How Does Sexualisation in Advertising Affect Girls and What Can Be Done About It?

(Source: shEqual.com, 2020)

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Advertising has been reflective of current cultural trends and informing people regarding products, brands, ideas, and services. It has a significant role as a social agent that depicts gender roles (Gauntlett, 2008); how women are being described in advertisements is crucial since it indicates and reflects the women’s role and expectations in society (Sharma & Bumb, 2021; Kordrostami & Laczniak, 2022). Prior research has shown that women are more likely to be sexualised in advertisements (Gramazio et al., 2021; Verhellen et al., 2016; Behm-Morawitz, 2017), and it may have adverse psychological effects on women, such as depressive symptoms that lead to destructive mental illnesses such as eating disorders. Furthermore, previous studies also have attested to the notion that ‘sex sells’, which turns out to have negative associations with consumers' interest in general for men and women (Paek et al., 2011; Gramazio et al., 2021). From this evidence, the use of sexualisation in advertising will no longer be necessary for numerous harmful reasons, particularly when such advertisements are being exposed to a more vulnerable audience, like young girls. As children are still cognitively developing, they are more likely to absorb a wide variety of advertisement content without critically engaging with its connotative messages (Rozendaal et al., 2011; Naderer, 2020). Adding that to the layer of difficulty children face in determining commercial and non-commercial content (Shin & Lwin, 2019), they are an essential target audience that needs to be protected. While advertising has positive effects on the audience’s self-enhancement (Mills et al., 2002), numerous studies have found negative impacts of sexualised advertising on girls (Watkins et al., 2022; Graff et al., 2013; Vandenbosch & Eggermont, 2012; Coy, 2009). Therefore, this essay will explore the effects of sexualised advertisements towards young women. It will start by examining relevant factual information and the importance of girls as media consumers, the effects of this type of advertisement towards girls from three aspects (i.e., identity creation, psychological impacts, the idea of sex and relationship), and provide recommendations through the lens of education, policy making, and advertising agencies. 

Young women are particularly vulnerable when it comes to sexualised advertisements for numerous reasons. According to Watkins et al. (2022), children were being exposed to more than 500 brands over 10 hours per day, almost one brand every minute. Historically, the portrayal of teenage girls in ‘sexualised’ advertisements (e.g., low-cut tops, high heels, tight-fitting, make-up) has significantly increased over the last 30 years (Graff et al., 2013). This is a piece of concerning evidence; as girls start to differentiate themselves from their family origin, they often look at media, popular culture, and peers to understand who they want to be, where they want to fit in, and who they are (Strasburger, 2004; Vokey, 2015). Additionally, with over 50% of women being shown as sex objects in mass media like magazine advertisements (Stankiewicz & Rosselli, 2008), girls are actively receiving strong messages that sexualised women and describe them following sexualised stereotypes (Zubriggen & Roberts, 2013). Based on social learning theory (Bandura, 1977), girls are likelier to imitate behaviour if rewards are present. If advertisement agencies frame sexualised behaviour with valuable social rewards like relationships and popularity, girls are being encouraged to be fulfilled with sex and physical appearance because it dictates that these values can be transformed into power. Victoria’s Secret ‘Perfect Body’ campaign is an example of how advertisements often portray women with unrealistic beauty standards. This campaign emphasises that being skinny is a favourable social norm and would invite positive appraisals from the public (Vokey, 2015). This kind of campaign is harmful to younger girls, as correlational research has found that it is associated with higher body image dissatisfaction, which leads to numerous psychological disorders linked to eating disorders, depression, anxiety, and lower self-confidence (Coy, 2009; Vandenbosch & Eggermont, 2012). Therefore, girls are a crucial group of focus due to their fragile nature and reception sensitivity towards sexualised advertisements. 

The impact of sexualised advertisements on girls is evident in their identity and physical development. According to the Psychosocial Theory of Development (Erikson, 1968), identity formation creates an individual sense of self in one’s core and culture. Via the intensity of exposure to sexualised content in advertisements, girls learn that the key to achieving happiness, social success, and favourable relationships is through their sexual appeal and attractiveness. For example, the whitening product Fair and Lovely often portrays women with a fair complexion as more attractive and desirable in society. Such brands hold over 60% of the market share of the skin care products market in India (Karnani, 2007). This is because people who use such products believe that having lighter skin has a positive effect on their self-esteem and perception of beauty (Olumide, 2010). As children are less likely to be critical of advertisement messages due to their level of cognitive sophistication, they are not aware of the complications of skin-whitening products, which can lead to hospitalisation due to dermatological problems (Shin & Lwin, 2019; Olumide, 2010). Furthermore, through the lens of cultivation theory (Gerbner, 1998), individuals will believe that the world depicted in media is aligned with reality as their media consumption increases. In the current context, the cultivation theory attested that more media messages depicting females as sex objects would likely result in girls adopting the same belief (Ward & Grower, 2020). Especially when girls are going through puberty, their identity-creation process is distorted due to insecurities caused by sexualised advertisements. Within this period, girls’ physical appearance changes (e.g., weight gain, menarche, hip and breast development), and they are challenged to be comfortable with these changes (Todd et al., 2015). At the same time, with exposure to sexualised messages, they are encouraged to strive for culturally sexy ideals, such as being full-breasted and thin (Kar et al., 2015). For most girls, this is impossible to attain and could lead to shame and insecurity (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997). Consequently, sexualised advertisements have shown adverse effects on girls’ identity and physical development. 

