View source for Sexualization

{{Short description|To make something sexual in character}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}

{{Globalize|article|United States|discuss=Talk:Sexualization/Archive 1#Geobias should be addressed|date=July 2021}}

'''Sexualization''' ('''sexualisation''' in Commonwealth English) is the emphasis of the [[Human sexuality|sexual]] nature of a behavior or person.<ref name="Sexualization">{{cite web | title = Sexualization (definition) | publisher= [[Collins English Dictionary]]| access-date = 30 September 2013 | url = http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/sexualization}}</ref><ref name="Sexualize">{{cite web | title = Sexualize | publisher = [[Merriam-Webster]] | access-date = 30 September 2013 | url = http://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/sexualize}}</ref> Sexualization is linked to [[sexual objectification]], treating a person solely as an object of sexual desire. According to the [[American Psychological Association]], sexualization occurs when "individuals are regarded as sex objects and evaluated in terms of their physical characteristics and sexiness."<ref name=Dewar>{{cite web | last = Dewar | first = Gwen | title = The sexualization of girls: Is the popular culture harming our kids? | url = http://www.parentingscience.com/sexualization-of-girls.html | website = parentingscience.com | publisher = Parenting Science | date = October 2012 }}</ref> "In study after study, findings have indicated that women more often than men are portrayed in a sexual manner (e.g., dressed in revealing clothing, with bodily postures or facial expressions that imply sexual readiness) and are objectified (e.g., used as a decorative object, or as body parts rather than a whole person). In addition, a narrow (and unrealistic) standard of physical beauty is heavily emphasized. These are the models of femininity presented for young girls to study and emulate."<ref name="APA">{{cite report | author=APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls| date=February 1, 2008| title=Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls| publisher=American Psychological Association| url=https://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/girls/report}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Peter | first1 = Jochen | last2 = Valkenburg | first2 = Patti M. | title = Adolescents' exposure to a sexualized media environment and their notions of women as sex objects | journal = [[Sex Roles (journal)|Sex Roles]] | volume = 56 | issue = 5 | pages = 383–384 | date = March 2007 | doi=10.1007/s11199-006-9176-y | doi-access = free }} [https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs11199-006-9176-y.pdf Pdf.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180117070212/https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs11199-006-9176-y.pdf |date=17 January 2018 }}</ref>

== Culture and media ==
{{for|more on the mainstreaming of sex in media and culture|Pornification}}
Sexualization has been a subject of debate for academics who work in media and [[cultural studies]]. Frederick Attenborough states the term has not been used 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.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Attenborough | first1 = Frederick T. | title = Complicating the sexualization thesis: The media, gender and 'sci-candy'|journal = [[Discourse & Society]] | volume = 22| issue = 6| pages = 659–675 | doi = 10.1177/0957926511411693 | date = November 2011 | jstor = 42890113 | s2cid = 144244885 | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/42890113| access-date=August 13, 2023| url-access = subscription }}</ref> These include:
the widespread discussion of sexual values, practices and identities in the media;<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Attenborough | first1 = Frederick T. | title = Discourse analysis and sexualisation: a study of scientists in the media |journal = Critical Discourse Studies | volume = 10| issue = 2| pages = 223–236 | doi = 10.1080/17405904.2012.736704 | date = 2013 | s2cid = 144614399 | url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17405904.2012.736704| access-date=August 13, 2023| url-access = subscription }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Attwood | first1 = Feona | title = Sexed up: theorizing the sexualization of culture | journal = [[Sexualities (journal)|Sexualities]] | volume = 9 | issue = 1 | pages = 77–94 | doi = 10.1177/1363460706053336 | date = February 2006 | citeseerx = 10.1.1.452.7825 | s2cid = 677691 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last = Attwood | first = Feona | title = Mainstreaming sex the sexualization of Western culture | publisher = I.B. Tauris | location = London | year = 2009 | isbn = 9781845118273 }}</ref>

According to the Media Education Foundation's documentary ''[[Killing Us Softly|Killing Us Softly 4: Advertising's Image of Women]]'', the sexualization of girls in media and the ways women are portrayed in the dominant culture are detrimental to the development of young girls as they are developing their identities and understanding themselves as sexual beings.<ref name=Kilbourne >{{cite AV media | people= [[Jean Kilbourne]] (writer/presenter), [[Sut Jhally]] (director) and David Rabinovitz | date= 2010 | access-date= 30 December 2015 | title= Killing Us Softly 4: Advertising's Image of Women | medium= Video | url = https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2507550/ | publisher= [[Media Education Foundation]] | location = Northampton, Massachusetts }}</ref>

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.<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Paasonen | first1 = Susanna | last2 = Nikunen | first2 = Kaarina |last3 = Saarenmaa | first3 = Laura | author-link1 = Susanna Paasonen | title = Pornification: sex and sexuality in media culture | publisher = Berg | location = Oxford New York | year = 2007 | isbn = 9781845207045 }}</ref> This process, which Brian McNair has described as a "pornographication of the mainstream".<ref name=McNair>{{cite book | last = McNair | first = Brian | title = Striptease culture sex, media and the democratization of desire | publisher = Routledge | location = London New York | year = 2002 | isbn = 9780415237345 }}</ref> 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.<ref name=McNair />

=== Criticism ===
The Australian writers, [[Catharine Lumby]] and Kath Albury (2010)<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Lumby | first1 = Catharine | last2 = Albury | first2 = Kath | title = Introduction: children, young people, sexuality and the media | journal = Media International Australia | volume = 135 | issue = 1 | pages = 56–60 | doi = 10.1177/1329878X1013500108 | date = May 2010 | s2cid = 146153727 }}</ref> 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<ref name="Vanwesenbeeck2009">{{cite journal | last = Vanwesenbeeck | first = Ine | title = The risks and rights of sexualization: an appreciative commentary on Lerum and Dworkin's "''Bad Girls Rule''" | journal = [[Journal of Sex Research]] | volume = 46 | issue = 4 | pages = 268–270 | doi = 10.1080/00224490903082694 | pmid = 19657946 | date = July 2009 | s2cid = 26026911 }}
* ''A commentary on'': {{cite journal | last1 = Lerum | first1 = Kari | last2 = Dworkin | first2 = Shari L. | title = "Bad Girls Rule": an interdisciplinary feminist commentary on the Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls | journal = [[Journal of Sex Research]] | volume = 46 | issue = 4 | pages = 250–263 | doi = 10.1080/00224490903079542 | pmid = 19657944 | date = July 2009 | s2cid = 24616468 }}</ref> and is "saturated in the languages of concern and regulation".<ref name="Smith2010">{{cite journal | last = Smith | first = Clarissa | title = Pornographication: a discourse for all seasons | journal = International Journal of Media & Cultural Politics | volume = 6 | issue = 1 | pages = 103–108 | doi = 10.1386/macp.6.1.103/3 | date = January 2010 | url = http://sure.sunderland.ac.uk/6099/1/Smith2010.pdf | type = Submitted manuscript }}</ref> In these writings and the widespread press coverage that they have attracted, critics state that the term is often used as "a non-sequitur causing everything from girls flirting with older men to child sex trafficking"<ref name="EganHawkes2008">{{cite journal | last1 = Egan | first1 = R. Danielle | last2 = Hawkes | first2 = Gail L. | title = Endangered girls and incendiary objects: unpacking the discourse on sexualization | journal = Sexuality & Culture | volume = 12 | issue = 4 | pages = 291–311 | doi = 10.1007/s12119-008-9036-8 | date = December 2008 | s2cid = 144988236 }}</ref> They believe that the arguments 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.<ref name="LerumDworkin2009">{{cite journal | last1 = Lerum | first1 = Kari | last2 = Dworkin | first2 = Shari L. | title = "Bad Girls Rule": an interdisciplinary feminist commentary on the Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls | journal = [[Journal of Sex Research]] | volume = 46 | issue = 4 | pages = 250–263 | doi = 10.1080/00224490903079542 | pmid = 19657944 | date = July 2009 | s2cid = 24616468 }}</ref> They say that the arguments 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.<ref name=Scot>{{Cite report | last1 = Buckingham | first1 = D. | last2 = Bragg | first2 = S. | last3 = Russell | first3 = R. | last4 = Willett | first4 = R. | title = Sexualised goods aimed at children | journal = Report for the Scottish Parliament Equal Opportunities Committee. The Scottish Parliament | year = 2009 | url = http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/committees/equal/reports-10/eor10-02.htm | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110826102758/http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/committees/equal/reports-10/eor10-02.htm | archive-date = 26 August 2011 }}</ref><ref name=EganHawkes2008 />

