Children's Advertising And Gender Roles

Did you know?

• Children between the ages of 2 and 11 watch over 20,000 television ads per year--between 150 and 200 hours (Schneider, 1989).
• Gender bias favors boys over girls in ads. Girls are more likely to show an interest in boys' products than boys in girls' products (Hume, 1993).
• Advertisers favor using boys, even in commercials where gender neutral products are featured. Either boys and girls are used together or only boys are shown (Smith, 1994).

Children learn about their role in the world from a great many teachers. One of the most powerful teachers is the media, especially television. Television provides children with a wealth of opportunity to observe social behaviors and gender roles.  For example, how boys behave, how girls behave, what toys to play with, what to wear, games to play, what to eat, etc.

In studies of preschool children up to age 4 there was little regard on the child’s part as to the gender of the child in the advertising. Once children are settled into awareness of their own gender, they are more likely to identify with the model in the commercial and copy behaviors. Given the tremendous number of commercials aimed at children, any stereotyping of gender behaviors can have a tremendous impact on a child’s view of him/herself and what she or he is capable of.

Some typical gender role stereotypes that can be found in commercials aimed at children are:

• Commercials with boy models only were found to feature more away from home settings.
• Commercials with girl models only were more likely to be set in the home.
• Only boys were shown in anti-social behavior.
• Girls in commercials show only socially acceptable behavior.
• Boys are shown using more products and in different activities.

There has been a change from past commercials in that girls are engaged in active and passive activities. In the past, girls were shown only in passive activities.

The most common activity for both girls and boys in commercials is playing with toys or dolls. For girls the next most common activity in commercials is tied between physical activities and passive activities. For boys the second most common scenario is tied between physical activities and activities usually involving eating or drinking.

• Hume, S. "Fast food caught in the middle: But chains can lean to boy-oriented promos," Advertising Age, Feb. 8, 1993, pp. S12, S22.
• Schneider, C. Children’s television: How it works and its influence on children. Lincolnwood, IL: NTC Business Books, 1989.
• Smith, Lois J. "A content analysis of gender differences in children’s advertising," Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media. Spring, 1994, p. 323.