AP Research

Most people hold a special place in their heart for the cartoons they used to watch as kids. That is because cartoons have a strong impact on the way that kids think. However, this can be concerning due to cartoons’ ability to feed children information that can potentially impact the way they view gender constructs and norms. For my project, I will be looking at the amount of times female characters are shown doing traditional female gender stereotypical actions, such as taking care of a baby, cooking, or even cleaning. I will use three different cartoons and analyze the actions female characters are portrayed doing. For each separate cartoon I will be looking at five different episodes over time to see if there is an improvement in the industry or not. By codifying each episode, I will be able to analyze if there is a positive or negative trend in the amount of female gender stereotypical actions. I expect to find that over time, the amount of stereotypical actions shown on children’s cartoons have decreased, however it is still pretty prevalent. I hope, through my research, to prove that this is an existing issue, and even though companies have put some effort towards it, there is still much to be improved. This is often overlooked since it pertains mainly to kids' perception of gender roles. However, it has shown to be influential, and can improve the next generation’s view of strict gender roles.