midterm 2

Question 1

Define sexual media content

Answer 1

sexual media = any representation of sex or sexual themes

• sexual behaviour: explicit sexual behaviour broadly defined (eg. oral sex)
• suggestions of sexual behaviour: intercourse implied → two characters walking into bedroom and closing the door
• sexual talk: talking about engaging in sexual behaviour, sex crimes, first times

Question 2

Discuss what sexual content looks like in the media youth consume

Answer 2

• TV = 70-80% (talk abt sex more than depictions)
• movies: 80% (65% of g-rated) → amounts are decreasing
• music: 40% lyrics and 60-80% of music videos

Question 3

Consider what concerns have been raised in response to youth consumption of sexual media

Answer 3

sexual risk and responsibility

1. DOES NOT contain messages about risks and responsibilities or sexual behaviour
   → few depictions of risk and sexual precaution (eg. using condoms)
2. consequences portrayed: emotional/social > physical consequences
3. negative consequences: females > males | straight > LGBTQ
   → females lose their friends; men become more popular

heterosexual script

• men pursue sex : sex is a defining aspect of masculinity
• women are pursued : women depicted as sex objects | “good girls” seeking commitment rather than sex

Question 4

Impacts of sexual media (2)

Answer 4

sexual socialization

• DEF : process by which our sexual knowledge, values, attitudes and behaviours develop
• argues that sexual development is influenced by more than biology (parents, peers, culture and media)
• third person effect: teens tend to think that media impacts the development of others more than themselves

sexualization

• DEF : to make something more sexual
• a person’s value comes from their sexual appeal/behaviours
• a person is held to a standard that equates attractiveness == sexy
• sexual objectification = person is made into a “thing” for sexual use of others (rather than being an agent who guides their own decisions)
• sexuality is inappropriately imposed upon someone

Question 5

Describe and contrast theories on how and why sexual media might impact consumers (x4)

Answer 5

1. social cognition theory: media consumers observe and model sexual behaviour

• learn which behaviours are appropriate (rewarded vs punished)
• more likely to model: (1) individuals like them (2) individuals with positive traits

2. cultivation theory: long-term repeated consumption of media depictions of sexual themes shape attitudes and beliefs

• influenced by amount of consumption
• cultivates idea that “most teens are having sex”

3. sexual scripts theory: sexuality and sexual behaviour is determined by scripts used to organize and understand sexual encounters
   → media depicts stereotyped patterns of expectations
   → we use scripts from media to guide our behaviour
4. triad interaction

• media presents cultural scenarios (eg. stereotypical patterns of how to act on first date, kiss, be intimate)
• interpersonal scripts = scripts for behaviours with others (eg. must wait for a man to initiate sexual advances)
• intraspsychic scripts = personal fantasies/desires

5. media practice model: media users are active participants!

• media user plays an active role in what effect media has [similar to uses and gratifications theory]
• individual’s (1) sense of self (2) identity (3) lived experiences contribute

stages:
1. identity (motivates)
2. selection (focus attention)
3. interactions (interpret)
4. application (incorporation/resistence)

Question 6

Summarize the research on how consuming sexual media content may impact sexual cognitions, arousal, and sexual behaviour in youth. (general)

Answer 6

1. sexual cognitions

• consuming MORE sexual media
• belief that more friends engage in sexual behaviour
• more permissiveness towards sex (eg. positive attitudes towards sex outside of committed relationships)
• expect fewer negative consequences associated with sex
• women as sex objects

positive impact: sexual media as a source of education

STUDY: 12-17 yo viewers of friends
1. 10% learns about condoms
2. 10% talked with an adult about condom effectiveness
3. viewers more likely than non-viewers to accurately rate condoms as 95-100% effective

2. sexual behaviour

• consuming MORE sexual media → MORE sexual behaviours
• greater likelihood of having engaged in sexual behaviour
• more sexual partners
• starting sexual behaviour at earlier age

