New Barbie dolls?

Your 6,7,8 year olds may not be old enough to have body issues/self esteem issues, but why NOT have more representative toys, dolls and examples for these girls? There is no reason not to have more options.

While they may not be old enough to have these issues, they DO notice body types. Yes it is the parents job to ensure that a child understands people come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and to accept them all.... why not have that extra reinforcement for them? Young children do start developing a sense of beauty standards - maybe not for themselves, but No child thinks Disney Princesses are the most beautiful people in the world? My nieces talk about how pretty they are. Yes, they are not comparing themselves to the princess but it that standard is starting to be set on how they look at others as well.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Posted by Hofstra26

Posted by Kitten1929

There is so much horse shit on this thread it's unreal...so many people are missing the mark.

It's downright idiotic to think that Mattel making dolls in different body types/aesthetics has anything to do with parenting or being responsible for raising children.

It's incredible how many people miss the point.

Actually, it is you that has missed the point.

The point is that it doesn't matter what Barbie looks like in the eyes of a 6 yr old girl who, for the most part, isn't old enough to have any kind of self awareness to care about someone being curvy, thin, blonde, or blue eyed. And to that end, as parents we have a responsibility to our children to build them up and make them feel good about themselves outside of some silly doll that means nothing or some "beauty ideal" they see on a magazine cover. So, IMO everything has to do with parenting and like you so eloquently said before you deleted your original post, it does NOT make me an "a$$hole parent" because I place a high level of importance on the roles parents play in how a child views themselves in the world. Your comment was ignorant and obnoxious.............which you likely realized so you deleted it.

It doesn't bother me what kinds of dolls and toys are out there, or that some kids have phone at age 10, or that some 13 yr old girls wear a $hit ton of make-up because at the end of that day it is MY job as the parent of MY kids to set boundaries and limits AND make sure they grow up kind, caring, considerate, tolerant, and with self esteem and love for themselves and others. That's MY job as a parent and I'm not sure how that make me an a$$hole because I feel a strong need to take responsibility for my children and not rely on a toy, or a store, or any other outside force to build up my kid and make them feel good about themselves or be a worthwhile human being in this world.

THAT was my ONLY point. It was NOT specifically about a doll. And don't kid yourself into thinking that there won't be some parent out there who gives their DD a curvy Barbie and thinks they did their part to make her feel good about herself because the doll "looks like her". I think what toys kids play with and what messages they hear around them matter less than what is happening within their home on a daily basis with the people closest to them.............especially when they are young. You might disagree, and that's fine, but I don't think my placing a high importance on my role as a parent makes me an a$$hole or makes think I have "stellar parenting skills" as some other obnoxious poster pointed out. I don't apologize for doing the best I can for my kids and shouldering the responsibility for how they turn out despite what other kids are doing, what toys are being manufactured, and what images they see on TV. I also don't think I am "perfect", I'm just a mom like everyone else doing the best job I can for my kids. Period.

And as an aside, this incessant need on LIF to CONSTANTLY call out and put down ANYONE on this forum who feels like they are doing a good job as a parent is so pathetic and childish that any time it's done I feel like any point you're trying to make, valid or not, is lost because of these silly attacks on people. We are grown women on here, how about we act like it instead of calling someone an "a$$hole parent" because we don't agree with their point of view. The level of immaturity on these boards is astonishing to me.

ETA - spelling

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Posted by Kitten1929

Posted by Hofstra26

Posted by Kitten1929

There is so much horse shit on this thread it's unreal...so many people are missing the mark.

It's downright idiotic to think that Mattel making dolls in different body types/aesthetics has anything to do with parenting or being responsible for raising children.

It's incredible how many people miss the point.

Actually, it is you that has missed the point.

The point is that it doesn't matter what Barbie looks like in the eyes of a 6 yr old girl who, for the most part, isn't old enough to have any kind of self awareness to care about someone being curvy, thin, blonde, or blue eyed. And to that end, as parents we have a responsibility to our children to build them up and make them feel good about themselves outside of some silly doll that means nothing or some "beauty ideal" they see on a magazine cover. So, IMO everything has to do with parenting and like you so eloquently said before you deleted your original post, it does NOT make me an "a$$hole parent" because I place a high level of importance on the roles parents play in how a child views themselves in the world. Your comment was ignorant and obnoxious.............which you likely realized so you deleted it.

