Analysis of Age Upon Its Relationship With Socio-Cultural Variables in Terms of Gender Portrayals in Turkish Television Ads

The concern with how male and female characters are portrayed in television advertising has existed in the past three decades. This area has attracted attention of the most researches to particularly the portrayal of female characters in television commercials. Despite the abundance of research on female representations in general, most studies documenting representations of gender in television commercials have paid little attention to age as an important comparative factor. This study considers the role of age upon gender portrayals of television ads in the context of its relationship with socio-cultural variables. A content analysis of 4495 characters appearing in 2650 commercials aired during a composite week of prime-time programming on 6 major broadcast networks was conducted. The study compared images of female and male participants from childhood through the senior years. The findings indicate significant differences among same-age gender portrayals and same-gender age portrayals. As prior research has documented, male characters appeared most frequently as middle-aged adults, while female characters appeared most often as young adults. For nearly every age group, female characters were less likely than male characters to work, have authority, be shown outdoors, and be associated with nondomestic products. Moreover, female characters in all age categories were more attractive, thin, and suggestively dressed than their same-age male counterparts. Results are interpreted within a social cognitive theory framework.