“Actually, I Don't Eat Meat”: A Multiple-Goals Perspective of Communication About Vegetarianism

Abstract

Engaging in non-mainstream behavior can be challenging to negotiate communicatively, especially when it involves the simple but necessary task of eating, a lifelong activity that is often done in others’ company. Through face-to-face, semi-structured interviews of 20 vegetarians, this study used a multiple-goals perspective (Goldsmith, 2004 Goldsmith , D. J. ( 2004 ). Communicating social support . Cambridge , England : Cambridge University Press .[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Goldsmith, Gumminger, & Bute, 2006 Goldsmith , D. J. , Gumminger , K. L. , & Bute , J. J. ( 2006 ). Communication about lifestyle change between cardiac patients and their partners . In R. M. Dailey & B. A. LePoire (Eds.), Applied interpersonal communication matters: Family, health, and community relations (pp. 95 – 117 ). New York , NY : Peter Lang . [Google Scholar]) to examine the communicative dilemmas faced by vegetarians. This investigation suggests unique self-presentational challenges for vegetarians (e.g., being true to oneself yet fitting in; talking about vegetarianism without judging others) and identifies strategies that “healthy deviants”—people who violate society's norms in relatively healthy ways—can use to discuss their lifestyle choices. Findings offer practical implications for how communication can help people enact or sustain potentially stigmatized healthy lifestyles while maintaining their relationships.