Breaking the Fourth Wall and Sex Role Stereotypes:An Examination of the 2006-2007 Prime-Time Season

摘要

Characters break the fourth wall on televisionwhen they speak directly to the camera. Using a stratifiedrandom sample of one episode of every situation comedy,drama, and reality program airing on the five broadcastnetworks in the United States (N-113) during the 2006-2007 prime-time season, we found that, overall, malecharacters broke the fourth wall more frequently thanfemales. However, when a program employed at least onewoman in a powerful behind-the-scenes position, femalecharacters broke the fourth wall more than males. Also,male characters breaking the fourth wall were more likelyto make personal comments about themselves and others,whereas female characters talked about competitive strategyand competition.