Sexualised advertisements lead to body dissatisfaction for girls, thus triggering psychological challenges. Research has shown that body dissatisfaction leads to women having decreased self-dignity and hinder their self-development (Sharma & Bumb, 2021; Eisend, 2010; Bessenof, 2006). During adolescence, it was found that mental health disturbances such as body image concern and depression peak in girls (Littleton & Ollendick, 2003; Jiang et al., 2021). As sexualised advertisement often leads to objectification (Gramazio et al., 2021), girls are left to foster habitual body monitoring, which leaves them with appearance anxiety if they perceive their looks as not fulfilling to the extent needed for success and happiness. In some cases, the promotion of thinness in advertisements may develop into eating disorder practices in young teenagers (Quittkat et al., 2019). In a longitudinal New Zealander study of girls between the ages of 9 and 13 years old, it was found that sexualised images made girls more susceptible to lower self-esteem, which predicted adolescent girls' reports of eating problems and suicidal ideation (McGee & Williams, 2000). An extreme example of this phenomenon is Zazzle’s 2011 ‘pro-anorexia’ T-shirt, where the advertisement portrays a girl in a T-shirt with the slogan ‘Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels’. The slogan was made by supermodel Kate Moss in prior years and had received a massive backlash due to its wrong promotional impression to young girls regarding health and beauty. Furthermore, a report by Templeton (2008) showed a 500 per cent increase in plastic surgeries on 18 and 19-year-olds from a United Kingdom surgery company. This shows that celebrities’ influence, channelled through advertisements, has impacted girls’ perceptions of beauty on a personal level (Krawczyk & Thompson, 2015). Nevertheless, sexualised advertisements have been shown to have a crucial impact on girls’ body satisfaction and physiological well-being. 

Sexualised advertisements also have a significant impact on young girls’ perception of sex and ideal relationships. Research has shown the increasing number of sexual harassment and abuse for girls after puberty, as they are frequently being evaluated sexually and objectified (Purcell & Zubriggen, 2013; Vokey, 2015). Instead of teaching children to respect and value female bodies, the typical depiction of women as sexual objects through advertising made girls learn that their body belongs less to them and more to others. Especially with their current indecisive psychological state, sexualised media exposure may evoke emotional conflicts in girls and make them prone to accept any sexual activity for the sake of external validation. Thus, girls are being exposed to an environment where their sexuality is the only way to maintain relationships. This phenomenon is being strengthened by the fact that being validated by peers is crucial to most girls (Vokey, 2015), and this would make them vulnerable to media sexualisation because in order to achieve this goal, they have to act and dress a certain way (Linn, 2004). Furthermore, from the lens of objectification theory, sexualised media exposure may influence the process of internalisation for most girls. They would believe that it is socially acceptable to objectify women and internalise this belief in themselves. Thus, by devaluating women’s worth through advertising, girls may experience body shame, appearance anxiety, and sexual dysfunction (Krawczyk & Thompson, 2015). The first study of objectification through cultural internalisation was done by Heinberg et al. (1995), where exposure to sexualised images was influential in evoking higher rates of internalisation and body dysmorphia. More than a decade later, numerous research studies have replicated this study and found the same results (Agras & Robinson, 2018; Krawczyk & Thompson, 2015; Thompson et al., 2012). From these studies, sexualised advertisements through mass media have adverse effects on how women view themselves and their immediate relationships. 

There are numerous recommendations advertisers, policymakers, and consumers may implement to reduce the effects of sexualised advertisements on young girls. From the perspective of educators, Gramazio et al. (2021) and Rodríguez et al. (2016) found the efficacy of media literacy programs being embedded in the school curriculum for children. They emphasised the importance of this program to enhance children’s critical thinking and enable them to understand the plethora of marketing techniques advertisers may choose to sell products. This program also encourages children to prepare for elements of sex education, which helps them develop emotionally satisfying, respectful, and healthy relationships. Additionally, the advertisers can utilise the ‘femvertising’ approach in advertising, which emphasises women's empowerment and challenges the stereotypical portrayal of women in mass advertisements (Kordrostami & Laczniak, 2022; Champlin et al., 2019). A few examples of successful ‘femvertising’ are Dove’s Evolution campaign (Åkestam et al., 2017), Ram trucks’ ‘Courage is Already Inside’ commercial and Lane Bryant's #ThisBodyisMadetoShine (Kordrostami & Laczniak, 2022). Prior research has shown that such advertisements lead to higher positive attitudes towards the advertisements, increase the audience’s purchase intention and improve the brand’s emotional connection to consumers (Åkestam et al., 2017; Drake, 2017; Abitbol & Sernadori, 2019). Lastly, governmental regulations have a significant role in distributing advertisements to the public. From a study by Rodríguez et al. (2016), policymakers are being encouraged to have extensive dialogue with consumers, parents, social organisations, and internet service providers to determine the effect of sexualisation and its current impact on the development of childhood. From this extensive research, the government can provide practical tools such as websites with information regarding commercial standards for product marketing that are appropriate for children. Additionally, the government can help block access to websites that promote bulimia, anorexia, or child pornography. Referring to a real case study of Kristina Pimenova that evokes extensive debate on whether underage models are appropriate to be commercially exploited by Rodríguez et al. (2016), policymakers can also regulate standards for using children as brand ambassadors in advertisements. Consequently, there are numerous efforts from many stakeholders to implement to combat the effects of sexualised advertising. 

In conclusion, although advertising, in general, may impose positive effects like self-enhancement and provide relevant information regarding the products, many have found adverse effects of sexualised advertising on young girls. Not only does it influence girls’ identity creation and physical appearance perception, but this type of advertising can also trigger harmful psychological challenges and shift the perspective of healthy relationships and sex. To face these effects, there has to be a collective effort from educators, advertisers, and policymakers. Consequently, well-regulated advertisements that focus on women and their sexual power are needed to improve the audience’s perception regarding advertising and women’s value in society.

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