Why Media Characterizations of Gender and Race Matter

1. Why Media Characterizations of Gender and Race Matter Karen E. Dill, Ph.D. Lenoir-Rhyne University

2. Media character portrayals • Premise 1- how mass media portray representatives of a group can contribute to social biases (stereotypes and prejudice) and discrimination • Premise 2 - Social biases and discrimination are related to aggression

3. APA Task Force on Sexualization of Girls Exposure to Sexualized Media Ideals of Women Causes: Low Self Esteem Depression Shame Eating Disorders Sexual Issues Body Image Issues

6. Forms of Aggression • Aggression is not only physical violence • Sexual harassment, for example, can be categorized as a form of discrimination • “The sexual harassment of ‘uppity’ women” (Berndahl, 2007) • Men harass ‘uppity’ - feminist, independent, androgynous - women rather than traditional women • Motive is harm, not seduction

7. Theoretical Foundations • Hegemonic Masculinity Theory (Connell, 1987) - Hegemony is power and refers to the social dominance of White heterosexual maleness • Ambivalent Sexism Theory (Glick, Fiske et al.) - we hold both beneficent and hostile attitudes towards both sexes; men are “bad but bold,” women are “wonderful but weak” • Tedeschi and Felson’s Coercive Behavior Theory - power and dominance motives

8. Ambivalent Sexism Correlates • In 16 Nations where the “Bad but bold” stereotype of men is strongest, women experience: • Lower purchasing power • Lower literacy • Lower occupational prestige Glick & Fiske, 2004

9. Previous Research • Exposure to hyper-masculine (macho) media images (The Sopranos) caused endorsement of the beliefs that violence is manly and thrilling (Scharrer, 2005) • Males exposed to magazine ads where women were portrayed as sex objects showed greater rape-supportive attitudes • Women shown progressive ads showed lower rape-supportive attitudes (Lanis and Covell, 1995)

10. Previous Research • Brenick et al. (2007) found that high frequency videogame players, especially males, condoned gender stereotypes in games • Their participants generally did not believe exposure to stereotypical vg images changes attitudes or behaviors

11. Video game portrayals • How are male and female videogame characters portrayed, especially regarding objectification and power, dominance and aggression? • What is the common understanding of youth about gender portrayals in videogames? Are these schemas part of general culture?

12. Dill & Thill (2007) Study 1 • Images of male and female video game characters from the 6 top selling video game magazines • Top seller Game Pro bigger seller than Maxim (~3.5 million vs. 2.5 million) • 3 of 10 top selling teen magazines are game magazines

13. Methodology • 479 “main images” - 360 male, 119 female • 2 raters; reliabilities ranging from 87.4% to 100% agreement, depending on category • Predictions: males more likely aggressive; females more likely sexualized and scantily clad (not vice versa) • Males stereotyped as hyper-masculine, females as “vision of beauty,” Harrison’s (2003) “curvaceously thin” • Stereotypical portrayals common

14. Female Game Characters • 60% Sexualized • 1% of males • 63% Vision of Beauty • 39% Scantily clad • 62% Aggressive • 39% Sexualized & Aggressive Dill & Thill, 2007

15. Male Game Characters • 83% Aggressive • 33% Hyper-masculine • Aggressive Portrayal: • 4% military • 33% fighting • 42% wearing armor Dill & Thill, 2007

16. Posing with Weapons = Glamorized • 32% Males • 31% Females • Compared to: • Fighting: 33% Males 16% Females • Military: 4% Males 1% Females

17. Dill & Thill, 2007, Study 2 • Method • 49 college freshmen (20 male, 29 female) • Median age 18 • Asked 2 open ended questions: describe the typical male and typical female video game character • Responses coded, ranked

18. Teens’ Schemas for Female Game Characters • Skimpy clothes, “big boobs,” skinny, sexual, aggressive

19. Teens’ Schemas For Male Game Characters • Muscular, violent, cocky, athletic, thug

20. VG Sex Role Stereotypes Effects on Tolerance of Sexual Harassment (Dill, Brown & Collins, 2008) • Experimental Images: VG Sex Stereotypes