Question 7

Summarize the research on how consuming sexual media content may impact sexual cognitions, arousal, and sexual behaviour in youth. (context of brown study)

Answer 7

method:

• longitudinal research can better examine whether: sexual media consumption → (predicts) → sexual behaviour
• removes issue of directionality

participants: 7th and 8th graders, black and white

measures:

• IV: sexual media diet: TV, music, movies, magazines over 2 years
• DV: sexual behaviour: (1) pre-coital sex behaviours; kissing, making out, etc (2) age at first sexual intercourse

results

• white: HIGH SMD → more likely to say they had sex at earlier age
• black: amount of media consumption did not predict difference in age of first sexual behaviour

interpretation

1. representation and identification
2. black PS may already have higher baseline sex activity so amount of media consumption didn’t affect this

• black adolescence may have already formed and begun acting upon expectations of sexual behaviour
• black youth were more sexually experienced than whites
• peer group norms are especially powerful for urban black males

limitations

1. adolescents living in other parts of the country attend to different pattern of media
2. sample was drawn from public middle schools → students in the same school may be more similar to each other
3. alternative explanations were not considered (eg. exposure to averse events in early childhood, pubertal status)
4. did not analyze internet as potential source of sexual information
5. combined SMD measure obscures effect of individual media in the diet

Question 8

Discuss the limitations of this research (brown et al)

Answer 8

• correlational studies no information about causation
• definitions/measurement: def and measures of sexual media, sexual media consumption, sexual behaviour may vary
• assumptions: assume sex as negative
  → association between media and risky sex is much less consistent
  → focus on sexual risks not sexual satisfaction, pleasure, or agency
• generalizability: lack of diversity of race, culture, sexual orientation, gender identity representation in sexual media

Question 9

Describe factors that have been shown to influence the impact of sexual media content on youth

Answer 9

1. race: SMC has less or no impact on sexual behaviour for black vs white youth
2. age: more of an impact on sexual behaviour in early adolescence > late adolescence or young adulthood
3. gender: mixed findings

Question 10

Discuss the representation of LGBTQ+ individuals in media

Answer 10

TV

• historically very little rep
• has been generally increasing (though proportion of queer characters have decreased in past two years)
• increasing in kid-directed programs

magazines: heterosexuality displayed as the standard

TRENDS

1. before

• LGBT individuals portrayed as sexless/sex-focused
• portrayals are stereotyped and one-dimensional; straight characters are nuanced
  → humor
  → defined by sexual orientation, coming out

2. now

• TV shows featuring LGBT characters → similar amounts of sexual talk and sexual behaviours with straight roles
• portrayals are expanding
  → gay-lesbian media: media designed and marketed specifically LGBTQ+ audiences

Question 11

Consider the impacts of LGBTQ+ media portrayals to both LGBTQ and straight viewers

Answer 11

1. queer consumers

• often report getting information about sex and sexuality from media: 70% of queer adults report media as primary source of gathering info abt sexuality
• identify with media representations
• validating portrayals described as source of support: (1) increases commitment to sexual ID (2) associated with improved well-being
• demeaning portrayals described described as reinforcing heteronormative standards

2. straight consumers

RESEARCH

• more viewing → to more accepting views of same-sex relationships
• more exposure = more accepting (greater increases when previously had LOW face2face contact with queer individuals)
• when face2face contact was high, already had higher endorsement of gay equality, still showed increases but smaller

1. intergroup contact theory
   - stereotyping and discrimination can be reduced when individuals from different social groups have contact
   - more time spent with other group (ie. more intergroup contact) == reduced stereotype

study: watching more shows with trans character = fewer stereotypes about trans people

2. parasocial contact hypothesis

• media consumers can form relationships with media characters
• reduces stereotyping and discrimination
• studies focus on young adults → little is known about impact on children and adolescents
• need more research on how ethnicity, gender, gender identity, might matter

