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Negative effects of child beauty pageants
Child beauty pageant research paper
How beauty pageants impact young girls
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Young girls should not be exposed to beauty pageants. Beauty pageants became part of the American society in the 1920's. Child beauty pageants began in the 1960's. Child beauty pageants consist of modeling sportswear, evening attire, dance and talent. The children are judged based on individuality in looks, capability, poise, perfection and confidence. (“Kareen Nussbaum”) Putting your child in a situation as to being
Judged by others is terrible. Young girls should not be judged by how they look, weight, height etc… this can make the girls feel insecure about themselves when they are older. These girls might think they look beautiful with make-up; they can also be self-fish with others. It can also lead to disorders having an image of perfection. It can lead to danger as well.
Mothers are the ones that get really obsessed with these pageants. They have their own dream to be a beauty queen and go to their daughter to fulfill an achievement they did not complete in their life. Its hunger the parents carve for. Mothers start to notice their 5 year old show interest of dancing and singing, they decide to force them into beauty pageants. Some of the mothers get really competitive not only with the other mothers but as well as the other contestants. They might not know they are harming their child and think it’s for the fun of it. I know that they do use some kind of “special juice” and they have “pageant crack” to keep their toddler energized. The special juice can be any kind of sugar drink and as for the pageant crack its pixy sticks. Some parents mix sugar drink or give them coffee to keep them awake and ready for their performance. The so-called pageant crack can be misleading to the girls; they could end up being drug addic...
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...” Today.com. 13 July 2011. Web. 6 Feb 2014.
Erica Sandberg “Toddlers, Tiaras -- and Debt: the Costs of Child Beauty Pageants.” foxbusiness.com. FOX News Network, LLC, 22 July 2011. Web. 5 Feb 2014.
Kareen Nussbaum “ Children and Beauty Pageants” minorcon.org. N.p., n.d. Web 7 Feb 2014.
K. Thor Jensen “The Worst Pageant Moms” Ugo.com. IGN Entertainment, Inc, March 2, 2012. Web. 5 Feb 2014.
Martina M. Cartwright, Ph.D., R.D. “Child Beauty Pageants: What Are We Teaching Our Girls? The princess syndrome, self-image and eating disorders.”Psychologytoday.com. 12 Aug 2011. Web. 6 Feb 2014.
Rick Nauert PhD “Child Beauty Pageants May Be More About Parents.” Psychcentral.com. Psych Central, 10 Feb 2014. Web. 5 Feb 2014.
Teen Depression: Determining the signs. “Is Child Beauty Pageant A Form of Child Exploitation? It’s Your Call.” childrefuge.org. n.d. Web. 4 Feb 2014.
“A small study published in Eating Disorders the journal of treatment and prevention, that involved 22 women” (Hollandsworth). Girls are choosing unhealthy ways to stay fit and what they call the perfect size just to have a big appeal to the audience when at pageants. The encouragement of this behavior can lead to many body complications and disorders for these girls as they develop, only because they are not truly developing as an average young lady. “A 2007 report issued by the American Psychological Association Task force on the Sexualization of girls claims that parents who put their daughters in beauty pageants can contribute in very direct concrete ways to the precocious sexualization of the daughters” ( Hollandsworth). There has been research to prove that the actions of the young ladies is not all on their own, they have assistance with getting prepared for competitions and what to perform in competitions. Parents add more than what is necessary and can have a negative impact and not even know they are making matters worst than what they have to be. “Kiddie pageants are flourishing. Fueled by a reality TV show, an estimated 250,000 American girls participate in more than 5,000 beauty pageants every year” (Hollandsworth). Exploitation of these young girls is the “NEW BIG THING” to see and enjoy. Adults would rather watch little girls flaunt themselves
In 2009, TLC aired a reality television show entitled Toddlers and Tiaras. It was instantly a hit with home viewers and also brought major controversy over child beauty pageants. The show focused mainly on glitz pageants; which requires all contestant, however young, to compete with make-up, spray tans, acrylic nails and revealing costumes. Many, such as I were entertained at first with the pint size Barbie dolls; however after watching a couple episodes, controlling stage moms and toddler melt downs reveal that glitz beauty pageants are nothing less than objectification and exploitation of young girls. Beauty pageants not only exploit children but are detrimental to the child’s physical, emotional and psychological health.
The amount of money spent on these pageants have caused many families to go into debt, lose homes, or even divorcee because of the overwhelming cost required in some pageants. Parents put way too much into pageants when it comes to expenses. All of the fancy cars and make-up artists are not needed for kids especially if parents cannot afford it. Parents say it is all about the kids but most of the time it is to make them happy. If only pageant parents knew how they are teaching their kids about a materialistic life style. Kids should know more than fancy cars and clothes.
Many mothers who allow their children to participate in beauty pageants would argue that performing in the pageants isn’t as stressful and serious as the television shows portray them. In fact, “the pageant industry promotes this idea by advertising pageants as family affairs that are great for a child’s self-esteem and poise” (Wolfe 445). Also, in an article written by Lise Hilbodt-Stolley, a mother of a pageant princess stated “that while pageants may be ‘politically incorrect’ they are drug, alcohol and gang free” (3). However, many parents push their children to win because they are either greedy for the money and fame that accompanies a win, or are living through their young children because of their own feelings of inadequacy. These same parents who are blinded by the possibility of their baby...
