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Gender

When it is a question of how television characters and their stories are dramatised and received, gender is one of the most universal categories. In this main research area, on the one hand the mechanisms and interrelations of gender representation in the medium are specifically analysed. On the other, the ways in which girls and boys deal with the programmes offered – how they interpret them, evaluate them, and integrate them into their life world – are analysed from the recipients‘ point of view. In this way, against the background of the current state on gender, boys and girls research, new perspectives and suggestions for quality television for children and young people are offered to those responsible for the medium around the world.
Literature: TelevIZIon 19/2006/1 “Welche Rolle spielt Geschlecht?” (only available in German), TelevIZIon 21/2008/E “Girls and Boys and Television”

Quality for boys and girls

Current research findings on gender, boys and girls are explained in terms of what they signify for quality children's and young people's television productions. In small group discussions, and in collaboration with television professionals, the practical implementation of these insights is worked out.
Literature: Reminder: Guidelines for Gender Sensitivity, book publication due in 2010

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Media analyses on the topic of gender

Boy's heroes, great and small: images of masculinity in children's television (2009–2010)
Successful heroes of children's television enjoyed by boys – such as Avatar, Yugi, and Spongebob – and selected films are analysed in terms of the implicit correspondences to typical boys' preoccupations.
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz (IZI)
Literature: article forthcoming, book publication in German due in 2010


The globalisation of girls' and boys' bodies: analysis of the bodies of girl and boy characters (2008–2009)

Using an international sample, the bodies of globally marketed cartoon film characters were measured in terms of waist-hip-shoulder proportions. The results clearly indicate gender-specific bias and a hypersexualisation of girl characters. Project management: Dr. Maya Götz, Margit Herche (IZI)
Literature: Margit Herche/Maya Götz: The global girl's body. In: TelevIZIon, 21/2008/E, pp. 18-19, Forschungsergebnisse Mädchen – Jungen – Fernsehen (only available in German), book publication in German due in 2010


Consumption orientation and gender in children's television around the world (2008–2009)
With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes, distinctive features of consumption-oriented behaviour by characters in children's television were examined and, in particular, analysed in terms of gender bias, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Project management: Prof. Kara Chan (University of Hong Kong)
Literature: published in the German version of TelevIZIon 2009/2, English version scheduled for 2010


The eroticisation of children's television (2008–2009)

With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes, the specific features of the eroticisation of girl characters, and their interaction with the plot, were examined, for example, in the series Winx Club and Bratz.
Project management: Prof. Jeanne Prinsloo (Rhodes University, South Africa)
Literature: English-language publication scheduled for 2010


Mum is a housewife and dad goes to work: gender relationships in family representation on children's television (2008–2009)
With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes, the representation of families in children's television was investigated from a gender-specific perspective in particular.
Project management: Prof. Dafna Lemish (University of Tel Aviv)
Literature: English-language publication scheduled for 2010


Gender in the title songs of international series (2008–2009)

With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes, the interaction of text, image, and music in the opening songs of children's programmes was investigated from a gender-specific perspective.
Project management: Prof. Dr. Cindy Carter (University of Cardiff)
Literature: English-language publication scheduled for 2010


Anime and Gender (2008–2009)

Using an international sample of children's TV programmes, the specific features of, and background to, the hypersexualisation of girl characters in anime are examined and contextualised.
Project management: Damien Spry, Ph. D. (University of Sydney)
Literature: English-language publication scheduled for 2010


The representation of Latinas in children's television (2008–2009)
With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes, characteristic features of the representation of Latinas in children's television and films popular with children are deduced.
Project management: Prof. Dr. Angharad N. Valdivia (University of Illinois)
Literature: English-language publication scheduled for 2010


Gender, non-fiction, and news (2008–2009)

With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes gender bias in non-fiction children's television is analysed and critically assessed, with a special emphasis on children's news programmes.
Project management: Prof. Dr. Cindy Carter (University of Cardiff)
Literature: English-language publication scheduled for 2010



Children's television worldwide II: advertising and gender (2008–2009)
With the aid of an international sample of children's TV programmes, advertising in children's television is researched from a gender-specific perspective.
Project management: Dr. Pablo Ramos Rivero (Red UNIAL, Havanna)
Literature: published in the German version of TelevIZIon 2009/2, English version scheduled for 2010



Children's television worldwide I: gender representation
In 2007, a representative sample of relevant, free-TV children's programming was drawn in 24 countries and evaluated using content analysis. The central focus of this, the world's largest study of children's television to date, were the gender images in fictional children's programmes.
Projektleitung: Dr. Maya Götz (IZI) and 19 international collaborators
Literature: Maya Götz et al. Gender in children's TV worldwide. In: TelevIZIon, 21/2008/E, pp. 4-9, Pressemitteilung “Qualität für Mädchen und Jungen“ (only available in German), Website: www.childrens-tv-worldwide.com (in English), German-language book publication due in 2010



Nothing but boys as far as the eye can see! Was it always like this? Analysis of the historical development of gender relationship in children's television (2008)
With the aid of a media analysis of PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL finalists from 1968, 1978, 1988, 1998, and 2006, the development of gender portrayals in principal characters of fiction was examined. What is the same about the gender relationships and stereotypes, and what has changed?
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz, Thomas Ostendorp (IZI)
Literature: German-language book publication due in 2010



