Beyond gender stereotypes: the missing women in print advertising

This study explores female representation in Brazilian print advertising to reveal who the missing women are (i.e. the least common portrayals) and how this lack of representation can hinder women's well-being. We undertook a content analysis of 1,387 portrayals in 1,207 advertisements covering 20 years of female representation in Brazil and involving four dimensions: the female role, age, body type, and skin color/race. By doing so, we provide both generalizable and specific evidence on the presence and portrayal of women over the years across magazine types and on intersectionality between the dimensions. Three new female roles (i.e. empowered, ornamental, and subaltern) emerged in the research process, thus extending the previous literature. Our results show that women portrayed as career-oriented, in nontraditional activities, or as being equal to men have been continuously ignored over the years. Women who are nonwhite, fat, and over 40 have also been very underrepresented, and their limited visual appearance becomes even more apparent when underrepresented features are combined (e.g. mature black women). The results indicate that the distribution of female representation in the advertisements is inconsistent with the distribution of the Brazilian female population. Theoretical and practical implications are provided so that advertising can move toward fostering and enhancing women's well-being instead of reinforcing biased female roles and beauty standards.