Transcript com242-stereotypes - COM242: Mass Media Effects
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M.E.D.I.A. S.T.E.R.E.O.T.Y.P.E.S.
Presented By: Ee Lin, Jasmine, Dionne, Andrea, Joanne & Sabrina
Media Cultivation •
Cultivation process cumulative, gradual changes in believes, attitudes and behavior
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A person social reality “cultivated” into the television view of
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(Source: http://www.ciadvertising.org/sa/spring_03/382j/kimberly/page2.html)
Media Cultivation
• Mainstreaming refers to what happen when people of different groups are exposed to the same media Ultimately, everyone is being similarly cultivated by media messages • Resonance media refers to what happens when a person’s real-life environment strongly resembles the environment depicted in the Receives “double-dose” of the same message, making the impact of media cultivation particularly likely Sparks, G. (1996). Media Effects Research. A Basic Overview. Cultivation Research. Pg151-153. George Gerbner.
Media Stereotypes (Application)
• Sex-Role Stereotypes • Body-Image • Racial Stereotype • Face-ism
Sex-Role Stereotypes
• Media Depiction: Men far outnumber women Men have higher status roles • Mainstreaming Men are more powerful and is more dominant in society • Resonance (Double-Dose Effect) Men are employed in most of the higher paying job
Body-Image
• Media Depiction Heavy emphasis on females to be overly-thin as compared to males Females with higher weight receives negative comments E.g.: The Agency • Mainstreaming Majority of females desire for thin bodies • Resonance (Double-dose effect) Friends places great importance on thin body image Society’s high values and regards for thin bodies
Racial Stereotype
• Media Depiction: More Blacks commit crimes Great difference in status for different race • Mainstreaming Certain races are more capable as compared to the others • Resonance (Double-dose effect) (e.g.) Most security guard positions are taken up by the Indians (e.g.) Most jobs require Mandarin speaking personnel
Face-ism
• Media Depiction: Focuses more on the faces of males Focuses more on the bodies of the females • Mainstreaming Great importance are placed on a female’s overall figure A male face is enough for people’s judgment • Resonance (Double-dose effect) Most fashion magazines published the entire body of females than focusing on her face More importance is placed on the face of a male than his body
Sex-Role Stereotypes in Children
• Children make gender-typed classification at an early age – Classify objects like toys, clothes, & household items – Learn from operant conditioning & observational learning • Basis of gender typing: the social environment – Children pay more attention to same-sex models (Bandura, 1962, 1969)
Sex-Role Stereotypes
• George Gerbner “women are much more likely to be depicted as victims of crime and violence than males.” – Females are relatively powerless as compared to the males in terms of the role they play on TV
Sex-Role Stereotypes
• Jennifer Herrett-Skjellum and Mike Allen: used meta-analysis to summarize consolidated data to examine sex-role stereotypes • Conclusion of study: – – – Men: more often on TV in higher status roles as characters represented as having more power than women
Sexual Revolution
• Some masculinist theorists speculate that prior to sexual revolution, the idealized male was expected to be powerful while the idealized female was expected to be modest
Sexual Revolution
• Modern Feminist: Ariel Levy – – contributing editor at New York magazine wrote Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture – warned that the current state of commercial sexuality has created a "Raunch Culture" Ariel Levy. (2007, March 16). In
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
. Retrieved 17:39, March 19, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ariel_Levy&oldid=115560408
Effects of Media Stereotypes
• Media messages influence the construction of reality • Experiment by Tannis Macbeth Williams & Meredith Kimball: - examined boys’ and girls’ job expectations over a 2 year period in the town of Notel (Canada) - no access to television initially - but later on access to one channel was implemented
The TV Experiment by Tannis Macbeth Williams & Meredith Kimball:
• 1 st Hypothesis: - children in Notel: fewer stereotypical attitudes - children in towns with TV access: more stereotypical attitudes
The TV Experiment by Tannis Macbeth Williams & Meredith Kimball:
• 6 th & 9 th grade children’s attitudes measured by filling Sex Role Differentiation Scale • Results: - children in Notel did not differentiate behaviors according to sex to compared to other towns
The TV Experiment by Tannis Macbeth Williams & Meredith Kimball:
• Results interpreted as evidence: - towns similar in every aspect except TV access • 2 nd Hypothesis: - children in Notel gained TV access after 1 st tested hypothesis
The TV Experiment by Tannis Macbeth Williams & Meredith Kimball:
• Results after 2 years: - pattern of results changed - showed dramatic increase in stereotypical attitudes • Interpreted as clear media effect - only major change was TV access
Media Portrayal: Women as Sex Objects
• Women stereotyped as sex objects - anything that seems demeaning to women becomes controversial - women always portrayed as victims of rape
Women as Sex Objects
• controversial D & G advertisement pulled.
