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Pills, Potions, Policing: The Relationship Between Governmentality, Dietary Supplement Consumption and Young Women’s Health

Espinosa, Maria Magdalena LU and Streichert, Sophie LU (2026) BUSN39 20261
Department of Business Administration
Abstract
The dietary supplement (DS) market, along with the topic of health optimization, is
continuously growing. Simultaneously the time, money and health investments of consumers
are increasing, which makes the motivations of the consumption a relevant topic to investigate.
Research has not sufficiently explored the intersection of governmentality, DS, young women
and the modern context they live in. The relevance of this research gap results from the
increasing market size along with the structural problems regarding sexism and classism that
are connected to the responsibilization of consumers in the health market. This study
investigates the influence of governmentality on young women's consumption of DS. Through
semi-structured... (More)
The dietary supplement (DS) market, along with the topic of health optimization, is
continuously growing. Simultaneously the time, money and health investments of consumers
are increasing, which makes the motivations of the consumption a relevant topic to investigate.
Research has not sufficiently explored the intersection of governmentality, DS, young women
and the modern context they live in. The relevance of this research gap results from the
increasing market size along with the structural problems regarding sexism and classism that
are connected to the responsibilization of consumers in the health market. This study
investigates the influence of governmentality on young women's consumption of DS. Through
semi-structured interviews the meaning, concerns and emotions young women attach to their
DS consumption were collected and analysed to find dynamics of governmentality. It was found
that the authorization of DS does not only rely on expert knowledge alone but extends to social
authorities and health standards as authorities. Further the concept of the Identity Project Loop
was developed to demonstrate the continuous identity project encouraged by governmentality.
The extended understanding of authorization aids in consumer research and marketing practice
to rethink mechanisms of governmentality. The IP Loop as a concept allows the analysis of
continuou (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Espinosa, Maria Magdalena LU and Streichert, Sophie LU
supervisor
organization
course
BUSN39 20261
year
type
H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
subject
keywords
Dietary supplements, governmentality, identity project, identity project loop, responsibilization
language
English
id
9233841
date added to LUP
2026-06-22 15:24:00
date last changed
2026-06-22 15:24:00
@misc{9233841,
  abstract     = {{The dietary supplement (DS) market, along with the topic of health optimization, is
continuously growing. Simultaneously the time, money and health investments of consumers
are increasing, which makes the motivations of the consumption a relevant topic to investigate.
Research has not sufficiently explored the intersection of governmentality, DS, young women
and the modern context they live in. The relevance of this research gap results from the
increasing market size along with the structural problems regarding sexism and classism that
are connected to the responsibilization of consumers in the health market. This study
investigates the influence of governmentality on young women's consumption of DS. Through
semi-structured interviews the meaning, concerns and emotions young women attach to their
DS consumption were collected and analysed to find dynamics of governmentality. It was found
that the authorization of DS does not only rely on expert knowledge alone but extends to social
authorities and health standards as authorities. Further the concept of the Identity Project Loop
was developed to demonstrate the continuous identity project encouraged by governmentality.
The extended understanding of authorization aids in consumer research and marketing practice
to rethink mechanisms of governmentality. The IP Loop as a concept allows the analysis of
continuou}},
  author       = {{Espinosa, Maria Magdalena and Streichert, Sophie}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Pills, Potions, Policing: The Relationship Between Governmentality, Dietary Supplement Consumption and Young Women’s Health}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}