A small-scale study led by Durham University in the UK, has shown that play with ultra-thin dolls may negatively affect body image in girls as young as five years old.
The researchers warn that the dolls, combined with exposure to ‘thin ideals’ in the media, could lead to body dissatisfaction in young girls, which has been shown to be a factor in the development of eating disorders. A Dutch study showed that girls randomised to receive an ultra-thin doll to play with ate less than those who received a realistic adult doll.
The study had 30 girls aged between 5-9 years old play with an ultra-thin doll, a realistic childlike doll or a car. Before and after each play session, the girls were asked about their perceived own body size and ideal body size via an interactive computer test using pictures.
Playing with the ultra-thin dolls reduced girls’ ideal body size immediately after play. There was no improvement even when they subsequently played with the childlike dolls or cars afterwards, demonstrating that playing with other toys cannot quickly counteract the effects. The realistic children’s dolls had a neutral effect on body ideals.
Lead author Professor Lynda Boothroyd, from Durham University’s Department of Psychology, said: “Body dissatisfaction is a huge problem, particularly amongst young girls. It can have serious consequences for girls’ wellbeing and lead to eating disorders and depression.
“The results from our study indicate that playing with ultra-thin dolls, which are sold in the millions each year, could have a real negative impact on girls’ body image. This is on top of all the images of unrealistic body sizes they see on TV, in films and on social media. This is something that needs to be addressed in order to reduce the pressure on girls and women to aspire to a ‘thin ideal body’.”
The psychologists had found in previous research that the more TV we watch, the more we prefer thinner female bodies. Of the girls who took part in the study, 80% said they had ultra-thin dolls at home or with their friends, and nearly all watched films which tend to portray very thin female bodies. Dolls available in shops tend to have a projected BMI of 10 to 16 (underweight). The study used realistically proportioned dolls resembling healthy children of 7 and 9.
Dr Elizabeth Evans, from Newcastle University’s School of Psychology, said: “This study isn’t intended to make parents feel guilty about what’s in their child’s toy box, and it certainly isn’t trying to suggest that ultra-thin dolls are ‘bad’.
“What our study provides is useful information that parents can take into account when making decisions about toys. Ultra-thin dolls are part of a bigger picture of body pressures that young children experience, and awareness of these pressures is really important to help support and encourage positive body image in our children.”
The study, though small, tested the children before and after doll play, an unusual approach which nevertheless adds to growing evidence that doll play affects young girls’ beauty ideals.
Professor Martin Tovee, from Northumbria University’s Department of Psychology, said: “Our study shows how perception of ideal body size and shape is moulded from our earliest years to expect unrealistic ideals. This creates an inevitable body image dissatisfaction which is already known to lead towards disordered eating.”
Source: Medical Xpress
Journal information: Can realistic dolls protect body satisfaction in young girls?, Boothroyd et al, Body Image, 11 March 2021.