- some said it depicts gang rape Dolce & Gabbana ‘gang-rape’ ad banned. (2007). Retrieved March 20, 2007, from http://www.creativematch.co.uk/viewnews/?93666
Women as Sex Objects
• Grace Quek aka Annabel Chong - starred in “The World's Biggest Gang Bang” - had record breaking sex with 251 men in 10 hours - wanted to shake up stereotypes about women being passive sex objects Williams, L. R. (1999).
Sex The Annabel Chong Story
. Retrieved March 26, 2007, from http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/493
Women as Eye Candy
• Just a Jade ‘Hua Ping’ - vase (pretty but empty).
- the Dance Floor co-host Jade Seah - 1 st runner up of Miss Singapore Universe - viewers unhappy with her “wooden and amateurish hosting” She’s a “hua ping” put there for ornamental reasons!
Tan, J. (2007, March 13). Just A Jade ‘Hua Ping’.
The New Paper
, pp.23.
Women as the Weaker Sex
• Women are supposed to be: - submissive - emotionally weak - home nurturing • Man are supposed to be: - authoritarian - emotionally strong (men don’t shed tears!) - career driven
Women as the Weaker Sex
• My Sassy Girl - 2001 Korean movie partially based on true story.
- girl is fiery, violent, and calls the shots - boy is gentle,unassuming, and lets girl call the shots - success contributed to refreshing change in gender role reversal - started a new trend in the industry
Examples of Stereotypes
• Females stuck in inferior roles compared to males in the media • Females are always the: - the nurse - the librarian - the teacher - the secretary • Males are always the: - the policeman - the fireman - the boss - the doctor
Examples of Stereotypes
• Do you find yourself committing this mistake often?
- When talking about doctors, we say ‘he', even if we don't know that the doctor is a man. - We'll always ask, “So what did he say?" even though the doctor could be a woman • If you do, you are experiencing an effect of a stereotype
Does TV Influence Attitudes?
• Science cannot explain everything • It’s not for sure that the impact of media messages causes disparity • But they do have a contribution in people developing stereotypical attitudes
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Overview &
• • How female bodies are represented The impact of these representations
Introduction
• Sociocultural factors (i.e. role of the media) - received the most attention as a possible contributor to body image disturbance & eating dysfunctions (Fallon, 1990; Heinberg, 1996) Thompson, J.K. & Heinberg, L.J. (1999). The media’s influence on body image disturbance and eating disorders: we’ve reviled them, now can we rehabilitate them?
Journal of Social Issues
Vol.55 (2), 339-353.
Television
Television
• TV on > 7 hrs per day (Harris, 1994) • Female TV characters thinner than average American woman • < 10% overweight (Gonzalez-Lavin & Smolak, 1995; Heinberg, 1996)
Media Images of Thin Bodies & Effects on Body Image Research by Gregory Fouts & • Kimberley Burggraf 18 sitcoms from prime-time TV Findings: 1) Females in these programs were far more likely to be judged as being “below average” in weight 2) The higher the weight, the more negative comments made - laugh tracks
Media Images of Thin Bodies & Effects on Body Image Possible Media Effects: Social problem Body dissatisfaction / Body-image disturbance Social Comparison Life-threatening eating disorders (eg. anorexia nervosa, bulimia)
Magazines
• Probably more than any other form of media – advocates & promoters of the desirability of unrealistic ideal (Wolf, 1990)
Magazines
• 83% teenage girls – 4.3 hrs a week reading magazines (Levine & Smolak, 1996) • 70% who read magazines endorse them as an important source of beauty & fitness information
Magazines
• Adolescent girls endorsed ideal as the models found in fashion magazines aimed at teenage girls (Nichter & Nichter, 1991) • Ideal: 5’7”, 100 lbs, (BMI=<16), long blond hair, blue eyes
Research by Eric Stice & Heather Shaw
• 157 female college students to view pictures in magazines that contained thin, average or no models Findings: 1) Students who viewed thin models – stress, shame, guilt, depression, insecurity 2) High levels of body dissatisfaction; symptoms associated with bulimia
Magazines
• • • Photographic techniques – blur realistic nature of media images Leading consumers to believe the models the viewers see through the illusions techniques create are realistic representations of actual people rather Carefully manipulated, artificially developed images (Stormer & Thompson, 1995, 1998)
TV Commercials
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Research by Duane Hargreaves & Marika Tiggemann
Cumulative effect of media exposure to ideal body types 80 random adolescents 20 commercials – “female thin ideals”, 20 commercials – no physical appearance
Research by Duane Hargreaves & Marika Tiggemann
Findings: 1) Exposure to the thin body ideals => small changes in body dissatisfaction 2) Girls => > body dissatisfaction, > drive for thinness 3) Boys > < body dissatisfaction, > drive for thinness ** Evidence for cumulative media effects: initial media effect continued to produce changes in body image that were detectable 2 years later
Research by Daniel Agliata & Stacey Tantleff-Dunn
• 158 males • Neutral TV commercials / with male ideal body images • Findings: Group that watched ideal body images => significantly > levels of depression & muscle dissatisfaction
300 “All the d?*ks in the show had at least a six pec. If I had a body like that I would be walking around in my underwear too, man! F#$%!” (Fernandez, M., 2007)
On the Runway
• • • Sept 2006 – Madrid Fashion Week bannes models with BMI <18 Uruyguayan model sisters died of malnutrition Underweight models still walk the runways of shows in London & Paris (Source: The Straits Times, 26 Mar 2007)
