Sexualization

The definition of the term, Sexualization has been the subject of debate and dispute. It has been described as the act or process of sexualizing. It refers to the making of a person, group or thing to be seen as sexual in nature^[1] or a person to become aware of sexuality. It can also refer to the making of an interpersonal relationship into a sexual relationship. It has also been used to describe the broad set of ways in which sex has become more visible in media and culture, as a subject of discussion and representation.

A number of reports on sexualization have been produced since 2006. Amongst these are the Australian Senate Report (2007), the American Psychological Association Report (2007), the UK Home Office Report (2010), and the UK Bailey Review (2011). The Australian writers, Catharine Lumby and Kath Albury (2010) have suggested that sexualization is 'a debate that has been simmering for almost a decade' and concerns about sex and the media are far from new. Much of the recent writing on sexualization has been the subject of criticism that because of the way that it draws on ‘one-sided, selective, overly simplifying, generalizing, and negatively toned’ evidence (Vanwesenbeeck 2009) and is ‘saturated in the languages of concern and regulation’ (Smith 2010). In these writings and the widespread press coverage that they have attracted, the term is often used as ‘a non sequitur causing everything from girls flirting with older men to child sex trafficking’ (Egan and Hawkes 2008). They often ignore feminist work on media, gender and the body and present a very conservative and negative view of sex in which only monogamous heterosexual sexuality is regarded as normal (Lerum and Dworkin 2009). They tend to neglect any historical understanding of the way sex has been represented and regulated, and they often ignore both theoretical and empirical work on the relationship between sex and media, culture and technology (Egan and Hawkes 2009, Buckingham et al. 2009).

Popular books on sexualization

A number of books on sexualization have appeared in recent years: the best known of these is Ariel Levy's (2005) Female Chauvinist Pigs, but others include Pamela Paul's Pornified (2005), Carol Platt Liebau’s (2007) ‘’Prude’’, Meenakshi Gigi Durham's (2008) The Lolita Effect, and Sarracino & Scott’s The Porning of America (2008). These generally focus on sexualization as a social problem and particularly on what they regard as the inappropriate sexualization of women and girls. In 2011, sexualisation author Tanith Carey published the first dedicated guide for parents on the subject: "Where Has My Little Girl Gone? How to Protect Your Daughter From Growing Up Too Soon."

Reports on sexualization

There have been a number of reports such as the Australian report on ‘corporate paedophilia’ (Rush & La Nauze, 2006) and the American Psychological Association report (2007).

However, in 2010 the Scottish Executive released a report External research on sexualised goods aimed at children. It considers the drawbacks of the US and Australian reviews. “[T]here is no indication [in the APA report] that the media might contain any positive images about human relationships, or that children might critically evaluate what they see.”

The Scottish review also notes that “[s]uch accounts often present the sexualisation of children as a relatively recent development, but it is by no means a new issue … While the public visibility of the issue, and the terms in which it is defined, may have changed, sexualised representations of children cannot be seen merely as a consequence of contemporary consumerism.” It also notes that previous coverage “rests on moral assumptions … that are not adequately explained or justified.”

Cultural studies work on sexualization

Sexualization has also been a subject of debate for academics who work in media and cultural studies. Here, the term has not been used to simply to label what is seen as a social problem, but to indicate the much broader and varied set of ways in which sex has become more visible in media and culture. These include; the widespread discussion of sexual values, practices and identities in the media; the growth of sexual media of all kinds; for example, erotica, slash fiction, sexual self-help books and the many genres of pornography; the emergence of new forms of sexual experience, for example instant message or avatar sex made possible by developments in technology; a public concern with the breakdown of consensus about regulations for defining and dealing with obscenity; the prevalence of scandals, controversies and panics around sex in the media ^[2].

