Does Barbie make girls want to be thin? The effect of experimental exposure to images of dolls on the body image of 5- to 8-year-old girls.

Abstract

The ubiquitous Barbie doll was examined in the present study as a possible cause for young girls' body dissatisfaction. A total of 162 girls, from age 5 to age 8, were exposed to images of either Barbie dolls, Emme dolls (U.S. size 16), or no dolls (baseline control) and then completed assessments of body image. Girls exposed to Barbie reported lower body esteem and greater desire for a thinner body shape than girls in the other exposure conditions. However, this immediate negative impact of Barbie doll was no longer evident in the oldest girls. These findings imply that, even if dolls cease to function as aspirational role models for older girls, early exposure to dolls epitomizing an unrealistically thin body ideal may damage girls' body image, which would contribute to an increased risk of disordered eating and weight cycling.

Reflection of Barbie Culture on the games of children in the context of gender<p>Barbie kültürünün toplumsal cinsiyet bağlamında çocuk oyunlarına yansımaları

“…Dittmar, Halliwell and Ive (2006) revealed in their study concerning Barbie dolls' effect that this identification with dolls started at a very early age with child's gaining independence. They stated that these over identification would also effect these children's physical images in the future.…”

Self-concept in overweight adolescents

“…[45][46][47][48][49] The inadequate adjustment in sexual attitudes revealed by the overweight adolescent girls in our study could be a result of dissatisfaction with their bodies, resulting in feelings of unattractiveness in comparison with the cultural 'standards' imposed by Western society. 11,12,21,22,25 Adolescent girls are reported to be preoccupied with their body weight and body image. 11,12,14,16,25 They strive to achieve socially imposed 'ideal' body proportions, valuing themselves only in relation to their appearance.…”

“…Research has shown that adolescent girls are becoming increasingly preoccupied by their body image and burdened with the beauty ideal imposed by the media and society. [11][12][13]21,22 Body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls may imply development of negative self-perception and self-evaluation, which can result in development of adolescent depression and eating disorders. 12,13,[22][23][24] The need to accept a body image that is changing radically from that of childhood is actualised in the adolescent period.…”

Evidence that Social Comparison with the Thin Ideal Affects Implicit Self-Evaluation

“…To verify that this manipulation was successful we also assessed a motivational consequence of thin-ideal exposure: desire for thinness. Previous studies indicate that thin-ideal exposure increases women's desire for thinness (Dittmar, Halliwell, & Ive, 2006;Dittmar, Halliwell, & Stirling, 2009). Thus, we expected women in the thin-ideal condition, compared to the control condition, to report greater desire for a thinner body shape.…”