Deconstructing gender: analysis of the dramatic portrayal of gender through body language (2007–2008)
With the aid of selected PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL programmes, the stage direction of girls and boys was analysed with respect to gesture, mime, and spatio-corporeal relationships.
Project management: Corinna Kramp (IZI)
Literature: German-language book publication due in 2010



Comparison of the gender relationships in high-quality television (PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL) and “mainstream” programmes (2004, 2007)
By means of media analysis, the PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL finalists from the years 2002 and 2004 were analysed in terms of the gender representation of fictional heroes and compared with 400 hours of “standard” German children's television.
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz, Ralf Schauer (IZI)
Literature: German-language book publication due in 2010



What is the gender of heroes? (1999)
A gender-specific investigation of the principal characters in children's television: On the basis of the annual sample, “Current state of German children's television”, 474 programmes explicitly aimed at children were examined for gender-specific allocation and bias in the principal roles.
more ...
Literature: Maya Götz: Männer sind die Helden: Geschlechterverhältnisse im Kinderfernsehen. In: TelevIZIon 12/1999/1, pp. 34-38 (only available in German).

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Reception studies on the topic of gender

Germany's next Topmodel (2009)
With a weekly market share of almost 50% of 12- to 17-year-olds, Germany's next Topmodel is currently one of the most successful programmes with girls. What makes girls so excited about this talent show? What do they pick up from it, both consciously and unconsciously?
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz and Johanna Gather (IZI)
Literature: results were presented at the IZI conference 2009, TelevIZIon 2010/1 (only available in German), book publication due in 2010


Learning about being a girl from the Disney exotic princesses (2009-2010)
In children's classics such as Aladdin, Pocahontas and Mulan, princesses of a foreign country provide the material for exotic leading characters. How do girls deal with these images, particularly when they themselves are “exotic others”? This question was asked of girls with diverse ethnic backgrounds in the USA, China, India, and Fiji.
Project management: Prof. Dr. Charu Uppal (University of South Pacific) and Diana Nastasia (University of North Dakota)


How is gender constructed by pre-school children? (2008–2010)
Until now, little has been known about the way children deal with less specifically gender-defined characters. This study investigates which distinguishing traits are used by pre-school children to construct a character's gender.
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz, Christine Bulla (IZI)


Quality television and boys (2008)
In this study boys evaluate programmes with male protagonists that have been awarded prizes at the PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL, such as Girls, Secret Thoughts, or Stark! Kevin and compare them with successful series such as Kim Possible, Yu-Gi-Oh! or SpongeBob SquarePants.
Project management: Dr. Reinhard Winter, Gunter Neubauer (SOWIT Tübingen)
Literature: Reinhard Winter/Gunter Neubauer: Große Helden für kleine Jungs. In: TelevIZIon, 20/2007/2, pp. 4-10 (only available in German) und TelevIZIon, 22/2009/E


Do children want sexualised television characters? (2008)
Using retouched variants of the characters Bibi Blockberg and Cloe from Bratz, girls and boys aged between 3 and 12 were tested at a representative level to discover which shape form they prefer.
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz (IZI)
Literature: Maya Götz: Do children want skinny cartoon characters? In: TelevIZIon, 21/2008/E, pp. 20-21.


What annoys children around the world about the portrayal of girls and boys on TV? (2008)

Over 1,000 children in 21 countries produced paintings to illustrate what annoyed them about the way girls and boys are portrayed on television.
Project management: Margit Herche und Christine Bulla (IZI)
Literature: Christine Bulla/Margit Herche: “They are skinny and boring. In: TelevIZIon, 21/2008/E, pp. 28-29, book publication due in 2010


How do children and young people deconstruct dramatic representations of gender? (2007–2009)
Gender stereotypes are characterised, among other things, by typical gestures and body postures. Using photographs and programme clips, children and young people in 12 countries are asked whether they interpret these stereotypes in stereotypical ways and how they use their own body language.
Project management: Corinna Kramp (IZI)
Literature: Corinna Kramp: Performing gender in postures. In: TelevIZIon, 21/2008/E, pp. 52-53, book publication due in 2010


Girls' and boys' favourite characters (2004–2010)
In this broadly conceived study, girls and boys are asked about their favourite television characters and their significance. Starting with 40 case studies each of girls and boys, typical varieties of significance of characters for life skills were extrapolated and interpreted in the light of gender research. On a representative level, quantitative data about girls' and boys' favourite television characters and the utility value of each were obtained by means of several samplings.
Project management: Dr. Maya Götz (IZI), Dr. Reinhard Winter, Gunter Neubauer (SOWIT Tübingen)
Literature: TelevIZIon 19/2006/1 (only available in German) und TelevIZIon 20/2007/2 (only available in German),  German-language book publication due in 2010

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In co-operation with the PRIX JEUNESSE INTERNATIONAL

Sexualised western culture meets traditional culture (2009-2010)
How do girls who have grown up within a rather traditional family culture – for example, Indian and Arabian immigrants in the USA – deal with the sexualised images of Western children's and youth culture? This study investigates the question with the aid of individual case studies.
Project management: Prof. Dr. Rebecca C. Hains und Prof. Dr. Judi Cook (Salem State College, USA)


What do they really think? Online mediations of educational content in European, Chinese, and Australian television for young people (2009-2010)
In blogs such as “MySpace”, young people present their own identity. Analyses of Australian, Chinese, and Korean web pages are used to explore how girls and boys themselves construct their ethnic culture.
Project management: Prof. Dr. Stephanie Hemelryk Donald (University of Sydney)

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