Early adolescents' experiences with, and views of, Barbie

Adolescence, Spring, 2004 by Tara L. Kuther, Erin McDonald

   When I was little I had the Barbie backpack and all. But as I got
   older I was embarrassed to tell people I like her. Now I think she
   is fun for little girls. I would still play with her if I had any
   but I just don't like the image she gives. No matter what friend
   she has, they're skinny with, forgive me when I say, biggish
   breasts. I think she's not as pretty as people make her out to be.
   Guys on the other hand think she is gorgeous, which is sickening.
   She's not natural or real in any capacity. Everything she does is
   so bubbly, no one is really that happy. Plus everything she has
   is pink. I don't like pink.

The doll's image as "perfect" is what most participants disliked most. Both boys and girls said she was too "fake." Barbie has branched out into different careers (e.g., pilot, astronaut) and maintained a sexualized image. The participants explained that the sheer number of careers and her physique make the doll appear phony.

Discussion

Similar to the findings of Study 1, those of Study 2 demonstrated that Barbie dolls were pervasive in the girls' experiences. Boys also reported experiences with the doll. Again, the girls reported playing imaginatively with Barbie dolls during childhood and enacting scripts of home life, fashion shows, dating, and weddings, as well as torture play, which suggests ambivalence toward the doll and the feminine sexualized image it represents. Boys reported joining female siblings in imaginative play with Barbie dolls, although many mentioned not being allowed to play with the doll. More commonly, the boys reported torture play in which they destroyed the dolls.

Research with adults has shown that there is disagreement on how Barbie dolls influence girls (Reid-Walsh & Mitchell, 2000; Rogers, 1999). The present results suggest that young adolescents share in the disagreement. The majority of participants argued that Barbie presents an unrealistic image of perfection that may harm girls' developing self-concept and body image. Some reported that Barbie dolls offer positive role models because they allow girls to imagine a variety of careers and practice female adult roles.

Like those of Study 1, the conclusions of Study 2 are limited given the small sample size. However, the present study offers a candid glimpse of young people's views of a controversial toy. The results suggest that Barbie dolls are pervasive within girls' experience and that young adolescents believe the dolls may influence girls' developing self-concept.

GENERAL DISCUSSION

Barbie dolls were pervasive in the experiences of both the young adolescent girls and boys surveyed. While girls generally reported imaginative play with Barbie dolls, boys tended to report destructive play and the disfiguring of Barbie dolls. The girls' reported experiences support the notion that play with Barbie dolls entails enacting adult social scripts, and perhaps shaping girls' developing self-concept through the internalization of stereotyped feminine scripts (Kline, 1993; Koste, 1995).