The way society shapes ones personal interest is presented in a book review of ''Girls Gone Skank'' by [[Patrice Oppliger]],<ref>{{cite book | last = Oppliger | first = Patrice | author-link = Patrice Oppliger | title = Girls gone skank: the sexualization of girls in American culture | year = 2008 | publisher = McFarland and Company Inc. | location = Jefferson, North Carolina | isbn = 9780786435227 }}</ref> Amanda Mills states that "consequently, girls are socialized to participate in their own abuse by becoming avid consumers of and altering their behavior to reflect sexually exploitative images and goods."<ref>{{cite journal | last = Mills | first = Amanda | title = Book review: "''Girls gone skank: the sexualization of girls in American culture''" by Patrice Oppliger | journal = [[Feminist Review]] | volume = 99 | issue = 1 | pages = e16–e17 | doi = 10.1057/fr.2011.45 | date = November 2011 | doi-access = free }}</ref> The belief that women are powerful and fully capable as men is stated in the text "Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic As Power" by [[Audre Lorde]] stating that the suppression of [[The Erotic|the erotic]] of women has led them feeling superior to men "the superficially, erotic had been encouraged as a sign of female inferiority on the other hand women have been made to suffer and to feel opposed contemptible and suspect by virtue of its existence".<ref>{{cite book | last = Lorde | first = Audre | author-link = Audre Lorde | title = Uses of the erotic: the erotic as power | publisher = Kore Press | location = Tucson, Arizona | year = 2000 | orig-year = 1984 | isbn = 9781888553109 }}
* ''Also available as'': {{citation | last = Lorde | first = Audre | author-link = Audre Lorde | contribution = Uses of the erotic: the erotic as power | editor-last1 = Kirk | editor-first1 = Gwyn | editor-last2 = Okazawa-Rey | editor-first2 = Margo | title = Women's lives: multicultural perspectives | pages = 168–172 | publisher = McGraw-Hill | location = New York, New York | year = 2010 | isbn = 9780073512303 | postscript = .}}</ref>

== Effects on children ==
Children and adolescents spend more time engaging with media than any other age group. This is a time in their life that they are more susceptible to information that they receive. Children are getting sex education from the media, little kids are exposed to sexualized images and more information than ever before in human history but are not able to process the information, they are not developmentally ready to process it, and this impacts their development and behavior.<ref name=Kilbourne />

Sexualization of young girls in the media and infantilization of women creates an environment where it becomes more acceptable to view children as "seductive and sexy".<ref name=Kilbourne /> It makes having healthy sexual relationships more difficult for people and creates sexist attitudes.

Some [[cultural critic]]s have postulated that over recent decades children have evidenced a level of sexual knowledge or sexual behaviour inappropriate for their age group.<ref>{{cite book | last = Kaeser | first = Fred | title = Towards a better understanding of children's sexual behavior | url = https://www.psychologytoday.com/files/attachments/74965/towardsabetterunderstandingofchildrenssexualbehavior.pdf | publisher = NYU Child Study Center | date = 30 October 2001 | quote = We know that exposure to sexualized messages, particularly those that are incomprehensible, can have several effects on children. }} ''Fred Kaeser Ed.D. is the Director of Health Services for Community School District Two, NYC.''</ref>

=== Australia ===
In 2006, an Australian report called ''Corporate paedophilia: sexualisation of children in Australia''<ref name=Australia>{{cite report | last1=Rush | first1=Emma | last2=La Nauze | first2=Andrea | author-link1=Emma Rush| title=Corporate paedophilia: the sexualisation of children in Australia (discussion paper number 90)| journal=Population Ageing: Crisis or Transition? | date=2006 | publisher= The Australian Institute | location = Canberra | oclc= 156752334 | issn= 1322-5421| url=http://www.tai.org.au/documents/downloads/DP90.pdf| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180516001004/http://www.tai.org.au/documents/downloads/DP90.pdf| archive-date=May 16, 2018}}</ref> was published. The Australian report summarises its conclusion as follows:

Images of sexualised children are becoming increasingly common in advertising and marketing material. Children who appear aged 12 years and under are dressed, posed and made up in the same way as sexy adult models. Children that appear on magazines are seen older than they really are because of the sexualised clothes they are given to pose in. "Corporate paedophilia" is a metaphor used to describe advertising and marketing that sexualises children in these ways.

=== European Union ===
In 2012, a draft report a [[European Parliament]] resolution gave the following definition of sexualization: <blockquote>[S]exualisation consists of an instrumental approach to a person by perceiving that person as an object for sexual use disregarding the person's dignity and personality traits, with the person's worth being measured in terms of the level of sexual attractiveness; sexualisation also involves the  imposition of the sexuality of adult persons on girls, who are emotionally, psychologically and physically unprepared for this at their particular stage of development; sexualisation not being the normal, healthy, biological development 

of the sexuality of a person, conditioned by the individual process of development and taking place at the appropriate time for each particular individual<ref name="EU">{{cite book |last=Skrzydlewska |first=Joanna |url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meetdocs/2009_2014/documents/femm/pr/904/904064/904064en.pdf |title=Draft report on the sexualization of girls |date=20 June 2012 |publisher=European Parliament Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality |author-link=Joanna Skrzydlewska |access-date=August 13, 2023}}</ref></blockquote>

=== Scotland ===
However, in 2010, the [[Scottish Executive]] released a report titled ''External research on sexualised goods aimed at children''.<ref name=Scot /> The report considers the drawbacks of the United States and Australian reviews, concluding:

{{Blockquote|[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:

{{Blockquote|[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."<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Mayo | first1 = Ed | last2 = Nairn | first2 = Agnes | author-link1 = Ed Mayo | title = Consumer kids: how big business is grooming our children for profit | publisher = Constable | location = London | year = 2009 | isbn = 9781845298807 }}</ref>

=== United Kingdom ===
The report 'Letting Children Be Children',<ref name=BaileyR>{{cite book | last = Bailey | first = Reg | title = Letting children be children: report of an independent review of the commercialisation and sexualisation of childhood | publisher = The Stationery Office | location = London | year = 2011 | isbn = 9780101807821 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zYy2axPkVY0C| access-date=August 13, 2023}}</ref> also known as the [[Bailey Review]], is a report commissioned by the UK government on the subject of the commercialisation and sexualisation of childhood.<ref>{{cite book|last1=NSPCC | author-link1 =NSPCC |title= Premature sexualisation: understanding the risks: outcomes of the NSPCC's expert seminar series |date= 2011 | publisher= NSPCC | location= London | url=https://www.nspcc.org.uk/globalassets/documents/information-service/seminars-premature-sexualisation-understanding-risks.pdf| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104153943/https://www.nspcc.org.uk/globalassets/documents/information-service/seminars-premature-sexualisation-understanding-risks.pdf |archive-date=4 January 2021 }}</ref>

