Status : Verified
| Personal Name | Fernandez, Chiello Ortiz; Madayag, Charmille Villanueva |
|---|---|
| Resource Title | From representation to coproduction: a multimodal critical discourse analysis of the normalization of the Filipino body ideal on TikTok |
| Date Issued | 7 June 2026 |
| Abstract | This undergraduate thesis examined the research question: How is the Filipino body ideal discursively represented and interpreted as “normal” on TikTok? Using Machin and Mayr’s (2012) Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA) as its primary framework, the study investigated how body ideals are constructed through multimodal content and normalized through audience engagement on TikTok. Drawing from scholarship on Filipino beauty standards, body politics, and discourse (Bordo, 1993;Gramsci, 1971; Machin & Mayr, 2012), the study conceptualized body ideals as hegemonic meanings that become normalized through repeated representation and active user co-production. Methodologically, the study triangulated textual analyses of TikTok videos and comment sections from four content creators—Shakirah Mae Corpus, Rio Maramba, Jam Blauta, and Enver Florendo—with semi-structured interviews involving eight TikTok users. The findings revealed that creators consistently represented the ideal Filipino body as lean, toned, disciplined, and healthy through recurring linguistic choices and visual strategies such as before-and-after comparisons, fitness routines, and food-tracking practices. Audience responses largely affirmed these representations by associating ideal bodies with discipline, self-control, responsibility, and personal success, although some negotiated and oppositional readings were also observed. The study posits that the normalization of this ideal stems from a dense alignment of culture, technology, and platform capitalism, where TikTok’s interface design and recommendation algorithms reward and amplify platform-optimized bodies (Bishop, 2021; Chen et al., 2025). At its core, the overall study demonstrates how user agency is captured to stabilize dominant ideologies, and advocates for critical media literacy, ethical creation standards, and systemic policy responses to body-based discrimination and false wellness information in Filipino digital contexts. |
| Degree Course | Bachelor of Arts in Communication Research |
| Language | English |
| Keyword | Filipino body ideal; TikTok; Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis; body discourse; representation; interpretation; normalization |
| Material Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
Preliminary Pages
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Category : F - Regular work, i.e., it has no patentable invention or creation, the author does not wish for personal publication, there is no confidential information.
Access Permission : Open Access