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Transcript of COM 367 Research Paper
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An examination of gender stereotypes in print advertising
Jenny Muscat
COM 367
Nonverbal Observation Paper
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Introduction
Images in advertising reach millions of people every day. This imagery provided by the
media can be described as nonverbal symbols that shape attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors while
creating meanings and associations (Kang, 1997). For many years, advertisements have been
criticized for their portrayal of gender stereotypes to sell and promote products. Many studies
have been done on this issue to proving the existence of these stereotypes in advertisements. The
purpose of this study is to examine how power is projected in both males and females in print
advertisements in popular magazines. The following section will review previous literature on
this subject,
Literature Review
Social construction of gender The concept of gender is constructed through continuous
social interactions which can result in formed ideas on masculinity and femininity. Males and
females are socialized early on to exhibit different behaviors in life which continues into
adulthood. Boys are typically socialized in how to gain attention, status, and power. Girls, in
contrast, are taught how to be nurturing, tender, and cooperative (Morris, 2006). Rosaldo argued
that masculinity is assigned a high value in society than femininity. His distinction is based on
the traditional model of women staying home to care for the children while men are given
freedom to have a significant presence in the public and hold valuable positions (as cited in
Morris, 2006, p. 5).
Another theorist, Chodorow, stressed the concept of private and public spaces in
differentiating genders. From a developmental point of view, mothers create feminine roles in
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the home (a private setting) for girls. Fathers socialize young boys to break away from domestic
life and begin creating an identity and status in the public (as cited in Morris, 2006, p. 5). Brown
and Levinson theorized that boys illustrate behaviors such as dominance and physical force and
girls demonstrate politeness and collaboration (as cited in Morris, 2006, p. 6).
Gender stereotypes Ashmore and Del Boca define gender stereotyping as beliefs that certain
attributes differentiate women and men (as cited in Eisend, 2009, p. 419). According to Deaux
and Lewis these stereotypes have four different and independent components: trait descriptors,
physical characteristics, role behaviors, and occupational status. Each of these components has a
masculine and feminine version (as cited in Eisend, 2009, p. 419). While not all stereotypes are
negative, stereotyping can have negative consequences. Each component of gender stereotyping
can lead to expectations and judgments that restrict life opportunities (Eisend, 2009). It has been
argued by Ceci et al. that it is the social environment that shapes gender roles which causes these
negative outcomes, and not biological factors. Significant changes in gender roles through the
years prove that it is the social environment that can influence these outcomes and not biology,
which stays the same (as cited in Eisend, 2009, p. 419).
Gender stereotypes in advertising Images portrayed in advertising have been under scrutiny for
many years for displaying stereotypical images of gender roles; especially those of females.
Despite the significant advances made by women in equality rights and career opportunities,
many studies have shown that advertising still depicts men and women in traditional roles. A
study done by Courtney and Lockeretz examined images of women in magazine advertisements
and found: women are rarely shown in out of the home roles; few were shown in professional or
high level business roles, women were portrayed as needing a mans protection, men were shown
as seeing women as sex objects, and women were primarily shown in ads for cleaning, food,
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beauty, drug, clothing, and home products while men were shown in ads for cars, travel,
alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, banks, industrial products, entertainment media, and industrial
companies (as cited in Kang, 1997, p. 982).
Other research done by ODonnell & ODonnell (1978) has shown that men are
commonly featured more predominately in advertisements compared to women. After examining
television commercials, mens voices were found to be heard more than womens. These results
can mean that the male voice is more authoritative and valued while women are portrayed more
as product users than authorities (as cited in Morris, 2006, p. 7).
