Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Hernandez, Sarah

Keywords

Gender, Children, Toys

Area of Concentration

Sociology

Abstract

This sociological study was performed to contribute to an understanding of the role of gender in contemporary children's toy advertisements in the U.S. Content analysis was conducted on 60 children's toy advertisements selected from the Amazon 2011 Holiday Toy Wish List and Achilles Effect blog. Analysis was guided by eight mega-codes, which encompassed twenty-nine mini-codes. Toys are not inherently gendered; however, social meaning is conveyed through layers of detail in advertisements and aspects of the toy itself. To understand gender�or any other central aspect, it is necessary to analyze the types and relationships among a wide array of variables. Gender is reproduced and redefined through interactions. This study found that gender-neutrality and masculinity are often conflated and as a result, femininity is deviant. A toy acquires gender by gaining feminine attributes.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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