The Effects of Disney Films on Attitudes towards Women

1. The Effects of Disney Films on Attitudes towards Women Jennifer George Kristen Brookes Jaclyn Hedrick Hanover College

2. Introduction • Media is a prominent influence in shaping the stereotypes and attitudes in today’s society. The depictions of women can influence the viewer to have positive or negative attitudes toward women’s abilities (Rudman, 2000). • Do portrayals of women in Disney movies affect viewer’s attitudes toward women?

3. Background • Literature Review • “TV Commercials as Achievement Scripts for Women” (Geis, Brown, & Walstedt, 1984) • This study supports our hypothesis that media does affect societal and individual attitudes toward women. • Other studies on the affects of Disney movies primarily evaluate stereotypes, including age, gender, relationships, smoking, and race (Dundes, 2001; Ryan & Hoerrner, 2004; Tobin, Haddock, & Zimmerman, 2003).

4. Hypothesis • Participants who view video clips portraying women as damsels in distress will view women as less capable of being strong leaders than participants who view women as heroines.

5. Methods Section: Participants • 29 Participants • 18 women • 11 men • Age Range (18-22) • Median 20 • Predominantly Caucasian • 89% white • 7% Asian • 4% multi-racial

6. Materials • Six Disney Video Clips • The clips were 3 minutes long, totaling to a 9 minute video sequence for each condition. • Damsels • Sleeping Beauty, Little Mermaid, & Aladdin • Example of Plot: A princess is being attack by an evil sea witch. Her true love runs a ship into the witch, killing her, and saving the princess. • Heroines • Little Mermaid, Pocahontas, & Mulan • Example of Plot: An Indian princess saves her true love, a white male, from being killed by her father.

7. Materials • Gender Authority Measure Questionnaire (Rudman & Kilianski, 2000) • .82 alpha • 15 Questions on different genders in authority positions. • Answers were on a 1-5 scale • (1=strongly disagree; 5=strongly agree) • "If I were in serious legal trouble, I would prefer a male to a female lawyer"

8. Procedure • Informed Consent • Two different IV groups • Damsels and Heroines • Participants were randomly assigned • Shown video clips • Administered GAM Questionnaire • Debriefing Form

9. Results

10. Discussion • Our hypothesis was not supported by our study. • Reasons • Pre-existing solidified gender expectations • Participants did not want to appear sexist • Demand Characteristics • Participants may have had a sense of what we were studying, and may have tried to conceal their own gender stereotypes.

11. Limitations & Future Research • Limitations • Some topics on questionnaire were irrelevant to the topic being studied • Focused on occupations rather than leadership roles • Asked questions that do not pertain to college students • Clip duration too short to influence solidified attitudes • Future Research • Complete study with clips with more mature content • Use a different questionnaire that pertains more to question we wanted to answer • Complete the study with children who may be more impressionable

12. Conclusions • Adults may not be significantly influenced by Disney Movies • Men may be more impressionable than women • Men's attitudes about women and power may be less well established and may be more easily swayed • Women's attitudes more solidified • Want to think highly of their own gender and believe they have ability to be good leaders