Portrayed Gender Roles in the Media, and How it is Affecting You
Whether you are a member of generation X, generation Y, or the millennial generation, each and every one of us have been introduced or inducted into a technology based world. We now have access to computers, phones, YouTube, a huge variety of streaming channels, and of course television. What many of us users do not realize, is that the people that we see portrayed in the media have a staggering affect on the way we view ourselves and the world around us based on the ideals of those specific fictional characters. A very natural instinct is to believe that you, as a human and citizen of this world, are immune to outside influence having an effect on your self-perception.Unfortunately, studies show that the majority of us are, in fact, heavily influenced by what we see on TV.
To get a better idea of how technology involved we are, statistics show that 80% of Americans watch TV on any given day, with an average watch time of 5.5 hours. Through all of these platforms, we are engaging with and contributing to the entity that is mass media.
Television is used as an outlet to relieve stress, to entertain, to pass the time, etc., and although it seems harmless, the amount of time we focus our attention on the media is abundant in our daily routines, and inevitably it is going to have an impact on us one way or the other. Unfortunately, the vast majority of us are not aware of the force of influence that media had over us, and what toll it takes on our psych. And although the impact may seem minimal, that is far from the truth.
In fact, “A great deal of research has looked at the portrayal of sex roles and issues of gender equity within the content of the mediated sphere based on the argument that the mass media reflect the values and mores of society, and have a significant impact on the beliefs and attitudes of citizens toward key social and political issues (Bergman, 2005).”
So, what exactly is television in relation to us, and what impact does it have on the way we interact with the world around us? When looking at television’s portrayal of gender, including gender roles and gender norms, the influence on viewers is exponential in general, but specifically when focusing on its influence regarding viewer’s self-perception and perception of others.
Studies regarding gender roles in the media have shown that “seeing gender-congruent portrayals in the media can be rewarding through positive affect resulting from perceived gender conformity, especially if one’s own conduct converges with traditional gender roles (Knobloch-Westerwick,2016).”On the opposite end of the spectrum, if one’s desire to express themselves does not line up with the typical socially accepted gender norm, seeing only gender-congruent roles in the media may be very detrimental to one’s own self-perception.
When referring to gender-congruent traits shown in the media regarding to femininity, the list contains qualities that show beauty, health, conformity, soft, sexy, desirable. In fact, “analyses of television and film ave revealed that women are overwhelmingly shown as objects of physical attractiveness and sexual desirability(Knobloch-Westerwick,2016).” All of these traits are more misrepresentations rather than truthful representations of women in society, and thus leads to decreased self-esteem and self-worth in women.
In addition to women being held to an impossible standard by television/media, we also see that women are extremely under represented in media reporting and media writing. The Women’s Media Center’s annual report shows a few shocking statistics that may or may not be surprising to many of regular television viewer: Women are on camera for only 32% of airtime, and write only 37% of print stories, 70% of talk show commentators are male, newspaper editorial boards on average have 7:4 male dominating ratio. These are just a few concrete examples of men dominating today’s media/television.
It is very important to realize and remember that the television media also holds men to specific gender norms just as much as it does women. Men in the media are portrayed as caretakers, powerful, strong, intelligent, seducers, athletic, etc. If any man fails to reach any of these mainly traits, society deems them as feminine, weak, “a loser”. In reality, men are individual humans with individual interests, personalities, and body types. Limiting the image of a “man” to these specific character traits is extremely detrimental to the self-worth and self-perception of boys and men in today’s society.
In conclusion, it is important to know that television and media, as fun and entertaining as it may be, definitely takes a toll on the way you view yourself and others, specifically regarding gender, after prolonged use. Whether the affects of media’s gender roll portrayals are good or bad on a specific person is not the whole issue, but rather that television has the ability to greatly affect our psychs and way of thinking in general. Information is the most powerful weapon, and it is important for our generation to gain knowledge on manipulation tactics of media in order to decrease the physiological effects that it takes on the way we view ourselves and the world around us.
References:
Dutta-Bergman, M., & Dutta-Bergman, A. (2005). The Consumption of Media Types and Attitudes Toward Gender Equality: A Population-Based Study.Conference Papers – International Communications Association, 1-25.
Kennard, A.R., Willis, L.E., Robinson, M.J., & Knobloch-Westerwick, S. (2016). The Allure of Aphrodite: How Gender-Congruent Media Portrayals Impact Adult Women’s Possible Future Selves. Human Communication Research, 42(2), 221-245. doi:10.111/hcre.12072