It doesn't bother me what kinds of dolls and toys are out there, or that some kids have phone at age 10, or that some 13 yr old girls wear a $hit ton of make-up because at the end of that day it is MY job as the parent of MY kids to set boundaries and limits AND make sure they grow up kind, caring, considerate, tolerant, and with self esteem and love for themselves and others. That's MY job as a parent and I'm not sure how that make me an a$$hole because I feel a strong need to take responsibility for my children and not rely on a toy, or a store, or any other outside force to build up my kid and make them feel good about themselves or be a worthwhile human being in this world.

THAT was my ONLY point. It was NOT specifically about a doll. And don't kid yourself into thinking that there won't be some parent out there who gives their DD a curvy Barbie and thinks they did their part to make her feel good about herself because the doll "looks like her". I think what toys kids play with and what messages they hear around them matter less than what is happening within their home on a daily basis with the people closest to them.............especially when they are young. You might disagree, and that's fine, but I don't think my placing a high importance on my role as a parent makes me an a$$hole or makes think I have "stellar parenting skills" as some other obnoxious poster pointed out. I don't apologize for doing the best I can for my kids and shouldering the responsibility for how they turn out despite what other kids are doing, what toys are being manufactured, and what images they see on TV. I also don't think I am "perfect", I'm just a mom like everyone else doing the best job I can for my kids. Period.

And as an aside, this incessant need on LIF to CONSTANTLY call out and put down ANYONE on this forum who feels like they are doing a good job as a parent is so pathetic and childish that any time it's done I feel like any point you're trying to make, valid or not, is lost because of these silly attacks on people. We are grown women on here, how about we act like it instead of calling someone an "a$$hole parent" because we don't agree with their point of view. The level of immaturity on these boards is astonishing to me.

ETA - spelling

It's not about parenting.

It's not about a parent deflecting their responsibility to parent their children, build up their self esteem or coddle their sensitivities.

Whether your personally believe Barbie is realistic or not, whether your child bases their body image or self worth on Barbie...you cannot make sweeping generalizations based off your anecdotal experience.

Barbie has always been an unrealistic representation of beauty. But it hasn't stopped people from wanting to look like her.

What bothers me the most about your answers and the responses of a lot of posters here is that you act like this is a really terrible thing.

Do you teach your children about diversity? That people come in all shapes and sizes? And to respect people, their differences, whether it be physical or emotional? I'm sure you do - so why is having a doll that represents these unique characteristics a bad thing? It has nothing to do with parenting - it is for a little girl to see or think even on a subconscious level, wow, that looks like me. That it can be something she RELATES to...whether its that they both wear glasses, or have curly hair, or have a skin color other than perfectly tanned blonde Barbie? Why is showing what IS realistic all of a sudden being too PC or coddling?

I will never understand why people have such a problem including other people in the world.

The entire world is not Barbie. Why are you being so flippant and going on a parenting tirade like being included is a bad thing?

Oh wait...because we're too PC and coddling our children. But I would bet that if you or your child were on the other side of the coin, you'd appreciate such diversity. I know you think it's a stupid doll, that you teach your daughter about self worth and self love...but don't kid yourself that everyone has that exact same experience.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Wow! I was surprised when I saw this thread was 4 pages long but I guess people can make an issue out of everything.

I think the new Barbies are a great idea -- great for Mattel whose Barbie sales were floundering over the past few years and overall sales were/will be way down as well since they just lost the Disney princess account to Hasbro. I am sure many parents will buy these new dolls which come with new clothes, new shoes, etc and it will be good for business. It's also apparently controversial which will give them free advertising. I would expect this to benefit their bottom line.

I also think it's a great idea period -- to have more variety in the dolls. They are mostly to be sold online and the stores will still be full of traditional Barbie so there is no need to worry about your Barbies being taken away. But, nice to have some variety and some dolls that may look at bit more realistic/more like you/etc with different races, body shapes, etc. It's not like they are taking away the original Barbie so I am surprised by all of the backlash.