Question 12

Define pornography/sexually explicit media AND consider why SEM may have different effects on consumers than non-explicit sexual media

Answer 12

definition

• sexual explicit media = direct depictions of sexual activities
  1. genitals are unconcealed
  2. penetration (oral, vaginal, anal) may be visible
  3. intended to arouse

exposure

• sizeable proportion of youth access/exposure to porn
• huge range of prevalence across studies (7-98%)
• intentional (7-59%) vs unintentional (19-84%) exposure

factors exposure to SEM is more prevalent for:

1. men/boys
2. pubertally more advanced (eg. boys with voice change, girls with period)
3. individuals high in sensation seeking
4. weak or troubled family relationships

Question 13

Debate the impacts of pornography on youth consumers: consider both potential negative and positive effects

Answer 13

negatives

• more permissive sexual attitudes
• gender stereotyped sexual beliefs
• greater likelihood of sexual behaviour, casual sex
• mixed evidence : risky sex, sexual dysfunction
• sexual aggression (but perhaps just violent porn)
• sexual victimization (particularly for girls)

positives

• recognizing/confirming sexual identity
• porn as a source of information about sex (sex education)
• mixed evidence on sexual satisfaction:

1. more porn linked with sexual experience but more correlated for queer > straight
2. stronger association when watching with partner than alone

Question 14

Discuss the different mechanisms of porn addiction

Answer 14

background

• no official definition or diagnosis
• different researchers use different criterion to study porn addiction
• mixed data

individual report feeling addicted to porn (11% of men ; 3% of women)

• feeling out of control or compulsive in their use
• problematic use is associated with negative consequences (eg. relationship challenges, distress)

mechanisms
does porn addiction share similar mechanisms with other dependencies?

• high use NOT always found to be compulsive/problematic (not always a relationship between amount of porn watched and relationship issues/distress)
• mixed data on neural activity: some studies found heightened brain activation to porn for those who report compulsive use, other studies don’t
• mixed data on tolerance: don’t always show increased need for more/more extreme content over time

different pathways individual differences → dysregulation in porn use → perceived porn addiction → distress (pathway typical in other dependencies)

• dysregulation: difficulty controlling behaviour
• individual differences: ind dif in executive control, inhibition, regulation

moral disapproval of porn/religion → moral incongruence → perceived porn addition → distress

• disapproval or religion creates dissonance even when sexual satisfaction is attained
• feeling of incongruence leads to distress and perceived addiction to porn

Question 15

Discuss the use of pornography by youth a source of learning about sex (rothman paper)

Answer 15

rothman et al looked at prevalence of pornography for information about how to have sex

• formal sex education is inconsistent and often poor
• questions and concerns have been raised about the possibility of youth turning to pornography to learn about sex

RQ: do youth commonly view porn as a helpful source of information?

participants: 14-17 yo (adolescents) and 18-24 yo (young adults

task: thinking about the past year, where have you learned the most helpful information about how to have sex

results

• majority of teens received NO helpful information about sex (~ 40% for both genders)
• those who were male, black, middle to high income, previously masterbated : more likely to say porn
• girls and bisexual : least likely to say porn

main results:

• adolescents: parents and friends (adolescents have not yet had sexual intercourse, parents stress abstinence)
• young adults: partners, media, pornography (highest frequency)
• black and hispanic youth were more likely to say that their parents were the most helpful source
• when adolescents had helpful conversations with parents about sex recently, less likely to report porn as a helpful source

implications

• porn is not created to be instructional
• parents should normalize having conversations about sex with their children regularly
• have better education but if can’t we need to find better alternatives for pornography

limitations

1. pornography was not defined → validity problem
2. “information about how to have sex” could have been interpreted differently

Question 16

Limitations and considerations of rothman paper

Answer 16

• methodological limitations
• studies often conflicting → depends on definition of SEM and methodologies used
• differences across pornography (some are violent/non violent; feminist lens?)
• differences across individuals
• biases → researchers coming from own positionality
  
