Gender Portrayals of Older People in Japanese Television Advertisements: Continuity or Change?

There is extensive research about gender representations in advertisements, but little research has been conducted regarding gender portrayals of older people. Based on a content analysis of 2,972 Japanese television advertisements from 1997 and 2007, we identified gender stereotypes of older people including a higher percentage of depicted older males than older females, more females in advertising for the cosmetics/toiletries products, and males being shown more often in the workplace and females at home. Surprisingly, gender differences were even more pronounced in 2007 than in 1997, with even more males than females appearing in the television advertisements, and males being depicted more favourably than females. The potential effects of such representations on audiences are discussed based on social cognitive theory and cultivation theory.