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Reality TV Shows Impact Young Women

Girls who regularly watch reality television shows “accept and expect a higher level of drama, aggression and bullying” in their lives, according to the latest report that expresses concern about the impacts of the media on younger viewers.

The survey of over 1,100 girls between ages 11 and 17, conducted by the Girl Scouts Research Institute, also found a higher percentage of girls believe their value is based on their physical appearance and that girls “have to lie” and “be mean” in order to get what they want.

The Girl Scouts study, entitled “Real to Me: Girls and Reality TV,” was released in ­­­October of this year and found that a majority of girls surveyed actually believe Reality TV shows are “mainly real and unscripted.”

“These programs are, in fact, nothing more than producer-contrived scenarios, set up to cash-in on the conflict and sexual interaction captured by the ever-present cameras,” said the television decency watchdog group Parents Television Council in a report about reality TV.

Reality TV shows have grown in popularity since the astounding success of “Survivor” back in 2000.

Competition shows like “Survivor” and “The Bachelor” depict contestants competing against each other—sometimes lying and cheating—in order to win the grand prize.

Real life shows like “Jersey Shore” and “Real Housewives” attempt to depict the lives, drama and scandals of “real” people.

The Girl Scouts report shows that regular reality TV viewers differ significantly in their view of “peer relationships.”

Seventy-eight percent believe “gossiping is a normal part of a relationship between girls,” 68 percent believed “it’s in girls’ nature to be catty and competitive with one another,” and 74 percent said “girls often have to compete for a guy’s attention.”

The report also shows these girls are more concerned about how they look. Seventy-two percent admitted they “spend a lot of time on their appearance,” and over one-third believed “a girl’s value is based on how she looks.”

“I think it’s a big wake-up call,” said Teresa Tomeo, radio talk show host and author of “Extreme Makeover” and “Noise,” books that bring awareness to the negative impacts of media and culture. “If you make women feel like objects, that they’re only worth the way they look, the way they dress, the way they act—it’s [going to] unleash all kinds of problems.”

A report by the American Psychological Association (APA) from 2007 warned that “young women who more frequently consume or engage with mainstream media content offer stronger endorsement of sexual stereotypes that depict women as sexual objects.”

The same APA report also linked sexuality of girls in the media with “three of the most common mental health problems of girls and women: eating disorders, low self-esteem and depression.”

The Girl Scouts report did show some positive sides to the genre. Regular reality TV viewers are more confident in themselves, aspire to be leaders and see themselves as role models for other girls. Sixty-eight percent said reality shows “make me think I can achieve anything in life.”

Another positive mentioned is the potential for reality TV shows to act as a learning tool that can “open the lines of communication.”

A large majority said that reality shows “have inspired conversation with their parents and/or friends,” 48 percent said they “help me realize there are people out there like me,” 59 percent “have been taught new things that they wouldn’t have learned about otherwise” and 62 percent said “the shows have raised their awareness of social issues and causes.”

A 2006 study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found potential positives as well, saying reality TV shows like “The Biggest Looser” and “Miracle Workers” “can generate awareness and visibility for health issues” and “may provide the inspiration and motivation individuals need to make changes in their own health behaviors.”

Despite the occasional positive influence reality TV shows may have, the same study also warned that some shows send the wrong messages to young people trying to understand their place in the world.

“Some reality TV programs spotlight a world rife with sexual situations, focused obsessively on physical attractiveness and dominated by competition, scheming, humiliation and voyeurism — clearly not the core values most adults would like to impart to the next generation.”

“The thing that scares me is that there isn’t much variety out there,” said Tomeo. “There isn’t much but a lot of sex and a lot of violence; that’s sending the wrong message.”

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Reality TV Shows Impact Young Women