Female Objectification Research Articles

Unmasking Street Harassment in Spain: Prevalence, Psychological Impact, and the Role of Sexism in Women’s Experiences

Street harassment is a widespread problem that affects women from all backgrounds, often leading to negative psychological consequences such as anxiety, depression, and reduced self-worth. Despite the pioneering development of laws protecting women’s rights, Spanish culture often normalizes this type of violence against women, and research on this context remains limited. To address this gap, we conducted a cross-sectional study with 245 women in Spain to investigate the occurrence and impact of street harassment on psychological well-being. We used the Street Harassment Assessment Scale, a self-report measure designed to evaluate the prevalence and frequency of street harassment, and explored its association with anxiety, fear of rape, avoidance behavior, self-esteem, and adherence to sexist beliefs. The results showed that 98% of women experienced street harassment, with 80% reporting monthly occurrences. The frequency of street harassment was correlated with increased anxiety, fear of rape and avoidance behavior, and lower self-esteem. Additionally, the results supported the link between the endorsement of sexist ideology and lower identification of events. Collectively, the results underscore the negative impact of street harassment on women’s well-being and freedom, highlighting its role as a patriarchal tool that perpetuates female objectification and subordination. An integrative feminist perspective involving various fields, including psychology, public policy, and education, among others, is necessary to create safer environments for women.

The manifestation of female objectification in the marketing content of social media brand advertising: Taking BM brand as an example

With the rapid development of Internet technology, social media has become a new channel for the dissemination of advertising and marketing content, which is more extensive and guiding. The values conveyed by brand advertising content will even have an impact on overall social values. The female objectification information in social media marketing content has a certain impact on women's psychological and physical health through brand advertising. Women who have long lived under the influence of social media with strong sexual characteristics and objectified information are prone to deepen their self-objectification and become anxious about their appearance. They will internalize a third perspective to view themselves. This paper adopts the interview method and analyzes BM brand marketing content as a case to draw research results. The implicit value orientation in advertising and marketing content has led to a deepening of women's self-objectification, and they always examine and monitor themselves. However, with the development and rise of feminist forces, the phenomenon of self-objectification in some female groups has gradually declined and dissipated in recent years.

Breaking The Shadowy World Of Courtesans: Women, Myth, Music In Kavita Kane’s Menaka’s Choice

Mythologies are primarily male-centered stories representing, upholding, and idealizing patriarchal norms and aspirations. Patriarchy regulates and controls women's sexuality through mythological stories. Females are frequently treated as property to be transferred or enjoyed by men. The objectification of women's bodies is a recurrent issue in mythologies throughout the world, including India. In Indian mythology, Apsaras, the eternal seductresses of Indra's court, are clear references to female objectification. Apsaras, despite their greater importance and might, are mentioned only as passing characters in Indian mythology. They were never allowed to speak on the main platform and tell their story. However, in her novel Menaka's Choice, Indian-English novelist Kavita Kane breaks this tradition by projecting the most beautiful and brilliant apsara of Indralok, Menaka as the protagonist.

Madness and Feminism: An Analysis of Women's Struggles in Bronte’s Jane Eyre and Kaysen's Girl, Interrupted

This paper explores the representation of mad women in literature through the lens of psychoanalytical feminism. It focuses on analyzing the decades-old patterns of female objectification through the male gaze, and their being ruled as ‘mad’ or ‘psychotic’ for demanding equal rights as men. Through the use of psychoanalytic feminism theory, the paper studies the literary works of the late 1800s and early 1900s. And in relation to the birth of the feminist movement; it demonstrates how within the literature of that period, more often than not women were depicted as mentally ill and condemned to mental hospitals and psychotic institutions in order to receive extremely harsh treatments for illnesses that they do not have. The analysis will be performed on two literary works, that have been selected and seen as fitting for the topic, and they are: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, and Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen. With the leading characters of these two novels being female, and extracted from society for being ill-fitting, they become the perfect examples for describing the main points of this paper.

Teenager’s Resistance to Patriarchy in School: A Feminist Movement Representation on Moxie Film

PurposeThis research aimed to reveal the representation of patriarchy in school and teeanger's feminist movement on Moxie film. MethodThis qualitative research study employed a qualitative content analysis as the design of the research. The data from the film were selected, collected and analyzed using representation theory by Stuart Hall and feminism approach.Results/FindingsThe result showed that Moxie represented patriarchy in school by portraying female objectification, represive school regulation against female, patriarchy in student's reading material, male's achievement glorification, and supporting attitue towards patriarchal practices. Since the female students experienced various disadvantages, the film also represented their feminist movement through the publication of anonymous feminist magazine, the action of females speak up in the public, embracing lesbian identities, the action of visual protest symbolism and act of solidarity, the activism on social media, and the action of school vandalismConclusionThe female teenager in Rockport High School resisted patriarchy in school by representing different feminist movements based on their personal experience and understanding of patriarchal practices and feminism

