In Case You Haven't Heard…

Abstract

This summer's popular Barbie movie has inspired fascinating conversations about childhood and mental health, CNN reported on Sept. 26. Since the movie's release in July, adults on TikTok and other social media platforms have documented themselves reconnecting with their inner child through rituals such as buying so‐called “emotional support Barbies.” Kristin Flora, a professor of psychology at Franklin College in Indiana, said she's enjoyed seeing how the movie has opened up people's eyes to the importance of play, even as adults. Flora said women and girls benefit in unique ways from this ageless sense of play, because it can build confidence and positivity at critical times. “In my classes, I teach that the confidence level for boys and girls is about equal up until about age 13. And that's when we start to see confidence really get broken down and disrupted in girls, whereas boys; confidence tends to excel,” she explained. “That suggests that the psychological pressures at that age are really monumental for girls. A sense of play can help buffer against those changes.”