21. Degradation vs. Equality • Control images - Professional/Progressive Images from Dill et al, 2008

22. Sexual Harassment • College students read a real life account of a female college student’s sexual harassment by her male college professor • Dependent measure: composite score of their tolerance for sexual harassment

23. Sexual Harassment Measure • If the student’s story is true, would you personally believe that Prof. Bloom is guilty of sexual harassment? • If Prof. Bloom admitted doing what the student accused him of doing, how harshly do you think he should be punished? • Other items: Blame victim? Feel sorry for her? Take it seriously? Professor’s behavior damaging? • 0 to 9 scales (not at all to very)

24. Results

25. Race in the Media • Those exposed to female Black rap artists with sexual content (e.g., L’il Kim) showed less empathy and greater attributions of promiscuity towards a Black pregnant student than a White pregnant student compared to controls • Johnson, Bushman, Dovidio, 2008 • Those exposed to movie scenes depicting Black female stereotypes (mammy or jezebel) applied those stereotypes to a Black but not a White female college-aged job applicant • Brown-Givens and Monahan (2005)

26. Priming Associations • Priming positive Black exemplars (Oprah and Michael Jordon) made participants less likely to endorse the notion that discrimination is no longer a problem, compared to controls (Julia Roberts prime). Bodenhausen et al. (1995). • Likeable, high status exemplars (warmth and competence, according to the Stereotype Content Model) • “those people who are associated with aggression generally and/or with gratifications for aggression in particular or who are associated with negative affect are especially likely to be the victims of aggression.” (Berkowitz, 2008, p. 128) • Negative exemplars; Black stereotype of aggression, hostility and criminality

27. Playing with Prejudice (Burgess, Dill, Stermer, Burgess & Brown, under revision) • Study 1 - Content analysis of race in vg magazines • Study 2 - Content analysis of race on vg covers • Study 3 - Experiment on effects of exposure to B & W male vg characters on RT to weapons and non-violent stimuli

28. Results: Studies 1 and 2 • Study 1 - Black males were underrepresented, but were more likely to be portrayed as athletes or as aggressive and less likely to wear protective armor, to be depicted in military combat, or using technology than Whites. • Study 2 - showed evidence of the stereotype of Black males as violent criminals compared to Whites. Again Blacks were underrepresented, but were overrepresented as thugs, as using extreme guns, and also as athletes. • Not enough women of color to evaluate.

29. Priming Black vs. White male VG Characters • Study 3, an experiment, exposed players to both violent and non-violent games with both White and Black characters. • Participants were faster at classifying violent stimuli following games with Black characters and non-violent stimuli following games with White characters.

30. Negative Exemplars - Stereotypical Black vg characters (low status) Positive Exemplars - Black Leaders (high status) Media Images as Positive and Negative Exemplars of Race: Evoking Obama or Videogame Characters Changes Outcomes for Black Men Dill & Burgess, under review

31. Ratings of Black or White Politician “Peter Smith” based on his web site • Favorability, likeability, how good a candidate, how capable, motivated, would you vote for him?

32. Results: Candidate Favorability

33. Results: Candidate Capability

34. Theory of Media and Aggressive Degradation (MAD) • Towards a Theory of Media and Aggressive Degradation: Integrating the Literatures on Social Biases and Aggression in the Domain of Media Psychology • Dill & Burgess, in press, Journal of Interdisciplinary Research, Chapel Hill Press

35. Integrating the Aggression and Social Bias Literatures • Aggression - behavior intended to harm another living being who is motivated to avoid such harm • Discrimination - acting on the basis of one’s stereotypes and prejudices, denying equality of treatment that people wish to have • (Fiske, 2004) • Harm - the common element uniting aggression & social bias theories • Negative media characterizations of group members cause harm (e.g., tolerance of sexual harassment, judgment of unrelated political candidate)