Barbie turns 60: True icon of empowerment or bad influence for girls?

SINGAPORE — As the world celebrated International Women’s Day on Friday (March 8), the famous doll Barbie also marked its 60th anniversary.

To commemorate its diamond jubilee here, Mattel, the owner of the Barbie brand, hosted a birthday party at the Singapore Flyer, at the same time unveiling its 60th anniversary collectible dolls.

The 165m-tall Flyer was also illuminated in pink, signalling the launch of Barbie-decorated flight capsules on the observation wheel.

At the event, Ms Chris Chan, head of marketing at Mattel South Asia, spoke of Barbie’s efforts in promoting female empowerment. The anniversary campaign titled “You Can Be Anything” is a message to girls that “they can be anything they imagine to be.”

“Barbie is known best for being a fashion icon, but honestly Barbie is more than that,” said Ms Chan, pointing out that the dolls span a range of 200 careers.

“We have inspired generations of girls to believe that we can be anything, from princesses to robotic engineers, astronauts to zoologists, and there isn’t a plastic ceiling that Barbie hasn’t broken,” she added.

This comes as gender ideals have shifted with the changing times, alongside a global rise in feminist movements.

Yet, Barbie has been described as being a “bad influence” for young girls.

“According to social scientists, playing with Barbie dolls negatively affects young girls’ self-esteem, body image and even career aspirations,” said Dr Hu Shu, head of sociology at the Singapore University of Social Sciences.

And despite Barbie’s efforts to align itself with women’s empowerment, Dr Hu pointed out that research has shown the negative influence of playing Barbie dolls on young girls is irrespective of the types of dolls.

“Despite the seeming diversification in Barbie dolls, the key message embodied in Barbie dolls remains sexualised and gendered,” she said.

In response to TODAY’s queries, Mr Ivan Franco, country manager for Mattel South Asia, said: “To date there are more than seven body types from tall, petite to curvy, 14 skin tones and countless hairstyles and fashions.”

While Dr Hu acknowledged the company’s endeavour, she was not convinced by its effectiveness.

“It is true that Mattel has put in some effort in promoting diversity in Barbie dolls, if diversity means different clothes and props that are supposedly associated with different occupations or if diversity means different skin colours.”

Dr Hu also cited research that showed that young girls — aged five to eight — exposed to Barbie dolls were found to have greater internalised the preference for a thin body compared to those who were not.

“The vast majority or nearly all of the female Barbie dolls have a slim body with long hair, very long legs, very big eyes and high noses. How are these features a realistic representation of human bodies in everyday life?”

To shed such negative influence, Dr Hu said there might be such a possibility only if Barbie dolls are “truly diversified”.

In this regard, Mr Franco said that Barbie has evolved to embrace diversity and inclusivity since its foray into the market 60 years ago, and will continue to do so.

“Moving forward, we will continue to evolve the face of Barbie by becoming a more relevant, modern reflection of Barbie as a brand of empowerment,” said Mr Franco.

WHAT DO PARENTS SAY?

TODAY reached out to eight parents to find out what they thought of Barbie and whether they would buy the dolls for their kids.

Some were receptive of the doll, while others felt that there are “healthier” and “better” alternatives.

One fan was customer service executive Nicole Yeo, who has two daughters aged 10 and six.

“Barbie is an iconic toy. I myself played with them when I was young and it’s cool to see my kids play with them now,” said the 32-year-old.

Another parent recognised Mattel’s efforts to be more diverse in recent years.

“You can tell they try to include more types with different looks and styles,” said human resource manager Lee Pei Chin, 29.

She noted Mattel’s other innovative ways to reach out to their young crowd.

“In addition to movies, now they even have vlogs on YouTube where Barbie talks about some current issues,” said the mother of one.

But other parents said that they would go for other types of toys.

Freelance designer Sabrina Faisal felt that Barbie dolls still promote “unhealthy body ideals”.

“To put it across frankly, my seven-year-old girl isn’t as skinny or petite like some of her classmates,” said the 31-year-old.

“Then when you see how Barbie markets itself as a role model for kids, I think it’s not very healthy. My kid is perfect the way she is, but she may compare herself to that standard.”

Another mother said that other toys, such as superhero and character figures, had “better backstories” for her child to learn from.

“These toys based on movies or cartoons have a story that the kids know that teaches meaningful things. Like Disney’s Frozen that talks about sisterhood,” said housewife Glenda Tan, 40.

Ultimately, most parents said that it was simply a matter of their children’s choice.

Part-time saleswoman Angie Lim, 43, said that Barbie dolls are “just another type of toy”.

“With so many toys to choose from, it also depends on what the children like themselves.”

Married couple Mr Lim Zhijie, 36, and Mdm Pamela Tay, 34, shared the sentiment that letting kids choose their toys is important.

“I think in the end it’s also about their choice of expression. Our girl is not very girly, she doesn’t like pink and she likes to play with figurines, like Captain America and Spider-Man. I think it’s great,” said Mr Lim, a business consultant. The couple has two children, a nine-year-old son and a six-year-old daughter.

“Toys are for kids to play and as parents it’s our job to educate them,” he added.