=== United States ===
As early as 1997, reports found that sexualization of younger children is becoming more common in advertisements.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = O'Donohue | first1 = William | last2 = Gold | first2 = Steven R. | last3 = McKay | first3 = J. Sean | author-link1 = William O'Donohue | title = Children as sexual objects: historical and gender trends in magazines | journal = [[Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment]] | volume = 9 | issue = 4 | pages = 291–301 | doi = 10.1177/107906329700900403 | date = October 1997 | s2cid = 145272581 }}</ref>

The causes of this premature sexualization include portrayals in the media of sex and related issues, especially in media aimed at children; the lack of parental oversight and [[discipline]]; access to adult culture via the internet; and the lack of comprehensive school [[sex education]] programs.<ref name=Lamb_Therapy>{{cite book | last = Lamb | first = Sharon | author-link1 = Sharon Lamb | title = Sex, therapy, and kids: addressing their concerns through talk and play | publisher = W.W. Norton & Co | location = New York | year = 2006 | isbn = 9780393704792 }}</ref>

In 2007, the [[American Psychological Association]] (APA) first published ''Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls'', which has had periodic updates. The report looked at the cognitive and emotional consequences of sexualization and the consequences for mental and physical health, and impact on development of a healthy sexual self-image. The report considers that a person is sexualized in 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 [[sexual objectification|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.<ref name="APA"/>

Research has linked the sexualization of young girls to negative consequences for girls and society as a whole, finding that the viewing of sexually objectifying material can contribute to body dissatisfaction, eating disorders, low self-esteem, depression, and depressive affect. Medical and social science researchers generally deployed "sexualization" to refer to a liminal zone between sexual abuse and normal family life, in which the child's relationship with their parents was characterized by an "excessive", improper sexuality, even though no recognizable forms of abuse had occurred. The American Psychological Association also argues that the sexualization of young girls contributes to sexist attitudes within society and a societal tolerance of sexual violence as well as that [[consumerism]] and [[globalization]] have led to the sexualization of girls occurring across all [[advanced economies]], in media and advertisements, to clothing and toys marketed for young girls.<ref name="APA" />

The APA cites the following as advertising techniques that contribute to the sexualization of girls:<ref name="APA" />
* Including girls in ads with sexualized women wearing matching clothing or posed seductively.
* Dressing girls up to look like adult women.
* Dressing women down to look like young girls.
* The employment of youthful celebrity adolescents in highly sexual ways to promote or endorse products.

The APA additionally further references the teen magazine market by citing a study by [[Donald F. Roberts|Roberts]] ''et al'' that found that "47% of 8- to 18-year-old [girls] reported having read at least 5 minutes of a magazine the previous day."<ref>{{cite report |last1= Roberts |first1= Donald F. |last2= Foehr |first2= Ulla G. |last3= Rideout |first3= Victoria | author-link1 = Donald F. Roberts | date = March 2005 | title = Generation M: media in the lives of 8-18-year olds | url = http://kff.org/other/generation-m-media-in-the-lives-of/ | publisher = [[Kaiser Family Foundation]] | location = Menlo Park, California }} [https://kaiserfamilyfoundation.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/generation-m-media-in-the-lives-of-8-18-year-olds-report.pdf Pdf.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215021337/https://kaiserfamilyfoundation.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/generation-m-media-in-the-lives-of-8-18-year-olds-report.pdf |date=15 February 2017 }}</ref>

A majority of these magazines focused on a theme of presenting oneself as sexually desirable to men, a practice which is called "costuming for seduction" in a study by Duffy and Gotcher.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1= Duffy |first1= Margaret |last2= Gotcher |first2= J. Micheal | title = Crucial advice on how to get the guy: the rhetorical vision of power and seduction in the teen magazine ''YM'' | journal = [[Journal of Communication Inquiry]] | volume = 20 | issue = 1 | page = 38 | date = April 1996 | url = http://jci.sagepub.com/content/by/year |doi= 10.1177/019685999602000103 |s2cid= 141847161 | url-access = subscription }} [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281903852_Crucial_Advice_on_How_to_Get_the_Guy ResearchGate pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180719054604/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281903852_Crucial_Advice_on_How_to_Get_the_Guy |date=19 July 2018 }}.</ref>

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.<ref name="APA" />

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.<ref name="APA" />

Research suggests that the sexualization of girls has negative consequences on girls' ability to develop a healthy sexual self-image.<ref name="APA" />

In 2012, an American study found that self-sexualization was common among 6–9-year-old girls. Girls overwhelmingly chose the sexualized doll over the non-sexualized doll for their ideal self and as popular. However other factors, such as how often mothers talked to their children about what is going on in television shows and maternal religiosity, reduced those odds. Surprisingly, the mere quantity of girls' [[media consumption]] (television and movies) was unrelated to their self-sexualization for the most part; rather, maternal self-objectification and maternal religiosity moderated its effects.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Starr | first1 = Christine | last2 = Ferguson | first2 = Gail | title = Sexy dolls, sexy grade-schoolers? Media & maternal influences on young girls' self-sexualization | journal = [[Sex Roles (journal)|Sex Roles]] | volume = 67 | issue = 7–8 | pages = 463–476 | doi = 10.1007/s11199-012-0183-x | date = October 2012 | s2cid = 144196586 | url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232686658 }}</ref>

A result of the sexualization of girls in the media is that young girls are "learning how to view themselves as sex objects".<ref name=Dewar /> When girls fail to meet the [[thin ideal]] and dominant culture's standard of beauty they can develop anxieties.<ref name=Dewar /> Sexualization is problematic for young children who are developing their sexual identity as they may think that turning themselves into sex objects is empowering and related to having sexual agency.<ref name=Kilbourne />