One famous researcher in this topic of study is Erving Goffman. Goffman conducted a
study in 1979 of 400 print advertisements and concluded that women are essentially weakened in
advertisements in the following categories: relative size (women are shown shorter or lower than
men), feminine touch (women frequently touch themselves in advertisements), function ranking
(occupational status), ritualization of subordination (lying down at inappropriate times), and
licensed withdrawal (women are often shown as part of the scene or with far off gazes) (Kang,
1997). A study conducted by Kang analyzed advertisements from 1991 and compare them with
Goffmans results from 1979. Findings showed that there has not been a significant change in
advertisements throughout the years. This can mean that advertisements portray women not how
they actually are but how society thinks they should behave (Kang, 1997).
The common stereotype in advertisements that women do unimportant things and belong
in the home appears to be a cultural norm and a function of socialization (Kang, 1997). Sullivan
and OConnor(1988) found a 60% increase in advertisements that show women in purely
decorative roles thus claiming that a womans role in advertising is to be sexy and alluring (as
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cited in Kang, 1997, p. 982). A study by Killbourne (1986) found that exposure to
advertisements depicting women in stereotypical sex roles resulted in lower perceptions of
womens managerial abilities compared to exposure to advertisements portraying women in
professional roles (as cited in Kang, 1997, p. 982).
Gender stereotypes are found in television advertisements as well as print advertising. An
meta-analysis of 64 different studies on television and radio advertisements was done to
investigate the degree of stereotyping in advertising, and whether gender stereotypes mirror
gender-related values in society. Three different categories of stereotyping were used:
occupational status, physical characteristics, and role behaviors. Results showed that the odds of
females being presented in a specific category were 1.5 to four times higher than men. The
category of occupational status was the one that showed the greatest degree of gender
stereotypes. It seems that advertisers use already existing gender-related values in a society in
advertisements to promote and sell products (Eisend, 2009).
A study was done to find if gender stereotypes in print advertisements vary in culture.
Morris conducted a content analysis of advertisements from 108 countries and examined the
levels of gender stereotyping. Results showed that gender stereotypes are universal. The women
in these advertisements were shown in domestic roles and as modeling in decorative or
indistinctive roles while the men shown in occupations, spokespersons, or at leisure. While in
some cultures males and females are seen more equally than others, images in advertising do not
depict these concepts and still show gender stereotyping. These findings support the notion that
men are assigned higher value in society (Morris, 2006).
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Another cross-cultural study was done on magazine advertisements from three different
countries: Sweeden, the Netherlands, and the United States. Results showed that in all three
countries men are more likely to be shown in working roles than women despite the
advancements women have made in politics and the workplace (Wiles, Wiles, Tjernlund, 1995).
These results support the concept that advertising reflects the values and ideals of a given culture
including its stereotypes and biases.
There has been a substantial amount of research done on this topic in the past forty
decades. This research has concluded that gender stereotyping exists in print advertisements in
terms of how males and females are portrayed. This study is aimed at replicating these earlier
findings through examining modern day advertisements in terms of power displays and
nonverbal symbols.
H1: Men are seen as displaying greater power roles in advertisements compared to
women.
R1: Does the type of magazine have an effect on the degree of gender stereotyping?
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Method
For this study, advertisements were analyzed in terms of power projected in males and
females. Advertisements for this study were only used if they displayed still images of people,
specifically adults that are designed to sell a product. Ads that contained just words, objects, or
images without people were not used. Each ad was analyzed with seven different nonverbal
gender displays: relative size, psychological withdrawal, ritualized subordination, function
ranking, setting, touch/manipulation, and movement. Relative size refers to the male being taller
than the female in an advertisement. Psychological withdrawal refers to women being removed
from the situation leaving them disoriented and dependent on others for protection. Ritualized
subordination refers to lowering or raising oneself physically. Function ranking refers to
occupational status. Setting refers to where the scene of the advertisement is taking place. Touch
and manipulation refer to women are seen touching themselves more often than men are in
advertisements or to use their fingers to trace the outline of an object. Movement refers to the
level of physical motion displayed by the people in the advertisement.