Singapore Fashion Festival
• Average BMI of 3 female models: 16 (Healthy: 18.5 - 22.9) • 2 male models : healthy BMI (23 – 27.5) • Sheila Sim: “There is added pressure for me to be thin. There are so few spots for Asians in a show, I have to be at least as thin as the other non-Asian girls.” (Source: The Straits Times, 26 Mar 2007) http://www.newfaces.com/magazine/imagesx/skinny.jpeg
Research Summary
• • • • Media images of females are stereotypical in that they tend to represent females with idealized, overly thin bodies Negative effects on both males & females Females internalize ideal image; strive to attain it despite eating disorders Males reinforce ideal image => create additional social pressure on females
“I WANT a FAMOUS FACE” http://www.mtv.com/onair/i_want_a_famous_face/pic_index_main.jpg
What can be done?
• Critical media consumption Sensitive to media stereotypes & possible effects of media exposure on attitudes & behavior • School curricula designed to expose sexual stereotypes in media to reduce extent to which young girls embrace idealized, overly thin body standard
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TEREOTYPES Problems related to the use of stereotypes: – – often leads to misunderstanding hurt feelings Reasons behind the problems: – Representation of groups are either • • • untrue generalizations, unflattering generalizations, or truthful generalizations about a group which are untrue of any given member of a group
Racial Stereotypes
• • • Still present in today’s television dramas, sitcoms, and movies Can also be known as Ethnic stereotype – a generalized representation of an ethnic group, composed of what are thought to be typical characteristics of members of the group Use of such stereotypes is usually demeaning even when the characteristics might be considered positive because it tends to discount the importance and uniqueness of the individual (“Ethnic stereotype”, 2007) Ethnic stereotype. (2007) From In: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved March 9, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ethnic_stereotype&oldid=118090118
Frito-Lay Example
• Example ~ Frito-Lay Company – Used cartoon character to convey the message that Fritos corn chips – – are delicious Character was known as “Frito-bandito” Because of his appearance and Mexican accent, he as clearly identified as a Mexican – The Mexican community protested because • • The image of Frito-bandito depicts an undesirable stereotype Image associates the ethnic group with crime and thievery
Study: Overrepresentation of African American • Research Study by Travis Dixon and Daniel Linz – Content study designed to reveal information about how TV newscasts in major U.S. city represented African Americans and Latinos in stories about crime – Sample: • • 116 news broadcasts, Including examples from virtually every news program broadcast in the Los Angeles area
Results
• Intergroup comparison – Comparison of the percentage of one group to the percentage of another group – Found that the news coverage in their sample included 129 perpetrators of criminal offenses • • 69 were Black perpetrators 40 were White perpetrators
Results
• Interrole comparison – Used to compare the distribution of the same group of people according to particular roles – Coded the race of the police officers depicted in the news as well as that of the perpetrators • 87 Blacks depicted in their sample of news – 69 appeared as perpetrators of crime – 18 appeared as officers • 133 Whites depicted in their sample of news – 40 appeared as perpetrators – 93 appeared as officers
Results
• Interreality comparison – Comparing the percentages of Blacks, Whites, and Latinos who appeared in TV crime stories with the percentages that showed up in actual crime statistics – Actual crime data • • • 21% Blacks accounted for criminal arrests 28% Whites accounted for criminal arrests 47% Latinos accounted for criminal arrests – Data shown on TV newscasts • • • 37% of TV news perpetrators were Blacks 21% of TV news perpetrators were Whites 29% of TV news perpetrators were Latinos
Local Context
• In a report on IPS Research Forum on Ethnic Relations in Singapore, showed how the media representation of ethnicity is like with regards to local television and film – Stereotypes of the following ethnic categories: • Westernized, English-educated Chinese: – Bad attitude to Mandarin and Chinese culture – Masculinity - feminine and homosexual, excessively macho, rational – Femininity - calculative and career-minded • Chinese-educated Singlish-speaking: – Singaporean identity – Class (heartland) identity – Chinese identity
Local Context
• • Chinese-educated dialect-speaking: – Obsessed with money – – – Crude, insensitive, and sleazy Superstitious, hypocritical and cruel Violent and criminal Malays – – – Buffoonery Masculinity - irrational and violent Femininity - submissive, objectified and instrumental
Local Context
• • • Indians – Comic effect – absurdity, buffoonery – Fear – authority, violence and perversion Eurasians – Cool, sexually attractive, but shallow, unintelligent, inauthentic – Perverse Westerners – Confrontational and anti-authority, rational and disrespectful – Male chauvinist, opinionated – Unfair competition from second-rate foreign talent Tan, K. P. (2002, October 24) "Ethnic representation on local film and television". Institute of Policy Studies Research Forum on Ethnic Relations in Singapore. Retrieved March 9, 2007, from www.ips.org.sg/reports/erp_2002/rp_erpforumreport.pdf
Rise of Pan-Asians
• Modeling agencies
Rise of Pan-Asians
Pan-Asian models are wanted in almost every post
Local Brands but Non Local Models
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Is Eliminating Racial Stereotypes Possible?