==== Products for children ====
Some commercial products seen as promoting the sexualization of children have drawn considerable media attention:
* A number of doll lines have drawn controversy. The original ''[[Bratz]]'' Dolls, marketed to children as old as 12, were considered by at least one preteen to be “sexy” and were noted for their more mature styles such as shrunken sweaters, shredded jeans, and other suggestive clothing. They were noted in a New York Times article to “look as though they might be at home on any street corner where prostitutes ply their trade.”<ref>{{cite news | last = La Ferla | first = Ruth | title = NOTICED; Underdressed And Hot: Dolls Moms Don't Love | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/26/style/noticed-underdressed-and-hot-dolls-moms-don-t-love.html?searchResultPosition=22 | work = [[New York Times]] | location = US | date = 26 October 2003 | access-date = 2 June 2024}}</ref> ''Bratz Baby'' Dolls marketed at 6-year-old girls that feature sexualized clothing, like fishnet stockings, feather boas, and miniskirts also advertised fashion similar to that of the mainline "Bratz" line.<ref name=Dewar /> The [[My Scene]] [[Barbie]] line, aiming for children in the 8-12 age demographic as the answer to the ''Bratz'' line, also drew criticism as the dolls wore [[Low-rise (fashion)|low-rise]] pants, revealed the navel, and wore lots of makeup.<ref>{{cite news | last = Stauffer | first = Cindy | title = Hey, who's the trampy-looking chick with the belly bracelet? | url = https://lancasteronline.com/opinion/hey-whos-the-trampy-looking-chick-with-the-belly-bracelet/article_c9213741-b625-5652-899a-166ac537ad25.html | work = Lancaster Online | publisher = Lancaster Online | location = US | date = 17 December 2002 | access-date = 2 June 2024}}</ref>  
* Highly sexualized and gendered Halloween costumes marketed at young girls, such as the "sexy firefighter", a costume that consists of a tight fitted mini dress and high heeled boots. A girl’s version of a policy officer costume also designed similarly.<ref>{{cite news | last = Delisle | first = Riana | title = Halloween costumes are sexualizing our youngest trick-or-treaters | url = https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/raina-delisle/halloween-costumes-sexy-inappropriate_b_6006922.html | work = [[The Huffington Post]] | publisher = [[AOL]] | location = Canada | date = 18 October 2014 }}</ref> Costumes made for somewhat older girls, such as those around ten-years-old, may be much shorter in length. Comparing and contrasting similar costumes designed by pre-tweens and tweens, the differences in costumes for the somewhat older girls was so dramatic that one observer noted that “According to the costume manufacturers of America, once a girl child reaches double digits, it is officially time for the Halloween hoochification process to begin.”<ref>{{cite news | last = Ferrier | first = Lindsay| title = Here's Proof That Tween Girl Halloween Costumes Are Way Too Sexed-Up| url = https://www.huffpost.com/entry/heres-proof-that-tween-girl-halloween-costumes-are-way-too-sexed-up_b_6062460 | work = [[Huffington Post]] | location = US | date = 29 October 2014 | access-date = 2 June 2024}}</ref>  
*[[Thong underwear]] designed by [[Abercrombie & Fitch]] made specifically for ten-year-olds. Released in 2002, the thongs were “adorned with the images of cherries and candy hearts and also include the words "‘kiss me’" and "‘wink, wink.’" While a company spokesman specifically stated that the thongs are not appropriate for children younger than ten, the thongs may have been small enough for girls as young as seven-years old to wear.<ref>{{cite news | last = Delgado | first = Ray| title = Retailer courts more outrage -- sexy undies for little girls / Abercrombie & Fitch offers thongs with adult allusions| url = https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/retailer-courts-more-outrage-sexy-undies-for-2833591.php | work = [[SFGate]] | publisher = [[SFGate]] | location = US | date = 23 May 2002 | access-date = 2 June 2024}}</ref> Despite the controversy, at least some of the thongs were sold; one Abercrombie clerk stated at a mother bought thongs for both of her daughters, who looked to be ten or younger, because all the others girls in their class had at least one.<ref>{{cite news | last = Stepp | first = Laura Session | title = Retailer courts more outrage -- sexy undies for little girls / Abercrombie & Fitch offers thongs with adult allusions| url = https://www.southcoasttoday.com/story/lifestyle/2002/06/18/nothing-to-wear-girls-fashions/50455678007/ | work = SouthCoastToday | publisher = SouthCoastToday | location = US | date = 18 June 2002 | access-date = 2 June 2024}}</ref> While the Abercrombie & Fitch thongs were eventually pulled, girls aged 10 and 11 wearing thongs in primary school became a regular enough occurrence in at least English school that the headmaster sent a letter asking parents to not allow their daughters to wear them.<ref>{{cite news | last = Staff writer | title = Pupils warned not to wear thongs | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2943874.stm | work = [[BBC News]] | publisher = [[BBC]] | location = UK | date = 28 May 2003 | access-date = 22 February 2007 | quote = Parents have been urged by a head teacher to stop their daughters wearing thongs to a primary school. }}</ref> In France, also in 2003, girls, some of them ten-years old, revealed [[whale tail|whale tails]] on their way to school by exposing their thong underwear above their pants.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-independent-thong-uproar-in-french-s/148603153/|title=Thong Uproar in French Schools |first=Eve |last=Thorsen |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |page=28 |date=October 11, 2003 |access-date=June 2, 2024 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
* Clothing such as T-shirts being marketed for young children in preschool and elementary school with printed slogans like "So Many Boys So Little Time."<ref name=Kilbourne /> Other examples include the retailer [[Big W]] selling T-shirts for young girls with the slogan “nice baubles” in 2014 and the UK-based company Twisted Tee selling t-shirts that had nipple pasties. Some onesies also drew controversy. A [[Target Corporation|Target]] onesie made for baby girls with the phrase “I only date heroes” and a TinyHaute Couture creating a cotton onesie for babies that had designs of a lace corset on it.<ref>{{cite news | last = Murano | first = Grace | title = 11 Inappropriate Pieces of Kids' Clothing| url = https://www.oddee.com/item_99244.aspx | work = Oddee | publisher = Oddee| location = US | date = 23 February 2015 | access-date = 2 June 2024}}</ref> 
*Clothing originally aimed at young adult women marketed to tweens. Advertised to tween girls since at least the year 2000,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-palm-beach-post-whats-hot-whats-n/148729109/ |title= What's hot what's not |first=Dale |last=Koppel |newspaper=The Palm Beach Post |page=336 |date=August 6, 2000 |access-date=June 4, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> low-rise jeans, tight-fitting miniskirts,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/wisconsin-state-journal-new-fashions-put/148725850/ |title= New fashions put parent vs. kid |first=Anne |last=D’Innocenzio |agency=[[Associated Press]] |newspaper=Wisconsin State Journal  |page=F1 |date=August 9, 2001 |access-date=June 4, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> and shirts that expose the midriff,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-des-moines-register-tweens-raise-b/148726303/ |title='Tweens' raise buying power as parents screen styles |first=Patt |last=Johnson |newspaper=Des Moines Register |page=15W |date=September 10, 2002 |access-date=June 4, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> once worn predominately by young adult women, became core fashion staples for many American tweens in the 8-12 age range in the 2000s.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-des-moines-register-tweens-raise-b/148726303/ |title='Tweens' raise buying power as parents screen styles |first=Patt |last=Johnson |newspaper=Des Moines Register |page=15W |date=September 10, 2002 |access-date=June 4, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/wisconsin-state-journal-new-fashions-put/148725850/ |title=New fashions put parent vs. kid |first=Anne |last=D’Innocenzio |agency=[[Associated Press]] |newspaper=Wisconsin State Journal  |page=F1 |date=August 9, 2001 |access-date=June 4, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> These styles, sold across the country, were so popular at one point that finding other styles for preteen girls became a difficult task for parents.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-paducah-sun-todays-teenagers-in-fas/148729742/ |title=Today's teenagers in fashion quandary |first=Angie |last=Kinsey |newspaper=The Paducah Sun |page=33 |date=September 5, 2003 |access-date=June 4, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
* Padded bras on bikinis aimed at seven-year-old girls. The bikinis were pulled after complaints in 2010. <ref>{{cite news | last = Barr | first = Robert (in London) | title = Outrage at girls' padded bikinis | url = http://www.theage.com.au/world/outrage-at-girls-padded-bikinis-20100415-shjf.html | work = [[The Age]] | publisher = [[Fairfax Media]] | location = Melbourne, Australia | date = 16 April 2010 }}</ref> While made for girls slightly older, previously, in 2006, an Australian Target began selling a lightly padded Target brand bra designed for girls as young as eight-years-old.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/sexy-sassy-still-in-primary-school/2006/12/22/1166290740883.html |title=Sexy, Sassy, Still in Primary School |work=Sydney Morning Herald|date=23 December 2006 |access-date=1 February 2011}}</ref> However, there is also evidence that with the mean age of puberty declining in Western cultures, a higher percentage of preteen girls will have enough breast development to justify wearing a functional brassier than ever before.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Aksglaede | first1 = Lise | last2 = Sørensen | first2 = Kaspar | last3 = Petersen | first3 = Jørgen H. | last4 = Skakkebæk | first4 = Niels E. | last5 = Juul | first5 = Anders | title = Recent decline in age at breast development: the Copenhagen Puberty Study | journal = [[Pediatrics (journal)|Pediatrics]] | volume = 123 | issue = 5 | pages = e932–e939 | doi = 10.1542/peds.2008-2491 | pmid = 19403485 | date = May 2009| s2cid = 207162497 }}</ref>

