Ariel, Aurora, or Anna? Disney princess body size as a predictor of body esteem and gendered play in early childhood.

Abstract

This study explores the longitudinal effect of princess body size of children’s favorite Disney princesses on young children’s body esteem and gendered play over a 1-year period using a sample of 320 children, age 3½ at Time 1 and age 4½ at Time 2. Girls whose favorite princess had an average body size engaged in more masculine-type play a year later, but there were no associations between princesses’ body size and developmental outcomes for boys. Children whose favorite princess had an average body size showed a positive relationship between playing pretend princess and body esteem, masculine-type play, and feminine-type play. Children whose favorite princess was thin did not show a relationship between playing pretend princess and body esteem, masculine-type play, or feminine-type play. Our findings suggest that princesses with average body sizes create a protective context for children’s body esteem and may encourage both masculine- and feminine-type play by modeling both masculine and feminine activities and behaviors.