  • stigam in porn, lack of cross cultural studies, heteronormativity/cisnormativity, selection bias of participants who sign up/parents who provide consent

Question 17

Define body image, describe body image dissatisfaction in youth and adolescents

Answer 17

body image = individual’s perceptions and evaluations of their body (especially appearance-based)

dissatisfaction:

12-18 or adolescence is the time period in development when concerns about body image are heightened

• physical changes (puberty)
• emphasis on peers, social status
• increase self-focus (ie. imaginary audience → everyone is looking at me)

6 yo show evidence of body dissatisfaction: from childhood onwards, body dissatisfaction increases

• boys become increasing dissatisfied that they are too thin
• girls become increasing dissatisfied that they are too fat

disordered eating

• body image → disrupt relationships, (men) increased risk of steroid use, (women) vanity-driven spending, self-esteem and mental health
• risk factor → disordered eating → life expectancy and health

Question 18

Discuss how body ideals are represented in media

Answer 18

general

• women: thin body ideal (eg. disney princesses; fat characters are villains)
• men: muscular body ideal

print media

• average magazine model is thinner than 98% of NAm women → trending more towards average weight now

magazine

• articles convey messages about thin ideal → 15% of headlines focused on diet and body image

screen media

• what we see on TV cultivates images of bodies that aren’t representative of real life
• overrepresentation of thinness
• underrepresentation of fatness

fatness as negative

• fat characters more likely to be insulted / insult followed by laughter
• fat characters depicted with: (1) fewer romances (2) fewer friends (3) having less sex (4) fewer leadership roles

children screen media

• thinner characters are more likely to display positive characteristics (2004-2016)
• dichotomy of good/bad AND thin/fat

video games

1. female characters depicted as thin with large breasts (unrealistic size/voluptuous)
2. male characters depicted as hypermuscularized (more so in children’s games)

Question 19

Summarize and critique research on the impacts of traditional media on body image

Answer 19

RQ: how do idealized media images impact adolescent body image

PS: grade 8-12 teens

conditions:

1. thin ideal or muscular ideal commercial
2. non-appearance focused commercial

DV: how dissatisfied are you with your current appearance

results (traditional media)

• girls more were significantly more dissatisfied with their body when watching thin ideal vs control
• no sig diff for boys between the two groups
• participants higher on appearance investment reported greater appearance comparison (for both boys and girls)

NOTE: with social media, we see similar effects between boys and girls unlike with traditional media)

LIMITATIONS

1. content of experimental stimuli: not able to perfectly match thin and muscular ideal tapes; thin ideal is stronger/more prevalent than muscular ideal
2. many boys feel uncomfortable expressing feelings of dissatisfaction about their appearance

explanation for gender differences

• difference in what self-concept/self-esteem is based on across genders (girls may derive from appearances vs men from athletics)
• different ages in which boys/girls are more impacted by idealized media (different stage of puberty)
• difference in media representations of idealized bodies across genders
• differences in baseline self-esteem (girls in adolescence tend to have lower SE than boys)
• challenges in assessing body image in boys (the stereotype of having to hide emotions)

becker (2002)

• natural experiment: how did the arrival of Western TV impact body image
• PS: Fijian teenage girls before and after 3 years of western TV

results:

• • increase in disorder eating and dieting
• 77% reported that TV influenced their body image
• idea that thinness = success

tiggeman (2005)

• correlational data
• some but not all studies show correlation between overall media consumption and body dissatisfaction

content matters: more soap opera viewing was predictive of more body dissatisfaction

• effect may depend on why we are consuming social media (is it for social learning?)

meta analyses: small but significant links between media and body dissatisfaction

• effect size: r = 0.08-0.30
• media input can predict 0.5-6% of variance in body image

issues/limitations

• research is focused on cisgender individuals and on gender as a dichotomy
• lack of research on media effects for body image in non-binary and transgender individuals