Until the death of 6-year-old beauty queen Jonbenet Ramsey, the child pageant circuit was never fully recognized on a national scale. In the past 17 years, many shows have attempted to give the country a glimpse into the the life of a child beauty queen, however, they are quite over dramatic. Although some sources of media may mislead a viewer to believe the child pageant system is exploitive and sexualizes the young contestants, research shows the decisions of some parents are truly to blame, not the pageants themselves.
Beauty pageants have caused an increase in mental and physical issues in young girls who participate. Participation and competition for a beauty prize where infants and girls are objectified and judged against sexualized ideals can have significant mental health and developmental consequences that impact detrimentally on identity, self-esteem, and body perception ("We must protect our kids from the catwalk of shame."). If young girls don't win, they might take it personally and get hurt feelings. The child might end up feeling unattractive or inadequate ("Child Beauty Pageants Pros and Cons.") which can lead to the development of disorders such as bulimia or anorexia. ("How Do Child Beauty Pageants Affect a Child's Development?") These are both eating disorders girls develop to lose weight excessively. Furthermore, the average BMI of a beauty pageant contestant as of 2010 is 18.3 (Beauty Pageant Statistics), which is classified as underweight...
who have their children in beauty pageants say that their children gain confidence through performing. They also say that they are more prepared for life and will be more socially comfortable. They argue that their children mature at a younger age than "normal" children do. Why would any parent want their children to grow up any faster than they already do? Beauty pageants are not the only way that a child at such a young age can gain confidence.
Children beauty pageants encourage young girl’s to wear make-up, dress in fancy, expensive clothes, and prove to the judges they have what it takes to beat the other contestants. Jessica Bennett states in Tales of a Modern Diva “But this, my friends, is the new normal: a generation that primps and dyes and pulls and shapes, younger and with more vigor. Girls today are salon vets before they enter elementa...
"The Health Risks of Child Beauty Pageants." Aol.on. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2014. .
Pageants have been around for a long time. In the past, pageants were an interactive way for girls to display poise and to compete against each other in different categories. Nowadays pageants have transformed completely. Young girls are being treated and made up as if they were women or dolls. On the TLC show, Toddlers and Tiaras, we begin to see this trend happening. Girls as young as the age of two to fifteen months are being put into these pageants and are shown off to the world as “role models” to other children. The show starts off with a glimpse of the young girls’ lives. We see how they interact with their families and we get a feel for how they live. Most girls display all their trophies and how well they do in each pageant. All of these young girls display attitudes and throw temper tantrums throughout the show. Parents spend an enormous amount of money for each pageant on things like dresses and make up. Other children who watch “Toddlers and Tiaras” might be impacted due to being the...
Child beauty pageants have been a part of the American society for many years. However, since the pageant world has become more worldwide, parents are starting to question their child’s safety. Child beauty pageants attempt to show that the girls are having fun, but these girls are not being dressed and treated like a young girl. In fact, they are being treated like an adult. They are having to be graceful and beautiful, just as a grown woman would. Furthermore, child beauty pageants are becoming more and more like adult pageants. The death of a pageant queen has taken a toll on the pageant worldChild beauty pageants should be banned, or even changed because the children never get a chance at childhood, their minds and bodies are different from adults, and it could cause low self-esteem and even eating disorders.
Beauty pageants demand that competitors spend large amounts of money in synthetic enhancement. This is a poor focus for vulnerable girls and destroys the girls at a very young age. Beauty pageants convince girls that outer beauty is more important than inner beauty, which is totally a false claim. In this paper, we are going to talk about the pros and cons, whys and woes of pageants and if they are manipulative or valuable to kids. Even though that beauty pageants are a good way for girls to make friends. Beauty pageants are harmful to young children and they should not be able to compete until adulthood because beauty pageants teach kids that outer beauty is more important than inner beauty and beauty pageants pose a threat to the safety of children.
" Money, ratings and attention fuel the pageant/dance media machine, with parents and adults reaping the benefits. Purpose of Child Beauty Pageants For these young pageant girls, brains before beauty is not the case. Real-world priorities such as schooling, family, and friends are trumped by tiaras, makeup, and evening gowns. More value is often placed on being beautiful in the eyes of the judges, than on each girl’s individuality.
“Three parents who were interviewed put their children into pageants because they have birth defects. ‘Her plastic surgeon thinks it’s wonderful because he sees parents hide their children with a facial defect,’ according to one mother, whose daughter has a cleft palate. ‘We don’t go for competition or for her to win. We go to meet other children and parents. We don’t want her to think she’s different, that she isn’t beautiful.” (Cromie). The main reason people participate in pageants is the benefit of gaining confidence. (Shappert). Parents enter their children into pageants when they are young so they can learn to be comfortable with who they are and meet many new people. (Cromie). The downside of placing a child into the pageantry world is that it can become very costly. Parents can spend hundreds up to even a thousand dollars just on the dress, this is not including the hair, nails, fake teeth and coaching, if the parent wishes to increase their chances of winning. (Cromie). Another disadvantage to putting young children or even young adults into pageants is that the thought of winning can get to their head. The competition can become too serious for them. On television shows like Toddlers and Tiaras children are often shown throwing tantrums when they do not win.
They are dressed up to look like adults and sometimes dressed provocatively. “Beauty pageants are a reflection of a culture in which women are not equal. Women’s bodies are not their own but are seen as objects of beauty for others.” (Nasso). Parents of the pageant world don’t always understand how provocative and wrong it is to dress their children up in show outfits or give the child additives to make them look better.