Interest

University of Manchester Investigates Academic Paper on Shotacon Manga (Updated)

Britain's Guardian newspaper reports that the University of Manchester is conducting an investigation into an academic paper by one of its PhD students about shotacon manga (manga with sexual depictions of young boys). The Guardian also reports that this paper has "provoked outrage from academics, an MP and others."

The 4,000 word paper, by Karl Andersson (pictured right), is called, I am not alone – we are all alone: Using masturbation as an ethnographic method in research on shota subculture in Japan."

According to the paper's abstract, Andersson "wanted to understand how my research participants experience sexual pleasure when reading shota... I therefore started reading the comics in the same way as my research participants had told me that they did it: while masturbating."

A spokesperson for the University of Manchester said the paper "has raised significant concerns and complaints which we are taking very seriously. We are currently undertaking a detailed investigation into all aspects of their work, the processes around it and other questions raised. It is very important that we look at the issues in-depth.”

Andersson has a University of Manchester profile page which describes him as "a PhD student researching how fans of subcultural comics in Japan experience desire and think about sexual identities, especially in regards to fictional and actual realities."

The profile page also says Andersson's PhD research is funded by the University's School of Arts, Languages and Cultures. However, in his I am not alone paper, Andersson says he “received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article”.

The journal which published Andersson's paper, Qualitative Research, has now tagged the paper with the following statement: "We began investigating the publication of the above paper on Aug 9, 2022, and are continuing our investigations. We will consider closely all guidance from the Committee of Publication Ethics and ensure that any actions taken comply with COPE standards."

While the paper was published on April 26, the Guardian says that it provoked outrage after it was circulated on Twitter this week. For example, the Guardian quotes the Conservative MP Neil O'Brien asking, "Why should hard-working taxpayers in my constituency have to pay for an academic to write about his experiences masturbating to Japanese porn?”

A spokesperson for the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children is also quoted: “That this research was published in a peer-reviewed journal is highly concerning, and it's right that the universities and publishers involved are investigating. All research, and research publication, should be subject to proportionate but rigorous ethical review, including robust safeguarding checks.”

Andersson's web page mentions that his 35-minute graduation film, Unreal Boys, was about three young men in Tokyo who "explore the limits of fantasy through the comic genre shota, which features fictional boys in sexual situations."

In addition, Andersson was previously the editor of a Swedish self-published magazine called Destroyer, published from 2006, which foregrounded images of young boys. There is a Swedish article from the Aftonbladet website about Andersson editing the magazine here. The magazine was also the subject of an Out article and another in Holland's Gay News magazine. A translated Tweet that Andersson made about Destroyer magazine has been retweeted here.

Following the end of Destroyer magazine, the Vice website interviewed Andersson in 2012 and reported that he was running a website that also foregrounded images of young boys. In the interview, Andersson defends his publications and talks about why he likes shotacon manga.

Update - More details added.