The Causes of the Sex Industry Within Japans Economic Structure

Within the patriarchal societal background of Japan, the sex industry serves as a mainstay part of service. As more and more women have higher social access, the gender gap between women and men is still wide by social standards and expectations. What is the thing that keeps women stuck in the position of experiencing social gaze, and how is the sex industry part of the indication of womens status and current situation? This essay answers the questions by having a reason analysis and case study of interviews of female sex workers and explaining the causes of the flourishing sex industry by social and cultural aspects. Beyond the phenomenon, the essay ties up the factors of causes to analyze a deeper understanding of social problems in Japan: under female objectification, it would be difficult to promote total progress in society. Moreover, in the end, it further illustrates how government can be a channel to solve the problems by modifying the loan system and enhancing complete welfare for sex workers.

Limited Spaces, Limited Autonomy: Examining Female Identity In the Stories of Ovid and Andersen

This article examines the story of Ariadne in Book X of Ovid’s Heroides in conjunction with Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales “Thumbelina” and “The Little Mermaid” through a modern feminist perspective. Ovid and Andersen write the stories of women who dare to leave restrictive environments yet are ultimately met with the punishment of isolation. The article examines how displacement from the private sphere leads to destabilization of the social norm, and “correction” is otherwise found in the creation of a new, confined space. The institution of the private sphere enforces hierarchical social norms and perpetuates the idea that women are nothing if their identities are not defined by a limited and patriarchal environment. This influence of this environment is evident within both Andersen and Ovid’s texts, as the authors define their female characters through confinement, pain, beauty, and usefulness. The article argues that it is only through destroying the private sphere, and subsequent female objectification, that these women might at last find the freedom they have been searching for.

The Actual and the Desired Verbal and Non-Verbal Sexually Assertive Communication between Married Couples from a Collectivistic Muslim Culture

Explicit and frequent verbal and non-verbal sexual communication is essential for marital satisfaction. Most of the studies on sexual communication relate to the Western cultures. The current study investigated the gaps between the actual and the desired sexually assertive verbal and non-verbal communication between husbands and wives belonging to a collectivistic Muslim culture. The study involved 207 married couples from Pakistan. A newly developed questionnaire along with ‘the longing for interpersonal touch picture questionnaire’ was used to gather data. The study revealed significant differences between the actual and the desired levels of sexually assertive communication among couples. It was found that husbands and wives were not sexually as vocal and expressive as they desired to be. Husbands, furthermore, significantly craved for hugging and stroking from their wives. The significant gap between the actual and the desired levels of sexually assertive communication was regarded as a product of certain psychosocial factors such as shame, gender, morality, modesty, culture, and female objectification.

Beauty Standard as a Construction of Woman Objectification in Trisha R. Thomas’s Nappily Ever After

The study aimed to depict how the beauty standards construct female objectification in Nappily Ever After and to analyze how the main character struggled toward beauty standards in the Nappily Ever After novel. This study is sought with qualitative methods to reveal the novel's issue. This study applied the theory of beauty myth from Naomi Wolf. The result of the study found that the beauty ideal is a woman who has straightened hair, brightening skin, a tall, slim body, and a pointed nose. Those highlighted Venus’s physical appearance which made her seem to be a typical woman and objectified her to conform to beauty standards. The study concluded that Venus internalized the beauty ideal which made her feel restricted by her looks and resulted in body image dissatisfaction. Venus struggled after she cut her hair which made her become an outcast in beauty image, being invisible by men, dismissal, and judged by people.

Sex Objects and Conquered People? Representations of women in Nigerian Films in the 21st Century

This study examined the subjugation and objectification of women in Nigerian films produced in the 21st Century to determine whether the representations of women have changed at the turn of the Century. The objectives of this study were to find out the extent of subjugation of women in Nollywood films in the 21st Century and determine the extent of objectification of women in Nollywood films in the 21st Century. This study was anchored on the feminist muted group theory. The design adopted was a mixed-method approach that combined content analysis and in-depth interviews. The researchers focused on Nollywood films produced from 2000 to 2021 that have women playing leading or supporting roles. A total of 22 films were coded and eleven film experts and scholars were interviewed. It was found that women were not significantly subjugated in Nigerian films produced in the 21st century. However, women are still highly sexually objectified in Nigerian films produced in the 21st century. They are portrayed in a way that viewers can make judgments about them based on their physical appearance and their sex appeal. It was recommended that the Nigerian Film and Video Censors' Board must play its part in reducing the incidence of female objectification in Nigerian films by putting Objectification (O) as a film classification element, in the same breath as Nudity, Strong Language, and Violence (NSL).

