A study on the impact of Disney fairy-tale films on the development of perceptions towards gender relations among young Singaporean women

• Main Author: Chew, Tiara Robyn
• Other Authors: School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/69024
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Since 2002, television watching has consistently been identified as one of the top media activities for Singaporeans, both young and old; yet existing literature examining the socialising effects of this medium has largely been based abroad. This paper thus seeks to address this disparity with a look at one of the pioneers in childrens’ film genres – Disney, and how exposure to its iconic ‘fairy-tale’ franchise at a young age can impact the way Singaporean women perceive Gender relations as adults. Utilizing semi-structured interviews, ten respondents were asked about their television viewing habits as children, their knowledge of and familiarity with Disney, and their thoughts on how Disney has influenced the formation of their value systems, with particular regard to gender issues. Based on key findings and implications, it was ascertained that television viewing habits were consistent with global statistics. It was also observed that the influence of Disney is most enduring on young and impressionable children, but has less bearing on discerning adult women. Lastly, it was found that for the majority of the respondents, the television was but one of many agents of socialisation that served as sources of learning and internalisation.