Sampling The unit of measurement for this study was the magazine advertisements. A total
of nine magazines were used in this study. The magazines used were split into three different
categories: womens, mens, and general audience. In each category three popular magazines
were chosen. For the magazines targeted towards women Vogue, Elle, andWomens Health
were
used. For the magazines targeted towards menMens Fitness, Mens Journal, and GQ were used.
For the magazines targeted towards a general audience Time, AARP- The Magazine, and People
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were chosen. Within each magazine two advertisements were randomly selected. In each
magazine the twelfth and the twentieth full page ad depicting people were analyzed.
Results
Mens magazines In the magazines targeted towards males the most common gender
stereotypes were ritual subordination (men were frequently shown standing or sitting erect with a
high head), function ranking (men were frequently shown in professional clothing),
psychological withdrawal (women in the advertisements were shown as being withdrawn from
the scene), and setting (men were commonly shown either outdoors or in a athletic setting).
Womens magazines In magazines that are targeted towards women the most common
stereotype found was touch/manipulation (women were very frequently seen touching
themselves or using their fingers to just barely outline or caress an object). Another common
stereotype in these advertisements is relative size (men were frequently seen as being larger than
the women in advertisements). Another common stereotype found in these advertisements was
ritual subordination (women were seen in a lower posture and seen lying down in inappropriate
times).
General audience magazines In magazines targeted towards a general audience there
were fewer stereotypes shown than in the previous two categories. The two most common were
relative size and touch. In advertisements with both men and women the women was shown as
shorter than the man was. Women were seen as self touching and using their fingers to outline
objects. One category that was present that was not found in the other magazines was movement.
Men were shown moving more than women were in these magazines.
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Discussion
These results support the hypothesis that men are shown with greater power displays in
advertisements than women. The results can be integrated into research already don on this
subject supporting the idea that despite the advances made by women over the years, society
still upholds stereotypical ideals towards gender. This study shows that men are portrayed in
more powerful situations from the standpoint of relative size, touch, function ranking, ritual
subordination, psychological withdrawal, movement, and setting. From this study it can be
gathered that men are more valued in society and these ideals can be found in advertisements.
This study also proposed a research question that asked whether or not the type of
magazine that the advertisement appeared in would change the outcome of the degree of gender
stereotypes found. The magazines targeted towards men were found to display images of men
more than women or men with women. This has an impact on results of the study. The male
advertisements displayed a great deal of power displays through posture, setting, and
occupational status. In the magazines targeted towards women, women were the central focus of
most, if not all, of the advertisements. This impacted the degree of stereotyping in terms of
touch/manipulation, relative size, and psychological withdrawal. While the men and womens
magazines clearly depicted the ideal man or woman in terms of societys views, the magazines
targeted towards a general audience did not have one gender displayed more than the other.
Results from this category were evenly spread out. It can be concluded that specialized
magazines have a higher degree of gender stereotyping than those geared towards a general
audience.
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Conclusion
This study replicated the results that men are shown displaying higher power roles in
print advertising than women. This study also found that the degree of gender stereotyping can
be dependent on how specialized the magazine is towards a specific audience. There are
limitations to this study which include the lack of advertisements from each magazine and the
lack of magazine issues from each type of magazine. This research can justify a more in-depth
and sophisticated form of research in the future to investigate the dependency of the type of
magazine on gender stereotypes.
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References
Eisent, M. (2009). A meta-analysis of gender roles in advertising.Academy of Marketing
Science, 38, 418-440.
Kang, M. (1997). The portrayal of women's images in magazine advertisements: Goffman's
gender analysis revisited. Sex Roles,37, 979-996.
Wiles, J. A., Wiles, C. R., & Tjernlund, A. (1995). A comparison of gender role portrayals in
magazine advertising.European Journal of Marketing, 28(11), 35-49.
Morris, P. (2006). Gender in print advertisements:A snapshot of representations from around the
world. Papers presented at the annual convention of the International Communications
Association in Dresden, Germany.