Barbie and Gi Joe

[Eunoia]

more stuff that I found (all these texts are coming in handy, lol!)

Children's Playthings:

Barbie
During the 1990's clinical researchers noted that Barbie, the doll with whom so many women grew up, had unattainable proportions. A 5'2" 125-pound woman who aspired to Barbie's size would have to grow to be 7'2", add 5 inches to her chest and 3.2 inches to the length of her neck, and lose 6 inches from her waist (Brownell & Napolitano, 1995).
(partly in response to clinical concerns, the manufacturer of Barbie recently changed the proportions of the doll)

GI Joe
Contemporary male action figures, such as GI Joe and Luke Skywalker, have acquired the physiques of body builders in recent years, with sharp muscle definition in the chest, shoulders, and abdominals (Pope et al., 1999). If GI Joe were a real man, he would have larger biceps than any body builder in history, with a 5'10" frame and 29-inch biceps, a 32-inch waist, and a 55-inch chest.


This is nuts!!! I guess it just shows you how messed up society is to promote these unrealistic ideals, and have kids grow up w/ them, being socialized consciously or unconsciosuly to believe this represents reality. I for one sure remember playing with barbies, and yes, they were always so pretty and perfect!!!! Not to say this is why ed's develp, but society and media etc. do play a part in at least people's perceptions in regards to body shape, image, weight etc.

 

[Diana]

Yes, society and media definitely play a part. However, I
am more comfortable with superheroes having amazing bodies, because the point is that they're super human. In order to have super human strength they have to have superior muscle. Although kids may pretend to be them, I don't think they asscociate themselves with them in a realistic way. However, who knows. Messages have a way of getting into people's minds. Barbie was seen more like the girl next door, and then there are the actresses and models. And men have been increasingly developing ed's. Have you ever heard of "megorexia"? I have to go now, but I'll try to get back to you on more about that.

 

[Eunoia]

no haven't heard of megorexia...I'm sure I could find something out about it though but I have to run soon....

I think that yes, these are action figures/play figures but socialization does take place in the context of a child's environment, and the way they play and w/ what and whom matters..... I'm not so sure if a child is able to seperate reality from imagination or a fantasy world. I mean girls want to be Barbie when they're young, they want that lifestyle etc. so unconsciously they take in those other messages as well. and I mean for someone to have super human strength, they don't need to be that disproportionate, but again that's the message that having super strength equates with the physical but what about being able to have friends? or being empathetic.... and anyways, what are Barbie's super strengths??

 

[Diana]

Yes. What I was saying was that Barbie is different from a superhero. She's like the girl next door - pretty, popular, innocent and sweet. Then, she has this body that's unattainable for most people (at least it used to be - I don't know how they changed her proportions). So, I could see girls trying to relate with her more than a superhero. Um... I read about megorexia in a magazine about 3 years ago. I'm sure there's up to date research on it. What I read at that time was that some men were becoming obsessed with building huge muscles and perfecting their bodies. Although the idea here is on "big" - "mega" they also wanted to have a lean flat stomach and small waist line with no fat. So, in some ways, for some of these guys it became a really complicated obsession. Maybe even more than anorexia in some ways, because the obsession was with being big and small together. Since they wanted 0 fat on their bodies, they began to obsess about what they ate and developed strange eating habits and in some cases ed's. Some even became anorexic. And, of course they over exercised. Anyway, I'll try to look up something on the internet if anyone is interested.
Not that this matters, but I wasn't in to Barbie when I was a kid. I liked Strawberry Shortcake dolls. But, I know that most girls had a zillion Barbies, so I'm sure it had to have some kind of influence.

 

[David Baxter PhD]

She's like the girl next door - pretty, popular, innocent and sweet.

Which "next door" is that? )

 

[Eunoia]

is megarexia then the same thing or similar to muscle dysmorphobia (also called reverse anorexia nervosa)? I read that male athletes are obessed w/ weight reduction during their active seasons where as women w/ eds are obsessed w/ thinness at all times. I guess what you're describing fits w/ the descrption of aspiring to be "lean, toned, and thin" for males... it said that men w/ this disorder are "very muscular but still see themselves as scrawny and small and therefore continue to strive for a perfect body through extreme measures such as excessive weight lifting or the abuse of steroids". One third of them also have related dysfunctional behaviours ie. bingeing.

Diana- I remember at first I really wanted barbies but my mom didn't want us to have them, they were seen by some as almost bad- I don't know why or in which way but I remember their disapproval of this "new, expensive, grown-up" toy... love Strawberry Shortcake!!

 

[David Baxter PhD]

What about Cabbage Patch Dolls? Or Gloworm?

 

[Diana]

You're right Dr. Baxter. What next door is that? You always hear about the "girl or boy next door" as being actors or singers who are innocent and cute. I don't know why they're called that exactly, but they are usually popular among young people, and their styles might influence them. I know that you know this, but you made a good point with your question.
I had a small gloworm that hung on my bedpost in a little sleeping sack. My parents sort of discouraged Barbie too. I remember there being a reason why I didn't want Barbies and it had to do with what my parents told me. They never said, "You can't have one.", but they made some negative comments about them. However, most of the population never develops an eating disorder so of course there are so many more reasons. But, I understand your point Eunoia, how media and society play roles in influencing people and children.