As far as the rambling about parenting, yes parenting is really important, no, buying a curvy doll isnt a fix for everything, but I think its really naive to think that because you are an involved parent that your kid wont have issues with XYZ or wont have body image issues etc. They arent in a bubble, this stuff is all over in society, and yes, Barbie does contribute to it. They may not realize it at such a young age but they internalize it. I was a psych major and we did a whole unit on many studies involving Barbie and kids and they were really shocking. Banning Barbies isnt a solution, but constant exposure to these beauty norms and ideals IS something even 2-3yo are picking up on and studies with toddlers playing with barbies as opposed to playing with other toys and then taking various tests scored extremely differently. It's really jarring. I am a mom of two boys and I think moms of girls face some unique challenges raising kids in today's society.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

i'm torn on this.

While I appreciate the marketing ploy and the diversity they are introducing, i worry it will cause more division.
there used to be one barbie body type. Whatever skin color she had, the dolls bodies all looked the same, which strangely took away from the whole body image issue (they all had the same proportions so no one compared)

Now i feel like little girls will go "oh you have the FAT barbie" or "you have the sort barbie" "i have the tall skinny blonde one."

While trying to make it more inclusive I feel like it will become more divided now

Re: New Barbie dolls?

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Re: New Barbie dolls?

Re: New Barbie dolls?

This whole thing is definitely a marketing ploy, and it's nice that there is a choice.

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jan/31/barbie-57-when-will-she-grow-up-observer-profile?CMP=fb_gu

Good article on how in general Barbie is not the best toy.

"Barbie’s horizons have always been limited to preening, nurturing and fashion. In 2014, the results of a study of a group of girls ran counter to the Barbie slogan, “You can be anything”. In the study, girls who played with Barbie, irrespective of whether she was dressed as a fashion model or a doctor, imagined themselves in fewer occupations than boys."

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Is this one of the new ones?
Because to be honest, she still has a super flat, toned stomach. The only difference I see is that she is shorter. (and has a better @ss) Not so much of a big diversity here.

Message edited 2/1/2016 11:21:25 AM.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

But where is Beer Belly Ken?

Re: New Barbie dolls?

This is starting to remind me of the Merry Christmas/Happy holidays debate. And I have the same question--what is it to you (generic you)--someone in the majority, to endorse inclusion and diversity and acknowledge that those who you encounter are not or may not be like you?

Blaming society for one's lack of parenting is bad.

But why is inclusiveness bad? What is it off the majority's back to acknowledge differences/others and respect those differences? What's the big deal?

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Ah, LIF. The place where we hunger for diversity in our Barbie dolls, but not in our school districts

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Posted by computergirl

Ah, LIF. The place where we hunger for diversity in our Barbie dolls, but not in our school districts

Message edited 2/1/2016 1:34:54 PM.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Posted by computergirl

Ah, LIF. The place where we hunger for diversity in our Barbie dolls, but not in our school districts

Re: New Barbie dolls?

While I don't think Barbie, per se, is the problem there is a lot to be said about the message our children receive from a very young age. So Barbie may not cause a body image issue but repeated and monochromatic images and appearances can over time.
And I am sorry but anyone that thinks there 5,6,7,8 year old daughter ISN'T exposed to negative commentary on looks is dead wrong IMO. If they have an older sibling they see it. If they have friends with older siblings, they hear it or about it. If they are in a class with one body/looks conscious person, they hear it. Just because they may not talk about it and you may not make a point of it in your home, don't kid yourself.
I could fall over with some of the stuff my DD says that I know was not heard in our home. Most of the time it is from some girl in class--and it only takes one--or her older cousins that she sees frequently. Then I am left to do the spinning and damage control which isn't always easy.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Posted by computergirl

Ah, LIF. The place where we hunger for diversity in our Barbie dolls, but not in our school districts

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Posted by BaseballWidow

Posted by computergirl

Ah, LIF. The place where we hunger for diversity in our Barbie dolls, but not in our school districts

I'm pretty sure the same people don't want their Barbies or their schools diversified.

Re: New Barbie dolls?

Re: New Barbie dolls?

I don't like it and here's why. Now you have to buy the outfits in all the different sizes and then try to remember which ones go with short Barbie, curvy Barbie, normal Barbie. What an organizational nightmare! At least the American Girl outfits will fit on any American Girl doll!

Re: New Barbie dolls?

If anyone wants to link there was a article today via scary mommy and out her daughter and her friend on a playdAte

She put out a snack and the friend said she couldn't eat it bc she was too fat

They are 8.

Re: New Barbie dolls?