A new study was done to understand the impact of ultra-thin dolls in kids and has proved that the Ultrathin dolls could be harmful to young girls distorting their perception of body image.
According to a study reported on Wednesday in the journal Body Image, researchers observed, 5- to 9-year-old girls playing with ultrathin dolls were more likely to want a lean body. The study also suggests that teens will have a negative body image and may undergo depression as adults.
The author, Lynda Boothroyd, professor, and director of research at the department of psychology at Durham University in the United Kingdom said. the ultrathin dolls depict a source of thin ideals, which could drive to long-term body dissatisfaction in young girls,
“Body dissatisfaction in childhood can persist into adolescence and later on” and can add to weight gain and eating disorders, she said.
Thirty participants were asked about their anticipated and ideal body sizes using pictures on a computer before being allowed to play with dolls, either ultrathin or realistically childlike.
After girls engaged with either the ultrathin or childlike dolls for five minutes, they replied to the same body-image questions. The children’s ideal-self body mass index lessened significantly after playing with ultrathin dolls but had no notable change if they played with the childlike dolls.
The results of the study weren’t overwhelming to Boothroyd. She said she’d seen other studies about how doll size can alter body ideals, “though it gave me quite an emotional lurch to see the results on screen the first time.” Her study continues to this body of proof showing young girls are negatively influenced by exposure to toys that portray the female body unrealistically.
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