The impact of doll style of dress and familiarity on body dissatisfaction in 6- to 8-year-old girls

•Body shape of dolls influenced young girls’ ratings of body dissatisfaction.•Girls who played with thin dolls desired thinner body shapes after playtime.•Playing with full-figured dolls suppressed girls’ desire for thin body shapes.

We tested the impact of exposure to dolls of different body types and wardrobes on girls’ body dissatisfaction. In Study 1, 112 girls (6 to 8 years old) were randomized to one of four conditions: thin (Barbie™) or full-figured (Tracy™) dolls dressed in a swimsuit or modest clothing. In Study 2, a different cohort of girls (n = 112) was exposed to one of four conditions containing unfamiliar dolls of different body size (thin vs. full-figured) and dress (modest vs. swimsuit). In both studies, girls who played with thin dolls experienced higher body size discrepancies than girls who played with full-figured dolls. Girls who played with full-figured dolls showed less body dissatisfaction after doll exposure compared to girls who played with thin dolls. Playing with unrealistically thin dolls may encourage motivation for a thinner shape in young girls.