1. method is less representative of real-world conditions
2. participants may be aware of study objectives (demand characteristics)

Question 20

Describe and discuss factors that influence the impacts of media on youth body image: gender, pre-existing body image concerns, race/ethnicity, and nature of the media

Answer 20

1. gender: stronger effect for girls than boys
2. pre-existing body dissatisfaction: pre-existing body dissatisfaction → larger impact of media on body image
3. race/ethnicity more influence of same-race characters

• dentification matters (more influenced by idealized forms of same-race characters)

study
different impacts between individuals of different races and or by characters of different races

• white woman + white characters = negative body image
• black women + black characters = positive body image
• there tends to be a more positive range of black bodies represented

age:

• less effect in adults vs adolescents/young adults
• nature of media more impact for non-commercial than commercial content
• commercial: trying to SELL something, people less likely to internalize, tune out or have our guards up against ads
• non-commercial: person has a storyline, they are a real person, something deeper than just a body (more likely to relate/identify/internalize)

Question 21

Contrast and describe theories on how media impacts body image: social comparison, internalization of the thin ideal, tripartite theory, and objectification theory

Answer 21

1. social comparison theory:

• we compare ourselves to others (part of human nature)
• self-evaluation is relative to our evaluation of others

theory: we will also evaluate ourselves relative to those seen in media

• upward: compare to someone seen as better (feel worse abt self)
• downward: compare to someone seen as worse (feel better abt self)

upward comparison to a peer is more impactful because they are tangible and relevant

internalization of thin ideals

• society’s message: thin = better ; muscular = better
• message is transmitted via media
• we internalize this message
• failure to live up to this standard can lead to greater body dissatisfaction

tripartite theory

• 3 main sources of information: media + family + peers
• info from all 3 sources are used to make (1) comparisons (2) internalizations

both comparison and internalization are true and together contribute to body dissatisfaction

objectification theory

• society (particularly western society) presents bodies as objects → lacks agency/self-determination
• sexual objectification
• bodies are viewed from observer’s perspective
• these ideas are presented in media messages

self-objectification = individual comes to adopt the perspective that value is based on physical appearance

all bodies can be objectified but more common for:

1. women/girls
2. racialized individuals
3. queer individiauls
4. intersection of these and other marginalized identities

Question 22

Consider why traditional media and social media may have differing effects on body image

Answer 22

• users are creators as well as recipients
• users can actively engage with content
• content comers from peers as well as mass media sources
• feels more relatable, more real, more attainable
• accessibility/availability → can access anywhere, anytime
• personalized content
• mix of commercial and non-commercial content
• more democratic and more diverse depictions

Question 23

Describe the relationship between social media and body image, identify factors that have been shown to impact this relationship

Answer 23

• most research suggests overall small link between social media use and body dissatisfaction (tween girls using fb has lower body esteem than non-users)

factors

1. age: younger adolescents most negatively impacted
2. gender: similar relationship between social media and body image present in women and men
3. different platforms: most consistent patterns of body dissatisfaction from image-based platforms
4. different types of activities: selfies, editing photos, feedback (like, comments, etc)

• increased self-objectification

5. who/what you view

• some evidence of greater effects from non-celebrity vs celebrity accounts → aligns with how social comparison is stronger for peers

positive relationship

1. parodies of thin-ideal media
2. instagram vs reality posts

body positive content

• generally linked with MORE body satisfaction (but this still centres the focus on bodies/appearances)
• the relationship might be complicated

Question 24

Discuss research on the link between TikTok and body image, consider the role of social comparison (joiner paper)

Answer 24

RQ: how do different types of TikTok dance challenge videos have affect on body satisfaction in young women

IV
- watched TikTok dance videos featuring: (1) thin dancers (2) large dancers (3) control condition

participants: 18-25 years

results
body satisfaction measure:

• animal condition: no impact
• large dancer: increase in body satisfaction
• thin dancer: small effect of less satisfaction

comparative attractiveness (explained mechanism of social comparison)

