Teen Magazines and Their Influence on Adolescent Girls

1. Teen Magazines and Their Influence on Adolescent Girls Debi Naigle Deanna Fast

2. Teen and beauty magazines are a pervasive feature of adolescent girls’ lives: • Teen and women’s beauty, fashion and health magazines make up over 30% of the magazines sold yearly (Magazine Publishers of America, 2003). • 10 million teen and beauty magazines are circulated each year and 6.5 million are in adolescent girl’s homes (Norton, 2002). • At least 50% of adolescent girls are frequent readers of health, beauty and fashion magazines (Nichter, 2000).

3. Reasons for this: • The magazines make adolescent girls feel older and more mature. • The magazines offer tips and advice on hair, fashion and makeup. • There is an entertainment value. • Reading the magazines builds a sense of community and ties to other adolescent girls. • Gives girls a window on the world.

4. This window on the world is defined as: the “cultural dictation of the norm.” (O’Hara & Nanox, 1999)

5. Problems occur in the areas of: • Appearance • Social Values • Hyper-sexuality • Accelerated

6. Appearance: • Magazines place a high value, either overtly or covertly, on outer appearance rather than inner self • The average model in the 1950s was 5’4”, 140 lbs; the average model today is 5’10”, 110 lbs. • This results in adolescent girls going to extreme lengths to meet these unattainable standards. • 2/3 of females are either on a diet or plan to start one (Garner & Kearney-Cooke, 1996).

7. Appearance: • Studies have found a positive correlation between the frequency high school girls read beauty and fashion magazines and their use of appetite suppressants, skipping two meals a day, and intentional vomiting (Thomsen, Webber & Brown, 2002). • 83% of those who often or sometimes vomit are frequent readers and 73% of those who use suppressants or weight control pills are frequent readers. • Failure to meet these “standards” results in lowered self-esteem, depression, learned helplessness and distorted body view.

8. Social Values • Females are taught that they are supposed to be male-pleasers and that it is acceptable to compete with other woman to earn male’s acceptance. • Females are shown that abusive and controlled behavior is acceptable. • All relationships are heterosexual. • Deception and mixed messages in relationships is acceptable. • Females are taught to crisis search.

9. Hyper-sexuality • Adolescent females are given the message that they need to get acceptance from males. • There are contrasting messages: they should use their sexuality, but never give into it. • Some magazines go as far as giving tips on how to “do it.” • 500% increase (from 1970 to 1990) in the number of 15 year old girls who are sexually active (O’Hara & Lanoux, 1999)

10. Accelerated Maturity • Magazines promote sexually suggestive and age inappropriate dress and actions. • Models in the magazines are older than the intended target audience. • This forces adolescent girls to feel the need to grow up socially and sexually.

11. Ways to help teens • Look for alternative magazines such as Teen Voice that contain no advertising and include peer editing and submission. • Engage in media literature studies with teens.