the complexity of a deviance–conformity continuum and support the call for studies that go beyond negative social response and countercultural behavior or appearance.

Acknowledgments

We thank John Heith Copes, Kevin Leicht, the anonymous reviewers for Deviant Behavior, and the female bodybuilders who participated in this research for their helpful input and suggestions.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ruth A. Chananie-Hill

RUTH A. CHANANIE-HILL is an Assistant Professor of sociology at the University of Northern Iowa. Her current research focuses on gender, sport, and social movements. Most recently, she has published research on female bodybuilders and women's flat-track roller derby, and she is currently working on projects about the movement toward diversity in higher education, and socio-legal framings of same-sex marriage.

Shelly A. McGrath

SHELLY A. MCGRATH is an Assistant Professor of criminal justice. Her research interests encompass two main areas. The first relates to intimate partner violence, including patterns, the advocate experience for victims, and the availability of services for victims, especially in rural areas. The other line of research involves comparative analyses of fear and perceived risk of victimization at the international level, including the relationship between citizen satisfaction with local police and perceived safety. Her most recent publications are in Sociology of Sport, Aggression and Violent Behavior, Sociological Focus, and the American Journal of Criminal Justice.

Justin Stoll

JUSTIN STOLL is a Ph.D. student in sociology at Boston University. His research interests include social movements, global health, religion, and inequality. His current research focuses on organizational collaborations in transnational humanitarian health, and the emerging Secularist and Atheist movement in America.