• thin dancer: larger percentage of participants felt worse about own attractiveness (upward comparison)
• large dancer: larger proportion of participants felt better about own attractiveness (downward comparison)

others

• internalization of thin ideal did moderate the relationship
• state appearance comparison did NOT moderate the effect of video type on body dissatisfaction

limitations

1. participants were all women aged 16-25
2. 3/4 participants were caucasian
3. effect size was small
4. large dancers were rated all less attractive → findings could be caused by difference in attractiveness rather than body size
5. short duration of the study
6. series of videos participants watched did not reflect the videos users watch in their feed → algorithm would make each feed unique
7. first two studies collected data during COVID but not the third one

Question 25

Debate what can be done to buffer negative impacts of media on body image

Answer 25

1. changes to media: disclaimer labels

• required in UK, France, Israel, Norway for images that are digitally distorted
• research: no effect of disclaimers on reducing body dissatisfaction
• may increase social comparison

2. changes to consume: media literacy programs

• capacity to critically evaluate media messages
• students enrolled in media literacy programs show: (1) less internalization of thin ideal (2) less drive for thinness (3) more body satisfaction

Question 26

understanding of gender over developmental period

Answer 26

• children identify gender by age 2 ; understanding of gender stereotypes (gST) begin around the same age
• 5-7 : the peak of gender stereotypes in middle childhood
• 7-9 : deeper understanding of gender as internal and stable over time (not judging purely based on appearance)
• children learn understanding of gender from many sources: parents, friends, teachers, media

Question 27

Summarize how gender is commonly depicted within media

Answer 27

books picture books

• historically: heavily stereotyped (boys are doctors ; girls are nurses)
• these historical books still stay in circulation, passed on through generations
• current: still contain stereotypes (eg. damsel in distress; men are heroes) AND contain less representation of girls/women (1 female : 1.5 male character)

books for older children

• also use stereotyped representations
• benevolent sexism = women in traditional roles are idealized, seen as delicate and overly romantic (we need women for a beautiful world)

textbooks

• sex and gender essentialism : conveys a dichotomy of gender (only either male or female) and implies certain characteristics associated with each gender
  TV and movies quantity of representation
• male characters outnumber female characters (1 female : 2.5 male character)

characteristics of representation

• characters portrayed in stereotyped ways
• women = more fearful, more often at home, family-oriented, better liked, polite, focus on appearance/sexual appeal
• men = more physical/verbally aggressive, more often working, in STEM, incompetent at home and family, pursue and prioritize sex

video games

• female representation increased but (males > females)
• playable characters that are female: 13% (2005) → 22% (2017)
• female characters are more likely to be presented as bystanders or needing to be rescued

online media

• prevalent gender biases in images → online images amplify gender biases
• gender bias is more prevalent for online images for both male and female-typed social categories
• searching “scientist” would more likely show a depiction or a male scientist
• underrepresentation of women is strong in online images than in US census than in US census data on occupations

Question 28

Consider theories of media effects that help to explain the effects from media portrayals of race/gender stereotypes

Answer 28

1. cultivation theory: over time exposure to media content shifts our understanding of reality
2. social cognitive theory: observe media models to learn normative behaviour/valued behaviour
   - influenced by: (1) identification (2) rewards/punishment (3) realism

Question 29

Describe research findings on the impact of media on beliefs about gender, discuss how effects may vary depending on the media portrayal

Answer 29

amount

• more TV → more endorsement of traditional gST
• varies across genre: stronger for soap opera, talk shows and less for prime time drama
  content exposure to stereotyped content → increased gST (e.g TV or video games)

STUDY
- PS: 15-20 years
- IV: (1) violent and sexist video game (2) violent (3) non-violent/sexist
- DV: masculine beliefs: (1) boys should be encouraged to find a means to demonstrating physical prowess (2) it’s ok for a guy to use all means possible to convince a girl to have sex
- results: more sexist games → more masculine belief → less empathy for female violence victims

masculine beliefs are moderated by (1) identification with characters (2) perceived realism