Racial stereotypes are unfair and degrading to a certain extent It is unrealistic to eliminate all ethnic stereotypes because – Stereotypes are resilient and efficient images that help us to give order to a complex world – In film and television programs, audiences connect more readily with characters and situations that are familiar and recognizable – Many successful comedies are very dependent upon stereotypes
Minimizing Racial Stereotypes
• How to minimize racial stereotypes: – eliminate negative stereotypes and promote positive ones (though it might be quite difficult) • through positive social transformations, e.g. role modeling – Creating alternative images and messages • By creating new, more diverse, complex, and empowering representations
FACE-ISM AN INTRIGUING & UNDER-STUDIED MEDIA DEPICTION What is the Face-ism Effect?
• • Spark’s Definition: Tendency to represent people in terms of their face or head as opposed to their body Characterized into 2 aspects (Costa & Bitti, 2000) – Greater number of close-up shots, in comparison to distance shots that can be found in the media, for certain categories – Attribution of positive qualities to people photographed in close shots instead of whole figure
Face-ism Index
• • Face-ism Index: – ratio of 2 linear measurements – Numerator: distance (mm) from top of head to lowest point of the chin – Denominator: distance (mm) from top of head to lowest visible part of the body Averages: – Male: 0.65
– Female: 0.45 (30% lesser than males)
Research on Face-ism: Five Studies of Sex Differences in Facial Prominence
• • • By Archer, D., Iritani, B., Kimes, D. D., & Barrios, M. (1983) Purpose of Study: Extent to which face-ism might be present in private and public representations Drawings of college students requested from both male and female – Finding: Male images have higher face-ism ratios
Face-ism: Five Studies of Sex Differences in Facial Prominence
• • Hypothesis: Images reflect a real biological difference where male heads are larger than females • Not supported Manipulation of face-ism ratios for photos of the same individual – Finding: People who were high on facial prominence in photos are perceived more intelligent, more ambitious, better-looking
Faces in the News: Gender Comparisons of Magazine Photographs
• By Sparks, G.G., & Fehlner, C.L. (1986) • Presidential Campaign Photos – Face-ism ratios of Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Walter Mondale, Geraldine Ferraro equivalent • But in magazines, face-ism effect was found – Males have higher levels of facial prominence
Why Face-ism Ratios are the Same for Presidential Candidates?
• • Presented in photos that were framed identically and appeared as offsetting, competing representations In politics at the national level, press is constrained to represent candidates in a photographically similar manner, regardless of gender
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Members of Parliament Females
Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon Holland-Bukit Timah GRC Face-ism Ratio: 37/50 = 0.74
Mrs Josephine Teo Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC Face-ism Ratio: 36/50 = 0.72
(Source: http://www.parliament.gov.sg/AboutUs/Org-MP currentMP.htm)
Members of Parliament Males
Dr Lee Boon Yang Jalan Besar GRC Face-ism Ratio: 34 / 47 = 0.72
Dr Vivian Balakrishnan Holland-Bukit Timah GRC Face-ism Ratio: 37/47 = 0.79
(Source: http://www.parliament.gov.sg/AboutUs/Org-MP-currentMP.htm)
Face-ism in Singapore’s Political Scene
• Conclusion Proven that face-ism does not occur in Singapore’s Political Scene
Interesting Aspect of Face-ism Effect
• High Facial Prominence = More positive – Head is where the brain is; head, the center of an individual’s intelligence • Have negative implications for evaluation of women
Awaiting Study
• Heavy media consumers who spend more time processing faces that are systematically different according to the sex-biased face-ism effect might more likely to show this effect in their own drawings
Race Differences in Face-ism: Does Facial Prominence imply Dominance?
• By Zuckerman, M., & Kieffer, S.C. (1994) • Images of Black would have lower facial prominence than images of whites • People represented in photos with higher facial prominence were perceived as being more dominant