The [[Scottish Executive]] report<ref name=Scot /> surveyed 32 High street UK retailers and found that many of the larger chains, including [[Tesco]], Debenhams, JJ Sports, and [[Marks & Spencer]] did not offer sexualized goods aimed at children. The report noted that overall prevalence was limited but this was based on a very narrow research brief. Whilst this shows that not all High street retailers were aiming products deemed sexualized by the researchers, the research cannot be taken out of context and used to say that there is not an issue of sexualization.{{original research inline|date=September 2015}}

== Effects on non European Women ==
The media plays a significant role in the sexualization of women. "The media are likely to have powerful effects if the information is presented persistently, consistently, and corroborated among forms. As a media affect, stereotypes rely on the repetition to perpetuate and sustain them."<ref name="Eva">{{Cite journal | last = Merskin | first = Debra | title = Three faces of Eva: perpetuation of the hot-Latina stereotype in ''Desperate Housewives'' | journal = Howard Journal of Communications | volume = 18 | issue = 2 | pages = 133–151 | doi = 10.1080/10646170701309890 | date = 2007 | s2cid = 144571909 }}</ref> According to [[Celine Parrenas Shimizu]], "To see race is to see sex, and vice versa."<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal | last = Park | first = Samuel | title = ''The hypersexuality of race: performing Asian/American women on screen and scene'' (review) | journal = [[Theatre Journal]] | volume = 61 | issue = 2 | pages = 346–347 | doi = 10.1353/tj.0.0193 | date = May 2009 | s2cid = 191628417 }}
:''A review of:'' {{cite book | last = Shimizu | first = Celine Parreñas | author-link = Celine Parrenas Shimizu | title = The hypersexuality of race: performing Asian/American women on screen and scene | publisher = Duke University Press | location = Durham, North Carolina | year = 2007 | isbn = 9780822340331 }}</ref>

=== Black women ===
Many scholars trace the sexualization of Black women back to slavery, where certain stereotypes were invented as a way to dehumanize Black women. These stereotypes include the ''[[Jezebel stereotype|Jezebel]]'', seen as a light skin overly sexual Black woman with no control over her desires; the ''[[Mammy stereotype|Mammy]]'', a Black woman who was asexual in nature and whose sole purpose was to cook for a white family; the ''[[Sapphire stereotype|Sapphire]]'', first shown on the Radio/Television show ''[[Amos 'n' Andy|Amos n' Andy]],'' she was a loud, crude, jealous woman, who took joy in emasculating men.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Townsend |first=Tiffany |date=September 2010 |title=I'm Not Jezebel; I Am Young Gifted and Black: Identity, Sexuality, and Black Girls |url=https://wrlc-gwu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid=sage_s10_1111_j_1471_6402_2010_01574_x&context=PC&vid=01WRLC_GWA:live&lang=en&search_scope=DN_and_CI&adaptor=Primo%20Central&tab=Everything&query=any,contains,jezebel&sortby=rank&offset=0 |journal=Psychology of Women Quarterly |volume=34 |issue=3 |pages=274 |via=Gelman Library Database |doi=10.1111/j.1471-6402.2010.01574.x |s2cid=145313044|url-access=subscription }}</ref> These stereotypes have carried over to the way young Black girls view themselves and how society views them. The Jezebel stereotype, in particular, has reemerged in the form of hip-hop ''[[video vixen]]s''. These images seen in music videos have two effects: they influence how black women are viewed in society and they also shape how Black women view themselves.<ref name=":1" />

"Representations of Black girlhood in the media and popular culture suggest that Black girls face a different set of rules when it comes to sex, innocence, and blame",<ref name=":2" /> the consequences of the sexualization of Black girls can be seen through the 2004 trial of [[R. Kelly]]. The immediate response from the public cleared R. Kelly of any wrongdoing while subsequently blaming the young girl for her abuse. One respondent to a ''[[Village Voice]]'' article claimed that she was not disturbed by the video because in her words, "It wasn't like she was new to the act. [She--the respondent] heard she [the victim] worked it like most of [her] 30 something-year-old friends have yet to learn how to do". This desensitization is directly linked to a music industry—and subsequent fans—who value the artist over their potential victims.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Dagbovie-Mullins|first=Sika|date=August 2013|title=Pigtails, Ponytails, and Getting Tail: The Infantilization and Hyper-Sexualization of African American Females in Popular Culture|journal=Journal of Popular Culture|volume=46|issue=4|pages=745–771|doi=10.1111/jpcu.12047|doi-access=free}}</ref>” Instead of being correctly labeled as victims these women are instead turned into "groupies, hoochies, and chickenheads".<ref name=":2" /> One of the jurors on the R. Kelly case noted that he believed the defense because her body "appeared to developed".<ref name=":2" /> Sika A. Dagbovie-Mullins acknowledged that &nbsp;"this harmful and skewed reasoning reflects a national troubling tendency to view black adolescent females as sexually savvy and therefore responsible themselves for the sexualization and exploitation of their bodies".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Dagbovie-Mullins|first=Sika|date=August 2013|title=Pigtails, Ponytails, and Getting Tail: The Infantilization and Hyper-Sexualization of African American Females in Popular Culture|journal=Journal of Popular Culture|volume=46|issue=4|pages=746|doi=10.1111/jpcu.12047|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Dagbovie-Mullins introduced new problems in regards to the sexualization of Black girls, completely dichotomous to the sexualization of Black girls is the infantilization of Black women.<ref name=":2" /> Both of these problems are caused by denying the agency of Black women. Both the infantilization of Black women and the sexualization of young girls are about looking at Black women purely through the lens of their sexuality, without regard to their agency. There is a link between the images of a submissive woman being portrayed by a girl and a willingness for people to believe that young Black girls can give consent.<ref name=":2" /> This is a narrative that is supported by the sexy school girl image portrayed in media. The image girls off the illusion of being unavailable—both from a moral and legal standpoint—while at the same time being available. "Music, music videos, and images play a pivotal role in the messages individuals hear and see. These messages can be positive or negative, and they can influence how consumers and producers respond to and interrogate them critically, socially, physically, and emotionally".<ref name=":2" />

The images portrayed "in both African American and mainstream American culture reinforce the lenses through which the everyday experiences and ideal for adolescent Black women are viewed".<ref name=":2" /> Shows like the ''Flavor of Love'' which rely on the stereotype of the Black pimp and the submissive women, where Flavor Flav strip women of their real name and gives them nicknames such as "Thing 1" and "Thing 2" showcase the denial of the agency of Black women.<ref name=":2" /> This denial of agency makes it easier for people to see them as little more than sex symbols. &nbsp;Infantilizing them and stripping them of all things that make them individuals creates a culture in which Black women are no longer seen as people, but objects used for individual male pleasure.<ref name=":2" /> Making it easier to side with men when Black women accuse them of assault because Black women cannot be assaulted when all they want is sex.<ref name=":2" /> &nbsp;

Along with a deflated sense of self-worth, these stereotypes can also influence Black girls—notably poor ones—that their sense of worth and an escape from poverty can be found through their sexualization.<ref name=":1"/> &nbsp;The more modern version of the Jezebel—a black woman who is highly sexual and materialistic—may also have the most importance to inner-city Black girls, "The sexual links to poverty and its relevance to survival are clear. Their lives have been called '[[ghetto fabulous]]', where they are socially embedded in a culture of poverty, yet have the economic means to procure middle-class goods".<ref name=":1" />