• for violent-sexist games, more masculine beliefs with more identification with character
• identification didn’t matter when games were violent-only or neutral

similar findings with younger children

• PS: grade 5 boys and girls
• IV: watched videos with (1) gender stereotypes — boys are better at math (2) neutral video about learning math
• DV: endorsement of stereotype

results:

• for both boys and girls, viewing stereotyped content → more endorsement of ST content
  gendered behaviour toy and play behaviour
• children exposed to gender-stereotyped media were more likely to (1) judge toys as gendered (2) same-gendered playmates
• engagement with “princess culture” media predicts female gender-stereotyped behaviour

STUDY (1 year longitudinal)

• PS: 3-6 year olds
• IV: engagement with princess culture
• DV: (1) gender stereotyped toy choice (2) gender stereotyped play

effects on black youth

1. black oriented programs → endorsement of “strong black woman” stereotype

• positive impacts: feelings of pride
• negative impacts: linked with anxiety to live up to expectations of stereotype to be self-sufficient

mainstream programs → endorsement of mainstream gender roles
male consumers

1. sexually violent media with submissive female characters → negative attitudes towards women
2. sexually violent media with strong female characters → no negative (but also no positive) attitudes towards women

Question 30

Summarize media representation and depictions of individuals of different races/ethnicities

Answer 30

• in general, most TV characters are white (other populations like blacks, latins, asians, indigenous are underrepresented compared to their actual proportion in the population (80% white)
• children’s media tends to be a bit more diverse than adult oriented media (more so for educational media) → 72% white

black: historically dominated by negative archetypes

• subservient
• black men: lazy, poor, jobless
• black women: angry

1960s: more idyllic representations

• overly positive representations of “the happy black family” or black boss

modern portrayals are more diverse and positive but stereotypes still persist

• less respected, less prestige
• more disheveled
• overrepresented as criminals, underrepresented as victims
• greater percentage of reports show black crimes than the percentage of actual arrests
• dichotomy of very successful vs criminal (challenging stereotype)

latinx: portrayed with stereotypical, negative characteristics

• sex objects (eg. modern family)
• rarely having high status jobs
• lack of intelligence, accented
• associated with crime — either criminals or cops

some evidence that portrayals may be shifting

asians: VERY LOW representation, less is known

• often portrayed as a homogenous group (lack of distinction btwn different types of asians)
• “model minority” stereotype → linked with intelligence, strong family values, strong work ethic, passive
• puts undue pressure on asian-americans to succeed ; glosses over problems with housing, jobs, status they face in the US
• portrayed as villians (eg. kungfu victims)

indigenous: very very low representation

• also presented as homogenous
• may be depicted as aggressive and uncivilized
• depicted as wise and connected with nature

impact of invisibility → conveys status/social importance (absence has negative effects)

middle eastern: new area of study

• depiction of middle eastern men as terrorists
• post 9/11 films and video games

multiracial: little has been studied, better depictions needed!

Question 31

Describe research findings on the impact of media on attitudes towards racial out groups

Answer 31

adult consumers exposure to negative stereotyped portrayals → more negative judgement of individuals within that group

exposure to positive portrayals

1. more favourable attitudes
2. more sympathetic responses to discrimination (eg. more likely to endorse political movements)

youth consumers exposure to positive stereotypes can lead to more positive ingroup attitudes

STUDY

• two clips of sesame street: (1) multi-racial (2) white control
• children were more likely to choose the asian/indigenous toy to play with when they watched the multiracial clip

behaviour towards outgroup may change/be more malleable at certain ages

Question 32

Describe research findings on the impact of media self-esteem for marginalized consumers

Answer 32

BIPOC adolescents: exposure to media stereotypes were associated with lower self-esteem (even when ST were positive)