Cinematography for female objectification: Analysis of item songs of Pakistani movies

The transition in Pakistani cinema and terming it as a rival of cinema heavily depends on the bowing technique of item songs, which is deliberately fueling the negative representation of females. The qualitative analysis of item songs underlines the representation of women and sheds light on aspects regarding how the objectification of women in item songs is done in a patriarchal society and what values are assigned based on gender. The analysis of item songs revealed that women were sexually objectified and the use of clothing, jewelery, makeup, body movements, and gestures are filmed to enhance their bodies. Hence, most of the songs used females as an object of sensation and enjoyment. On the other side, the notion of women's empowerment is being raised all over the world but still, cinema presents her in a submissive way and defines her role to please men. The dominancy of the male is projected and the close angle of her body gestures and nude body parts show her vulnerability. The visualization of the female reflects that she is presented tactfully to appeal to the audience, and her fragile role is reinforced.

943 Gender Inequalities in Surgery: A Literature Review and Social Media Analysis.

Abstract Aim This study identified the current barriers to women in surgery in the UK and evaluated the hashtags that are broadcast via Twitter to expose gender bias within surgery. Method A literature review was conducted using key terms to identify the barriers to women in surgery. A Twitter search was conducted via NVivo and Ncapture using keywords to identify the hashtags categorising gender bias and sexism in the surgical profession. Tweet content was qualitatively evaluated to assess gender-based inequalities in surgery in the UK. Tweets were further evaluated to identify evidence of trolling or dismissive behaviour towards surgical sexism. Results The literature review identified work-family imbalance, lack of female surgical role models, inflexibility of working hours, the gender pay gap, and female objectification as key barriers to women in surgery. Twitter analysis demonstrated evidence of surgical gender bias throughout UK surgical training using #Surgical#Sexism #HammerItOut #CutItOut and #NHSMeToo, with minimal evidence of trolling and dismissive comments. Twitter provided a platform to support and praise users that speak out against surgical gender bias, including whistleblowers. Conclusions Twitter as a social media platform can provide an environment to support users who may be experiencing gender-based bias within their surgical workplace. Twitter may also demonstrate further purpose as a useful aid in whistleblowing within healthcare.

Breaking the Dehumanization and Shaming of Asian Comfort Women : Theology of Social Sin and Guilt Shame

The silencing and shaming of Asian comfort women by Japan represent prime examples of dehumanization through female objectification. The Japanese government’s World War II-era sinful and evil predatory actions towards these women have been perpetuated in the years that have followed through the government’s political efforts to silence this history of women’s enslavement. Recognition of two faces of shame—the shame of the perpetrator, guilty of structural and social sin and evil of Japan, and the shame of victims, innocent but wrongly imposed upon by the perpetrator and their culture —can be a pivotal theological line of discussion and reflection. The shame of the formerly subjugated women, and the guilt shame of the Japanese government can only be alleviated with a substantive response to the growing call of social justice activism. This can be supported by theological and psychological reflection for the restoration of Asian comfort women’s human rights and by Japan’s proper apology and compensation directly for the victims and their families. The implications—of a theology of shame and guilt shame—promote awareness of the seriousness of dehumanization through the sex slavery system of sex-trafficking orchestrated by imperial Japan and invite comfort women, Japan, and their communities to move forward in reconciliation. It is through breaking the hold of tendencies of silencing and shaming that perpetuate the dehumanization of these women. Furthermore, this critical reflection can advance calls for social justice on behalf those who are victims of human-trafficking— particularly sex-trafficking—in modern days and a restoration of their full human rights from the dehumanization process of sex slavery.

Re-writing motherhood in Flora Nwapa’s Efuru

In the critical commentary about African women’s writings, Flora Nwapa’s Efuru has become the quintessential novel that ostensibly privileges the discourse of motherhood. In response to this critical position this paper examines Nwapa’s debut novel, and the potential connection between female objectification, heterosexuality, motherhood, and patriarchal domination. Reading the novel through the prism of Adrienne Rich’s idea of “compulsory heterosexuality,” it observes that even though motherhood is central to African communities and literary production, uncritical internalization of it helps to perpetuate heterosexual power, which objectifies women as targets of male sexual fantasy. The paper argues that the centrality of motherhood to Efuru might suggest its supremacy and consequently, women’s fulfilment, but the subliminal text of the novel is that motherhood is not necessarily always biological, and that women can find fulfilment in their social and sexual relationships as well as in their material wealth. Therefore, Efuru is radical in its own way, in the sense that it dares to create a women-centred space, which not only subtly challenges patriarchal social production, but also their representation as signifier and embodiment of male libidinal energy.