Even women are guilty of the sexualization, [[Nicki Minaj]] who made the phrase "Barbie Bitch" popular and raps about how she only "fuck[s] with ballers" draw on stereotypes such as the gold digger in order to promote her brand.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last=Lavoulle|first=Crystal|date=Fall 2017|title=The Bad Bitch Barbie Craze and Beyoncé: African American Women's Bodies as Commodities in Hip-Hop Culture, Images, and Media|journal=Taboo|volume=17|pages=65–86|id={{ProQuest|2049663069}}}}</ref> While the "Bad Bitch Barbie" character was developed out of a history of over-sexualizing the bodies of Black women, it has also been used as a way of Black women to reconquer their sexuality.<ref name=":3" /> No longer is it men using their bodies for the enjoyment of other men, but it is they themselves who are showcasing their features as a way of uplifting who they are.<ref name=":3" /> Hence, duality is created within hip-hop culture the sexualization of Black women is still being seen, but with the emergence of female artists, we also see an emergence of a counter-culture reclaiming the sexuality of Black Women as their own. While are the same time the "Bad Bitch Barbie" still creates unrealistic images for black girls to compare themselves to. By reclaiming the sexuality that was robbed of them by men, they have introduced a new problem of body dimorphism as Black girls face the pressures to recreate themselves in the images being presented.<ref name=":3" />

In an NPR interview with Professor Herbert Samuels at LaGuardia Community College in New York and Professor Mireille Miller-Young at UC Santa Barbara, they talk about sexual stereotypes of black bodies in America and how even in sex work, already a dangerous job, black women are treated much worse than their counterparts due to the effects of their over-sexualization and objectification in society.<ref>{{cite AV media |people= [[Farai Chideya]] (host/producer), Herbert Samuels (guest) and Mireille Miller-Young (guest) |date= 7 May 2007 |title= Sex stereotypes of African Americans have long history |medium= Radio program |series= [[NPR|NPR news]] |language= en |url= https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10057104 |access-date= 9 December 2015 |publisher= [[NPR]] }} [https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10057104 Transcript.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180402091153/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10057104 |date=2 April 2018 }}</ref> Black women's bodies are either invisible or hypervisible. In the 1800s, a South African woman named [[Sarah Baartman]] was known as "Hottentot Venus" and her body was paraded around in London and Paris where they looked at her exotic features such as large breasts and behind. Her features were deemed lesser and over sexual.

=== Asian women ===
{{Further|Asian fetish}}
The image of Asian women in Hollywood cinema is directly linked to sexuality as essential to any imagining about the roles they play as well as her actual appearance in popular culture. Asian female fatale's hypersexualized subjection is derived from her sexual behavior that is considered as natural to her particular race and culture. Two types of Asian stereotypes that are commonly found in media are the Lotus Flower and the Dragon Lady. The Lotus Flower archetype is the "self-sacrificing, servile, and suicidal Asian woman." The dragon lady archetype is the opposite of the lotus flower, a "self-abnegating Asian woman…[who] uses her 'Oriental' femininity, associated with seduction and danger to trap white men on behalf of conniving Asian males." According to film-maker and film scholar, Celine Shimizu, "The figure of the Asian American femme fatale signifies a particular deathly seduction. She attracts with her soft, unthreatening, and servile femininity while concealing her hard, dangerous, and domineering nature."<ref name=":0" />

=== Latina women ===
Latina characters that embody the "hot Latina" stereotype in film and television are marked by easily identifiable behavioral characteristics such as "'addictively romantic, sensual, sexual and even exotically dangerous',<ref name="Mastro 2005">{{cite journal | last1 = Mastro | first1 = Dana E. | last2 = Behm-Morawitz | first2 = Elizabeth | title = Latino representation on primetime television | journal = [[Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly]] | volume = 82 | issue = 1 | page = 125 | doi = 10.1177/107769900508200108 | date = March 2005 | s2cid = 36353391 }} [http://www.syndicatemizzou.org/resources/behm-morawitz/Latinos_on_TV.pdf Pdf.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808200934/http://syndicatemizzou.org/resources/behm-morawitz/Latinos_on_TV.pdf |date=8 August 2017 }}
:Cited in:
::Merskin, Debra (2010), "[https://books.google.com/books?id=kNu3KMA73nwC&pg=PA328 Three faces of Eva: perpetuation of the Hot-Latina stereotype in ''Desperate Housewives'' – Representing sexualities: Latina stereotypes in U.S. popular culture]", in {{cite book |editor1-first=Gail |editor1-last=Dines |editor2-first=Jean |editor2-last=Humez |editor-link1=Gail Dines |title=Gender, race and class in media: a critical reader |page=[https://archive.org/details/genderraceclassi0000unse_r5q3/page/328 328] |publisher=Sage Publications |location=California |edition=3rd |isbn=9781412974417 |year=2011 |url=https://archive.org/details/genderraceclassi0000unse_r5q3/page/328 }}</ref> self-sacrificing, dependent, powerless, sexually naive, childlike, pampered, and irresponsible".<ref>Citations:
* {{citation | last = Arredondo | first = Patricia | contribution = Counseling Latinas |editor1-first=Courtland C. |editor1-last=Lee |editor2-first=Bernard L. |editor2-last=Richardson | title= Multicultural issues in counseling: New approaches to diversity |year=1991 | pages = 143&ndash;156 |publisher=American Association for Counseling and Development |location=Alexandria, VA  |isbn=9781556200823 | postscript = .}}
* {{cite journal | last = Gil | first = Rosa Maria | title = Hispanic women and mental health | journal = [[Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences]] |issue=Women and Mental Health | volume = 789 | pages = 147&ndash;160 | doi = 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1996.tb55643.x | pmid = 8669781 | date = June 1996 | bibcode = 1996NYASA.789..147G | s2cid = 5894916 }}
* {{cite journal | last = King | first = Lourdes Miranda | title = Puertorriquenas in the United States: The impact of double discrimination | journal = Civil Rights Digest | volume = 6 | issue = 3 | pages = 20&ndash;28 | date = Spring 1974 | isbn = 9781845118273 | oclc = 424945644 }}
* {{cite journal | last1 = Lott | first1 = Bernice | last2 = Saxon | first2 = Susan | title = The influence of ethnicity, social class, and context on judgments about U.S. women | journal = [[The Journal of Social Psychology]] | volume = 142 | issue = 4 | pages = 481&ndash;499 | doi = 10.1080/00224540209603913 | pmid = 12153124 | date = August 2002 | s2cid = 43280780 }}
::All four cited in:
:::Merskin, Debra (2010), "[https://books.google.com/books?id=kNu3KMA73nwC&pg=PA328 Three faces of Eva: perpetuation of the Hot-Latina stereotype in ''Desperate Housewives'' – Representing sexualities: Latina stereotypes in U.S. popular culture]", in {{cite book |editor1-first=Gail |editor1-last=Dines |editor2-first=Jean |editor2-last=Humez |editor-link1=Gail Dines |title=Gender, race and class in media: a critical reader |page=[https://archive.org/details/genderraceclassi0000unse_r5q3/page/328 328] |publisher=Sage Publications |location=California |edition=3rd |isbn=9781412974417 |year=2011 |url=https://archive.org/details/genderraceclassi0000unse_r5q3/page/328 }}</ref>

Stereotypical Latina physical characteristics include "red lips, big bottoms, large hips, voluptuous bosoms, and small waists" and "high heels, huge hoop earrings, seductive clothing." Within the "hot Latina" stereotype lies three categories of representation, the Cantina Girl; the faithful, self-sacrificing Señorita; and the Vamp:
*The Cantina Girl markers are "'great sexual allure', teasing, dancing, and 'behaving in an alluring fashion.'"
*The faithful, self-sacrificing Señorita starts out as a good girl and turns bad by the end. The Señorita, in an attempt to save her Anglo love interest, utilizes her body to protect him from violence. 
*The Vamp representation "uses her intellectual and devious sexual wiles to get what she wants." The media represents Latinas "as either [a] hot-blooded spitfire" or "[a] dutiful mother".<ref name="Vargas 1993">{{citation | last = Vargas | first = Deborah R. | contribution = Representations of Latina/o sexuality in popular culture | editor-last1 = Andersen | editor-first1 = Margaret L. | editor-last2 = Hill Collins | editor-first2 = Patricia | editor-link2 = Patricia Hill Collins | title = Race, class, and gender: an anthology | pages = 188&ndash;192 | publisher = Cengage Learning | location = Boston, Massachusetts | edition = 9th | year = 2016 | orig-year = 1993 | isbn = 9781305093614 | postscript = .}}</ref>