STUDY

• exposed indigenous youth to exemplar picture of pochahontas
• viewing media ST led to lower self esteem even when they had positive attitudes towards pochahontas
• ST depiction makes ppl think there is less of a range of how one could be (there is no one like me)

Question 33

Discuss the main research questions, methods, findings, implications, and limitations of Coyne et al. (2016)

Answer 33

RQ: how does engagement with disney princesses effect gender stereotypes, body esteem, prosocial behaviour

• participants 3-6 year olds boys and girls

measures: baseline and after 1 year

• disney princess engagement (time spent watching/playing with toys)
• gender stereotypical behaviour (eg. more likely to engage with feminine toys?)
• body esteem
• prosocial behaviour

results: for both boys and girls:

1. disney princess engagement correlated with gender stereotypical behaviour in the moment
2. same affect was seen longitudinally after one year (ie. more princess culture = more feminine stereotype behaviour)
3. active mediation from parents (parents discussed media content with children) → larger effect

NOTE: we don’t know what the content of this mediation was (did they enforce or retaliate the message?)

• for girls, no strong effects on body esteem and prosocial behaviour
• girls were more likely than boys to engage with disney princesses

FOLLOW UP

5 years later (kids at 10), consumption of disney princess culture was linked to less adherence to gST in adolesence

• change in princess culture
• possible difference in affect across age groups or time? is there something about this particular age group/range that reacts a certain way?

implications: stereotypical behaviour may be limited if girls believe that their opportunities in life are limited because of preconceived notions regarding their gender

1. girls/women with stronger adherence to traditional feminine ideologies → (1) more depressive symptoms (2) lower SE (3) lower self-efficacy
2. men who play more sports video games → greater masculine ideal → (1) more alcohol/drug use (2) more delinquent behaviour

positive → princess media may provide models of femininity to young boys; more androgyny in early childhood has benefits for development through lifespan

limitations

1. sampled from white, middle class families
2. all child outcome variables were parent report at time 2
3. did not measure length of time enrolled at school (can’t determine reliability of teacher reports
4. children only test 1 year apart → future research to examine across childhood and adolescence
5. disentangle effects of media viewing from product engagement
6. did not specifically ask about parent mediation details (don’t know what the parents were discussing with their children)

Question 34

Discuss the main research questions, methods, findings, implications, and limitations of Shafer & Rivadenayra (2022)’s research articles

Answer 34

RQ: impact of TV ST on self-esteem of latin emerging adults

• in individuals from marginalized groups, exposure to media stereotypes are often associated with lower SE even when examples are positive
• examine moderating role of ethnic-racial identity
  ethnic racial identity ethnic-racial identity = person’s thought’s or feelings about race/ethnicity (do you feel positively about your ethnicity/is it central to your identity)
• individuals with strong ERI often related to positive outcomes
• (1) better grades (2) less depressive symptoms (3) buffer agains stress from discrimination

measured centrality of ERI (how central or important is ERI to your definition of sense/self)

• PS latin young adults (18-25)
• IV: (1) stereotyped portrayal (eg. latin housekeeper/menial labour ST) (2) non-stereotyped portrayal
• DV: (1) ERI centrality (2) self-esteem

results

• for young adults with strong ERI, exposure to stereotyped content led to lower social self-esteem
• strong ERI has big benefits but also puts individuals at greater risk when exposed to ST content

no sig difference for moderate and low ERI groups between neutral and ST video
explanation stereotype threat/social identity threat

• stereotypes can be communicated in many ways (eg. through media portrayal)
• may be more pronounced when we have stronger identification with the group being negatively stereotyped

with high ERI centrality → group id is more linked to self id so negative ST about the group creates more worry

social identity (shaped by group membership) → confrontation with negative group ST → (1) negative emotions (2) stress response (3) worry of conforming to negative views → lowered self-esteem about the self

limitations

1. online sampling → participants may be distracted, skewing results
2. did not ask participants about location, nationality, or immigrant generation