The invisible minority: under‐representation of people with disabilities in prime‐time TV dramas in Japan

Abstract

This study analysed the depiction of people with disabilities in Japanese TV dramas. Using preview issues of TV Guide, we content‐analysed serial dramas and drama series aired during prime time on five commercial broadcasting networks between January 1993 and December 2002. The results showed that only 1.7 per cent of the characters examined were disabled, indicating that disabled persons were under‐represented on TV. The study also found that most of the disabled persons depicted were young; there were almost no elderly people with disabilities. Analysis also revealed that Japanese TV dramas focused on certain disabilities. The implications of these findings are also discussed from the perspective of cultivation theory and the drench hypothesis.