Gender and Racial Representation in Children’s Television Programming in Kuwait: Implications for Education

Abstract

An examination was carried out of television programs made for children and also television programs that involved children, regardless of their intended audience. The aim of the study was to determine the effects of these programs in terms of gender and race representations and stereotypes. A content analysis was run on segments from two television channels, the Kuwait national channel and the Egyptian satellite channel. Findings are given and discussed against a rich background of research in this area, and conclusions and implications for education are presented.

Portrayals of Women in Transnational Arab Television Drama Series

“…Consistent with previous findings (e.g., Al-Shehab, 2008;Kalliny et al, 2008), differences in gender portrayals were found between the Arab countries producing the programs. Using the liberal-conservative continuum for Arab countries proposed by Kalliny and his colleagues (2008), conservative countries (Kuwait and Saudi Arabia) had more female characters in female stereotypical roles than the more liberal Arab countries (Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt).…”

“…The present study examines differences in gender portrayals between the different producing countries. Based on previous findings (Al-Shehab, 2008;Kalliny et al, 2008) we hypothesize that programs produced in the more conservative gulf countries (e.g., Saudi Arabia and Kuwait) show more stereotypical portrayals of women than programs produced by the more liberal Levant countries (e.g., Lebanon and Syria).…”

“…In terms of traits, the study found that men in Kuwaiti programs had more male stereotypical traits than in the Egyptian channel such as being aggressive, independent, dominant, responsible, and leader-like, active, and acting as rescuer. Similarly, female characters in the Kuwaiti programs had more female stereotypical traits than in the Egyptian programs such as being rescued, submissive, dependent, weak, follower, and passive (Al-Shehab, 2008).…”

“…Al-Shehab's (2008) analysis of 30 hours of children's programs (including drama, cartoons, news, commercials, and interviews) found that male characters outnumbered female characters on both the Kuwaiti and the Egyptian channels but female characters were portrayed less frequently on the Kuwaiti channel and major male characters appeared more on the Kuwaiti channel (96.4%) than in the Egyptian channel (54.8%). In terms of traits, the study found that men in Kuwaiti programs had more male stereotypical traits than in the Egyptian channel such as being aggressive, independent, dominant, responsible, and leader-like, active, and acting as rescuer.…”

Kids’ TV Programming in India: A Comparison of Gender Representation in Imports versus Locally Produced Programmes

“…Reducing the presence of females in certain roles or restricting their presence to other roles is a worrying trend. Additionally, the placement of only male characters in powerful and influential roles could result in a young child developing a warped view of gender rolesa development that could then result in serious consequences in later life (Shehab, 2008). It is, therefore, worrying that many kids' programmes today lack strong female characters.…”