Science Says Disney Princesses Are Actually Toxic, Sorry About It
Chances are, if you’re a female under the age of 30, you spent your formative years watching Disney movies, and idolizing at least one of the Disney princesses.
For me, it was Belle, because like me, she was a brunette who enjoyed reading, and wasn’t impressed with guys like Gaston who did a lot of roids, had a posse of biddies, and bragged about eating raw eggs for breakfast.
Gross.
Well, as it turns out, this Disney Princess obsession we all grew up with probably has a lot to do with our shitty senses of self-esteem.
A new study released by Brigham Young University revealed that preschoolers who watch movies featuring Disney princesses and/or play with Disney princess toys are more susceptible to believing in problematic gender stereotypes.
You know, like women belong at home, cooking the food and rearing the children, while the men get to galavant off in the woods and rescue damsels in distress, whom they may or may not cheat on their princess wives with.
“We know that girls who strongly adhere to female gender stereotypes feel like they can’t do some things,” Coyne told BYU News. “They’re not as confident that they can do well in math and science. They’re less likely to try and experiment with things.”
The study also revealed that the more young girls engage with princesses over time, the worse self-esteem they have.
“Disney princesses represent some of the first examples of exposure to the thin ideal,” Coyne pointed out. “As women, we get it our whole lives, and it really does start at the Disney princess level, at age three and four.”
On the one hand, we’re all fucked, but on the other hand, at least we have something new to blame our issues on, right?
Damn you, Belle.
[H/T Cosmopolitan]
