Does Barbie give girls eating disorders?

Barbie has been accused of a lot over the last 7 decades, but her most enduring criticism is that she sets unrealistic beauty standards for young girls. Ben talks Rich through the curious history of Barbie as a toy and a “role model”, the sometimes-warped world of body image research, and a creepy life-size doll that walks on all fours.   

Show Notes: 

Anschutz, Doeschka J., and Rutger CME Engels (2010). "The effects of playing with thin dolls on body image and food intake in young girls." Sex Roles 63, 621-630. 

[Video] CNN: Woman Makes Life-Size Barbie Look-Alike 

Blood, S. K. (2004). Body Work: The Social Construction of Women's Body Image, Routledge. 

Brownell, Kelly D., and Melissa A. Napolitano (1995). "Distorting reality for children: Body size proportions of Barbie and Ken dolls." International Journal of Eating Disorders 18.3, 295-298. 

Dittmar, Helga, Emma Halliwell, and Suzanne Ive (2006). "Does Barbie make girls want to be thin? The effect of experimental exposure to images of dolls on the body image of 5-to 8-year-old girls." Developmental Psychology 42.2, 283. 

Dockterman, Eliana (2016) ‘Barbie’s Got a New Body’, Time 

Driscoll, Catherine. (2002). Girls: Feminine Adolescence in Popular Culture and Cultural Theory. Columbia University Press. 

‘Get Real Barbie Fact Sheet’ 

Henfield, M. (1990) ‘The Anorexics Aged Eight’, Daily Mail. 

[Video] Mattel Barbie Commercial (1959) 

Pearson, Marlys, and Paul R. Mullins (1999). "Domesticating Barbie: An archaeology of Barbie material culture and domestic ideology." International Journal of Historical Archaeology 3, 225-259. 

Rand, Erica. (1995). Barbie's Queer Accessories. Duke University Press. 

Note: Journal articles are often behind paywalls. If you don't have institutional access but would like a copy of these papers please email Illeffectspod@gmail.com and we will happily send you a copy

Credits: 

Hosts – Rich McCulloch and Ben Litherland  

Music by -  Brutalust (Colin Frank and Maria Sappho), recorded and mixed by Joe Christman 

Creative producer – Rachel Wood 

Technical producer – Caroline Pringle 

Technical production – Colin Frank