The sexual implications of the "hot-blooded" Latina has become an overgeneralized representation of Latin people. This has led many to see the Latin people as "what is morally wrong" with the United States. Some believe it to be wrong simply because the interpretation of this culture seems to go against white, Western culture.<ref name="Vargas 1993" /> Culturally, the Latina is expected to dress "as a proper señorita" in order to be respected as a woman which conflicts with the Western ideals that a girl is sexual if she dresses "too 'mature' for [her] age".<ref name="Cofer 1993">{{citation | last = Cofer | first = Judith O. | contribution = The myth of the Latin woman: ''I Just Met a Girl Named Maria'' | editor-last1 = Andersen | editor-first1 = Margaret L. | editor-last2 = Hill Collins | editor-first2 = Patricia | editor-link2 = Patricia Hill Collins | title = Race, class, and gender: an anthology | pages = 188&ndash;192 | publisher = Cengage Learning | location = Boston, Massachusetts | edition = 9th | year = 2016 | orig-year = 1993 | isbn = 9781305093614 | postscript = .}}</ref>

Even in the business world this stereotype continues; "tight skirts and jingling bracelets [are misinterpreted] as a come-on". This sexualization can also be linked to certain stereotypical jobs. The image of the Latina woman often is not in the business world but in the domestic.<ref name="Cofer 1993" /> The sexualization of Latina women sexualizes the positions that they are expected to occupy. Domestic servants, maids, and waitresses are the typical "media-engendered" roles that make it difficult for Latinas to gain "upward mobility" despite the fact that many hold [[PhDs]].<ref name="Cofer 1993" />

==== Dominican women ====
In the Dominican Republic, women are frequently stereotyped as sultry and sexual as the reputation of Dominican sex workers grows.<ref name="Race_class">Brennan, Denise (2004), "[https://english101sp2015.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/brennan_selling-sex-for-visas.pdf Selling sex for visas: sex tourism as a stepping-stone to international migration] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209124218/https://english101sp2015.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/brennan_selling-sex-for-visas.pdf |date=9 February 2019 }}", in {{cite book | editor-last1 = Andersen | editor-first1 = Margaret L. | editor-last2 = Hill Collins | editor-first2 = Pauline | editor-link2 = Patricia Hill Collins | title = Race, class, and gender: an anthology | pages = 243&ndash;248 | publisher = Wadsworth/Thomson Learning | location = Belmont, California | edition = 9th | year = 2004 | isbn = 9780534609030 }}</ref> Many poor women have resorted to sex work because the demand is high and the hours and pay are often dictated by the workers themselves.<ref name="Race_class" /> White European and American men "exoticize dark-skinned 'native' bodies" because "they can buy sex for cut-rate prices".<ref name="Race_class" /> This overgeneralizing of the sexuality of Dominican women can also carry back to the women's homes.<ref name="Race_class" /> Even "women who...worked in Europe have become suspect..." even if they had a legal job.<ref name="Race_class" /> They have become "exports" instead of people because of their sexualization.<ref name="Race_class" />

=== Native American women ===
Starting from the time of white colonization of Native American land, some Native American women have been referred to as "[[squaw]]." "The 'squaw' [stereotype] is the dirty, subservient, and abused tribal female who is also haggard, violent, and eager to torture tribal captives." Another stereotype is the beautiful [[Indian princess]] who leaves her tribe and culture behind to marry a white man.<ref>{{citation | last = Mihesuah | first = Devon Abbott |author-link=Devon A. Mihesuah| contribution = Finding a modern American indigenous female identity | editor-last = Mihesuah | editor-first = Devon Abbott | title = Indigenous American women: decolonization, empowerment, activism | page = [https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780803232273/page/102 102] | publisher = [[University of Nebraska Press]] | location = Lincoln, Nebraska and London | year = 2003 | isbn = 9780803282865 | postscript =. | url = https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780803232273/page/102 }}</ref>

== Effects on transgender women ==
Angolan model and activist [[Imanni Da Silva|Immani Da Silva]] has also spoken out on how transgender people are hypersexualised by many societies, and links this sexualisation with social disrespect.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-05-03 |title=Imanni Da Silva diz que as pessoas hipersexualizam LGBT: “Associam-nos muito a sexo” - PlatinaLine |url=https://platinaline.com/imanni-da-silva-diz-que-as-pessoas-hipersexualizam-lgbt-associam-nos-muito-a-sexo/ |access-date=2024-11-20 |language=pt-PT}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Human sexuality|Politics|Feminism}}
* [[Child sexuality]]
* [[Sexualism]]
* [[Bratz]]
* [[Kogal]]
* [[Miss Bimbo]]
* [[Rape culture]]
* [[Sexual objectification]]
* [[Pornographication]]
* [[Social impact of thong underwear]]
* [[Gender representation in video games#Sexualization|Sexualization in the video games industry]]
* ''[[Pornified]]''
* ''[[Female Chauvinist Pigs|Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture]]''

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==

=== Books ===
* {{cite book | last1 = Buckingham | first1 = David | last2 = Bragg | first2 = Sara | title = Young people, sex and the media: the facts of life | publisher = Palgrave Macmillan | location = Houndmills England New York | year = 2004 | isbn = 9781403918222 }}
* {{cite book | last = Carey | first = Tanith | author-link = Tanith Carey | title = Where has my little girl gone? How to protect your daughter from growing up too soon | publisher = Lion | location = London | year = 2011 | isbn = 9780745955421 }} A guide for parents on girls' [[body image]] and other issues.
* {{cite book | last = Charles | first = Claire | title = Elite girls' schooling, social class and sexualised popular culture | publisher = Routledge | location = New York, New York | year = 2014 | isbn = 9781136195884 }}
* {{cite book | last = Durham | first = Meenakshi G. | author-link = Meenakshi Gigi Durham | title = The Lolita effect: the media sexualization of young girls and what we can do about it | publisher = Overlook Press | location = Woodstock, NY | year = 2008 | isbn = 9781590200636 | url = https://archive.org/details/lolitaeffectmedi00durh }} Looks at media messages and suggests that it promotes early maturation and sexualisation of pre-adolescent girls. 
* {{cite book | last = Egan | first = R. Danielle | title = Becoming sexual: a critical appraisal of the sexualization of girls | publisher = Polity Press | location = Cambridge Malden, MA | year = 2013 | isbn = 9780745650739 }}
* {{cite book | last1 = Egan | first1 = R. Danielle | last2 = Hawkes | first2 = Gail | title = Theorizing the sexual child in modernity | publisher = Palgrave Macmillan | location = Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire New York | year = 2010 | isbn = 9781403972576 }}
* {{cite book | last1 = Gil | first1 = Eliana | last2 = Johnson | first2 = Toni Cavanagh | author-link1 = Eliana Gil | title = Sexualized children: assessment and treatment of sexualized children and children who molest | publisher = Launch Press | location = Rockville, Maryland | year = 1993 | isbn = 9781877872075 | url = https://archive.org/details/sexualizedchildr00gile }}
* {{cite book | last = Levy | first = Ariel | author-link = Ariel Levy (writer) | title = Female chauvinist pigs: women and the rise of raunch culture | publisher = Free Press | location = New York | year = 2006 | isbn = 978-0743284288 | url = https://archive.org/details/femalechauvinist00arie }} A review of what Levy regards as a highly sexualized American culture in which women are [[Sexual objectification|objectified]], objectify one another, and are encouraged to objectify themselves. 
* {{cite book | last = Liebau | first = Carol P. | author-link = Carol Platt Liebau | title = Prude: how the sex-obsessed culture damages girls (and America too!) | publisher = Center Street | location = New York | year = 2007 | isbn = 9781599956831 | url = https://archive.org/details/prudehowsexobses00lieb }}  Looks at sex in contemporary culture and the impact it has on young girls.
* {{cite book | last = Paul | first = Pamela | author-link = Pamela Paul | title = Pornified: how pornography is transforming our lives, our relationships, and our families | publisher = Times Books | location = New York | year = 2005 | isbn = 9780805081329 }} [[Pamela Paul]] discusses the impact of ready access to pornography on Americans.
* {{cite book | last1 = Sarracino | first1 = Carmine | last2 = Scott | first2 = Kevin M. | title = The porning of America: the rise of porn culture, what it means, and where we go from here | publisher = Beacon Press | location = Boston, Mass | year = 2008 | isbn = 9780807061541 }} Argues that pornography has become a mainstream part of American culture.