Divergent Perspectives: Post-Title IX Sportkids’ Views of Female Athletes

Previous research suggests that sport media provide one avenue for boys and girls to learn what and who is valued in sport. We explored girl and boy athletes’ perceptions of photographs of female college athletes, which provided insight into young athletes gendered perceptions of athletes and sport. Sixty-nine sportskids participated in focus group interviews where they discussed what they liked and disliked about a series of photographs of college female athletes. Framed by feminist cultural studies, the authors situated their analysis within the current historical moment bounded by young athletes’ post-Title IX and postfeminist sensibilities. The authors present their appraisals of a few exemplar images that characterize themes that appeared across the whole photo collection. Emergent themes included gendered sport terrain, which situates their comments within the gendered milieu of their sport experiences. Data also revealed themes associated with the select images: female athleticism, inspiration versus objectification, transgressing heteronormative femininity, and sporty cute. Overall, both girls and boys struggled with images that were interpreted as too feminine or too muscular/masculine. These data also point to how little has changed in the past 50 years regarding how female athletes are culturally constructed. While the borders of acceptability may have shifted, female athletes continue tenuous navigation of socially acceptable boundaries of athleticism, femininity, and muscularity while masculine privilege in sport continues and the presence of females in sport is framed by a heterosexual male gaze.

Clinical Considerations of the Evangelical Purity Movement’s Impact on Female Sexuality

Evangelical Protestant Christianity is the most prevalent religion in America, with women being the dominant practitioners. The Evangelical Purity Movement that gained prominence in the 1990s sought to provide moral and religious based sexual education through private and public policies to both Christian and non-religious youth. This movement directly stressed the concept of abstinence-only until marriage education, while covertly spreading sexual scripts promoting sexual double standards, the mind-body split, female objectification, and sexual shame. The needs and concerns of women raised in this subculture are identified and explored for clinicians unfamiliar with their context. Although the intent of this movement claims to provide moral structure, research related to the main objectives reveal that they also created a negative effect on females that result in physical, emotional, and sexual dysfunction and dissatisfaction. This article provides context and articulates these concerns while calling for a significant increase in research to provide more resources for counselors and clients alike.

Gender Sensitivity and the Objectification of Females in Pop Nigerian Music Videos

This paper assessed existing Nigerian Music Videos for female sexual objectification. Its intent was to discover if and how Nigerian pop music videos objectify the female gender, evaluate the effect of objectification on Nigerian females and to proffer solutions (if necessary) from the perspective of content creators (music video makers) to better the case of female objectification and presentation of gender sensitive issues in Nigerian Entertainment Media while maintaining a positive image of the country and females within Nigeria. Adopting content analysis as a preliminary measure for perusing pop music videos within a time frame, it took a deep dive into assessing pop Nigeria music videos for instances of female objectification and then questions female audiences on the influences these portrayals could possibly have on them. Findings revealed a concerning height of female objectification and influences which calls for attention towards issues surrounding female representation in music videos and the impact it is having on females in Nigeria. Keywords: Female objectification, gender sensitivity, objectification of females in music videos, females in media, Nigerian music videos DOI: 10.7176/JCSD/64-03 Publication date: May 31 st 2021

Female Objectification in Two Short Stories by Emilia Pardo Bazán

In two short stories by the canonical author Emilia Pardo Bazán, “Primer amor” and “La argolla” we find a double-voiced discourse, which Elaine Showalter has suggested is very common in women’s fiction (1981: 204). In both of Pardo Bazán’s tales there are small objects that symbolically allude to women’s objectification in the patriarchal society of the time. The dialogue created between these two tales is noteworthy for a number of reasons, including their critical portrayals of romantic relationships, their symbolism, descriptive language and the narrative techniques employed. In this study I posit that both tales critique the objectification of women by the patriarchal society of the time by linking society’s tendency to objectify women with symbolic references to confinement.

The Facets of Women Commodification: Violence in the University Context in Administration

ABSTRACT Context: violence against women is present in the most diverse social groups, especially in Latin America, as it is one of the most violent regions against women, with high numbers of rapes, harassments, and murders because of gender. Objective: the objective of this study is to deepen the understanding of the way in which violent situations against women occurs in the Brazilian university context and its different facets of objectification and commodification. Methods: we undertook in-depth interviews with 15 female and 5 male university students from business courses. Results: our findings suggest the female ample objectification and commodification in the university context and their negative consequences, such as self-objectification in its personal and professional aspects demonstrated by reports of uncertainty regarding their bodies, in exercising the activities of leadership, and their choice of profession. There happens to be commodification of: (a) the women’s body; (b) their sexuality; (c) their morality; and finally (d) their feelings. Conclusion: we contribute theoretically to expand the knowledge about the relation between objectification and commodification. In empirical and managerial terms, we present insights for educational institutions to combat discrimination against women.

Object-Oriented Diaspora Sensibilities, Disidentification, and Ghostly Performance

Object-Oriented Diaspora Sensibilities, Disidentification, and Ghostly Performance