The terms 'pornification' and ‘pornographication’ have also been used to describe the way that aesthetics that were previously associated with pornography have become part of popular culture, and that mainstream media texts and other cultural practices ‘citing pornographic styles, gestures and aesthetics’ have become more prominent ^[3]. This process, which Brian McNair has described as a 'pornographication of the mainstream' ^[4], has developed alongside an expansion of the cultural realm of pornography or 'pornosphere' which itself has become more accessible to a much wider variety of audiences. According to McNair, both developments can be set in the context of a wider shift towards a 'striptease culture' which has disrupted the boundaries between public and private discourse in late modern Western culture, and which is evident more generally in cultural trends which privilege lifestyle, reality, interactivity, self-revelation and public intimacy.^[5]

American Psychological Association view

Definition

The American Psychological Association (APA) regards a person as being sexualized in any of the following situations:

• a person’s value comes only from his or her sexual appeal or sexual behavior, to the exclusion of other characteristics;
• a person is held to a standard that equates physical attractiveness (narrowly defined) with being sexy;
• a person is sexually objectified—that is, made into a thing for others’ sexual use, rather than seen as a person with the capacity for independent action and decision making; and/or
• sexuality is inappropriately imposed upon a person.^[6]

Children

Some cultural critics have postulated that over recent decades children have evidenced a level of sexual knowledge or sexual behaviour inappropriate for their age group.^[7]

The causes of this premature sexualization that have been cited include portrayals in the media of sex and related issues, especially in media aimed at children; the marketing of products with sexual connotations to children, including clothing;^[8] the lack of parental oversight and discipline; access to adult culture via the internet; and the lack of comprehensive school sex education programs.^[9]

For girls and young women in particular, studies have found that sexualization has a negative impact on their “self-image and healthy development”.^[10]

Cognitive and emotional consequences

Studies have found that thinking about the body and comparing it to sexualized cultural ideals may disrupt a girl's mental concentration, and a girl's sexualization or objectification may undermine her confidence in and comfort with her own body, leading to emotional and self-image problems, such as shame and anxiety.^[6]

Mental and physical health

Research has linked sexualization with three of the most common mental health problems diagnosed in girls and women: eating disorders, low self-esteem, and depression or depressed mood.^[6]

Sexual development

Research suggests that the sexualization of girls has negative consequences on girls’ ability to develop a healthy sexual self-image.^[6]

Sexualization in products for children

Some commercial products seen as promoting the sexualization of children have drawn considerable media attention:

• Bratz Baby dolls that wear thongs.
• Girls aged 10 and 11 wearing thongs in primary school.^[11]
• Padded bras on bikinis aimed at seven-year-olds.^[12] Some people regard training bras similarly. However there is also evidence that with the mean age of puberty declining in Western cultures, functional brassieres are required by a higher percentage of preteen girls than before.^[13]

The report by the Scottish Executive surveyed 32 high street UK retailers and found that many of the larger chains, including Tesco, Debenhams, JJ Sports, and Marks & Spencer did not contain sexualised goods aimed at children. The report noted that overall prevalence was limited.

See also

• Child sexuality
• Sexualism
• Bratz
• Miss Bimbo
• Sexual objectification
• Social impact of thong underwear
• Pornified
• Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture

References

1. ^ "The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition" (2000)
2. ^ Attwood, Feona (2006). ‘Sexed Up: Theorizing the Sexualization of Culture.’ ‘’Sexualities’’ 9(1), pp. 77-94. and Attwood, Feona (ed.) (2009) Mainstreaming Sex: The Sexualization of Western Culture. London & New York: I.B.Tauris.
3. ^ Paasonen, Susanna et al. (eds.) (2007) Pornification: Sex and Sexuality in Media Culture. Oxford: Berg.
4. ^ McNair, Brian (2002) Striptease Culture: Sex, Media and the Democratization of Desire. London & New York: Routledge.
5. ^ McNair, Brian (2002) Striptease Culture: Sex, Media and the Democratization of Desire. London & New York: Routledge.
6. ^ ^{a b c d} APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls (2007-02-19). "Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls, Executive Summary". American Psychological Association. http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/sexualizationsum.html. Retrieved February 22, 2007. "There are several components to sexualization, and these set it apart from healthy sexuality." 
7. ^ Kaeser, Fred (2001-10-30). "The effects of increasing sexualization on children". Towards a Better Understanding of Children's Sexual Behavior. NYU Child Study Center. http://aboutourkids.med.nyu.edu/aboutour/articles/sexual.html#effects. Retrieved February 22, 2007. "We know that exposure to sexualized messages, particularly those that are incomprehensible, can have several effects on children." 
8. ^ [|Chambers, Suzanna] (2002-04-14). "Outrage as Argos sells G-strings for children". the Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=109621&in_page_id=1770). Retrieved February 22, 2007. "High Street chain Argos has been branded irresponsible for promoting a range of sexually provocative lingerie designed for primary schoolgirls." 
9. ^ APA, 2007; Lamb, 2006
10. ^ APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls (2007-02-19). "Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls". American Psychological Association. http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/sexualization.html. Retrieved February 22, 2007. "The proliferation of sexualized images of girls and young women in advertising, merchandising, and media is harming girls’ self-image and healthy development. This report explores the cognitive and emotional consequences, consequences for mental and physical health, and impact on development of a healthy sexual self-image." 
11. ^ "Pupils warned not to wear thongs". BBC News. 2003-05-28. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2943874.stm. Retrieved February 22, 2007. "Parents have been urged by a head teacher to stop their daughters wearing thongs to a primary school." 
12. ^ The Age, 16 April 2010: Outrage at girls' padded bikinis
13. ^ Aksglaede L, Sorensen K, Petersen JH, Skakkebaek NE & Juul A. (2009) Recent decline in age at breast development: the Copenhagen Puberty Study. Pediatrics 123, e932–e939.