=== Journals ===
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Aksglaede | first1 = Lise | last2 = Juul | first2 = Anders | last3 = Olsen | first3 = Lina W. | last4 = Sørensen | first4 = Thorkild I. A.  | editor1-last = Tena-Sempere | editor1-first = Manuel | title = Age at puberty and the emerging obesity epidemic | doi = 10.1371/journal.pone.0008450 | pmc=2793517 | pmid=20041184 | journal = PLOS ONE| volume = 4 | issue = 12 e8450 | pages = 1–6 | year = 2009| bibcode = 2009PLoSO...4.8450A | doi-access = free }}
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Attenborough | first1 = Frederick T. | title = Jokes, pranks, blondes and banter: recontextualising sexism in the British print press |journal = [[Journal of Gender Studies]] | volume = 23| issue = 2 | pages = 137–154 | doi = 10.1080/09589236.2013.774269 | date = 2014 | s2cid = 144338846 | url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09589236.2013.774269| access-date=August 13, 2023| url-access = subscription }}
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Coy | first1 = Maddy | last2 = Garner | first2 = Maria | author-link = Maddy Coy | title = Definitions, discourses and dilemmas: policy and academic engagement with the sexualisation of popular culture | journal = Gender and Education | volume = 24 | issue = 3 | pages = 285–301 | doi = 10.1080/09540253.2012.667793 | date = May 2012 | s2cid = 145311311 }}
* {{cite journal | last1 = Duits | first1 = Linda | last2 = van Zoonen | first2 = Liesbet | year = 2006 | title = Headscarves and porno-chic: disciplining girls' bodies in the European multicultural society | journal = [[European Journal of Women's Studies]] | volume = 13 | issue = 2 | pages = 103–110 | doi = 10.1177/1350506806062750 | s2cid = 145574677 }}
* {{cite journal | last = Duschinsky | first = Robbie | title = The emergence of sexualization as a social problem: 1981–2010 | journal = [[Social Politics]] | volume = 20 | issue = 1 | pages = 137&ndash;156 | doi = 10.1093/sp/jxs016 | date = Spring 2013 | s2cid = 145794607 | url = http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/11940/1/Duschinsky%20-%20The%20Emergence%20of%20Sexualisation%20as%20a%20Social%20Problem%20AAM.pdf }} [http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.970.1395&rep=rep1&type=pdf Pdf.]
* {{cite journal | last1 = Egan | first1 = R. Danielle | last2 = Hawkes | first2 = Gail | year = 2009 | title = The problem with protection: or, why we need to move towards recognition and the sexual agency of children | journal = [[Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies]] | volume = 23 | issue = 3 | pages = 389–400 | doi = 10.1080/10304310902842975 | s2cid = 143736102 }}
* {{cite journal | last1 = Evans | first1 = Adrienne | last2 = Riley | first2 = Sarah | last3 = Shankar | first3 = Avi | author-link = Adrienne Evans | year = 2010 | title = Technologies of sexiness: theorizing women's engagement in the sexualization of culture | journal = [[Feminism & Psychology]] | volume = 20 | pages = 114–131 | doi = 10.1177/0959353509351854 | s2cid = 145136872 }}
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Gill | first1 = Rosalind | author-link= Rosalind Gill | title = From sexual objectification to sexual subjectification: the resexualization of women's bodies in the media, in ''Editors' Introduction'' | journal = [[Feminist Media Studies]] | volume = 3 | issue = 1 | pages = 100–106 | year = 2003 | doi = 10.1080/1468077032000080158 | s2cid = 216644581 }}
* {{cite journal | last1 = Hawkes | first1 = Gail L. | last2 = Egan | first2 = R. Danielle | year = 2008 | title = Landscapes of Erotophobia: the sexual(ized) child in the postmodern Anglophone West | journal = Sexuality & Culture | volume = 12 | issue = 4 | pages = 193–203 | doi = 10.1007/s12119-008-9038-6 | s2cid = 145198983 }}
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Hawkes | first1 = Gail L. | last2 = Egan | first2 = R. Danielle | title = Sexuality, youth and the perils of endangered innocence: how history can help us get past the panic | journal = Gender and Education | volume = 24 | issue = 3 | pages = 269–284 | doi = 10.1080/09540253.2012.666232 | date = May 2012 | s2cid = 146753285 }}
* {{Cite journal | last = Kehily | first = Mary Jane | title = Contextualising the sexualisation of girls debate: innocence, experience and young female sexuality | journal = Gender and Education | volume = 24 | issue = 3 | pages = 255–268 | doi = 10.1080/09540253.2012.670391 | date = May 2012 | s2cid = 146787635 }}
* {{Cite journal | last1 = Starr | first1 = Christine | last2 = Ferguson | first2 = Gail | title = Sexy dolls, sexy grade-schoolers? Media & maternal influences on young girls' self-sexualization | journal = [[Sex Roles (journal)|Sex Roles]] | volume = 67 | issue = 7–8 | pages = 463–476 | doi = 10.1007/s11199-012-0183-x | date = October 2012 | s2cid = 144196586 | url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232686658 }}

=== Reports ===
* {{cite book | last = Papadopoulos | first = Linda | title = Sexualisation of Young People Review | publisher = UK Home Office | location = Great Britain | year = 2010 | isbn = 9781849871860 |url=https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/10738/1/sexualisation-young-people.pdf}}

=== Online resources ===
* {{cite web | title = Onscenity | url = https://www.shu.ac.uk/research/specialisms/culture-creativity-research-institute/what-we-do/projects/communication-media-and-culture/onscenity/ | website = Onscenity Research Network, [[Sheffield Hallam University]] }}
* {{Cite news | last = Friedman | first = Jaclyn | title = Cultural Trends/Popular Culture: Women of color seen as always sexually available | url = http://womensenews.org/story/cultural-trendspopular-culture/111029/women-color-seen-always-sexually-available | work = [[Women's eNews]] | publisher = Women's eNews, Inc. | date = 29 October 2011 | access-date = 7 December 2015 }}
* {{cite web |last=Lledin |first=Shantyana C. |title=I'm not your spicy Latina (blog) |url=http://www.thefeministwire.com/2012/04/im-not-your-spicy-latina/ |website=thefeministwire.com |publisher=The Feminist Wire |date=28 April 2012 |access-date=9 December 2015 }}

{{Nudity}}
{{Pornography|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sexualization| ]]
[[Category:Feminism and society]]
[[Category:Women in society]]
[[Category:Women's rights legislation]]