• Gil, E. & Cavanagh Johnson, T. (1993). Sexualized children – Assessment and treatment of sexualized children and children who molest. Launch Press.

Further reading

Albury, K. and Lumby, C. 2010. Too much? Too young? The sexualisation of children debate in Australia. Media International Australia 135, 141-152.

Attwood, F. (2006) ‘Sexed up: Theorizing the Sexualization of Culture’, Sexualities 9(1): 77-94.

Attwood, F. (2009) Mainstreaming Sex: The Sexualization of Western Culture. London: I.B. Tauris.

Buckingham, D. & Bragg, S. (2004) Young People, Sex and the Media: The Facts of Life?. Basingstoke & New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Buckingham, D., Bragg, S., Russell, R. and Willett, R. 2009. Sexualised goods aimed at children. Report for the Scottish Parliament Equal Opportunities Committee. The Scottish Parliament. http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/committees/equal/reports-10/eor10-02.htm.

Duits, L. & van Zoonen, L. (2006) ‘Headscarves and Porno-Chic: Disciplining Girls' Bodies in the European Multicultural Society’, European Journal of Women’s Studies 13(2): 103-117.

Egan, R. D. & Hawkes, G. (2009) 'The problem with protection: Or, why we need to move towards recognition and the sexual agency of children', Continuum 23(3: 389-400.

Egan, R. D. & Hawkes, G. (2008) ‘Endangered girls and incendiary objects: Unpacking the discourse on sexualization’, Sexuality and Culture 12(4): 291-311.

Evans, A., Riley, S., & Shankar, A. (2010). Technologies of Sexiness: Theorizing Women's Engagement in the Sexualization of Culture. Feminism and Psychology, 20(1), 114-131.

Gill, R. (2003) ‘From Sexual Objectification to Sexual Subjectification: The Resexualisation of Women’s Bodies in the Media’, Feminist Media Studies 3(1): 100-106.

Hawkes, G. & Egan, R.D. (2008) ‘Landscapes of erotophobia: The sexual(ized) child in the postmodern anglophone West’, Sexuality and Culture 12(4): 193-203.

Lerum, K and Dworkin, S.L. 2009. ‘Bad girls rule’: An interdisciplinary feminist commentary on the report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls’, Journal of Sex Research 46(4), 250-263.McNair, B. (1996) Mediated Sex: Pornography and Postmodern Culture. London & New York: Arnold.

McNair, B. (2002) Striptease Culture: Sex, Media and the Democratization of Desire. London & New York: Routledge.

Onscenity Research Network posts on sexualization, http://www.onscenity.org/sexualization/

Paasonen, S. et al. (eds.) (2007) Pornification: Sex and Sexuality in Media Culture. Oxford: Berg.

Smith, C. 2010a. Pornographication: A discourse for all seasons. International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics 6(1), 103-108.

Vanwesenbeeck, I. 2009. The risks and rights of sexualization: An appreciative commentary on Lerum and Dworkin’s ‘Bad girls rule’. Journal of Sex Research 46(4), 268-270.

• "Invasion of the Prostitots: Another moral panic about American girls" by Kerry Howley, Reason, July 2007.