Assignment:
You will collect and analyze dataon how race and ethnicity manifest in contemporary toys. You will need to go either into a store that sells toys (a specialty toy store or big-box retailer) or you will need to study an online retail site where toys are sold. Once there, you will record data about the toys you observe and later you will analyze, using course material and concepts, this data in your project paper, drawing out deeper social themes and issues.
Create a 5 to 7 page paper, you will briefly describe how you conducted your research (the location where youcollected data; the amount of time you spent there; how you approached your data collection) and what you found in your research (i.e., the key patterns that emerged). Then, you will use course materials and concepts to provide a rich analysis of those patterns.
Things to include in your essay: Location where you conducted the research (Store name & Location (town/city or online) ), Racial/ethnic composition of toy characters ( List all of the racial and ethnic groups represented among the toy characters you observe. Are there any types of toys that seem to have greater or less racial/ethnic diversity than others?
Are there any racial or ethnic groups that are conspicuously absent from the toys you observe?), Racial/Ethnic compistion of models on toy packaging (What racial and ethnic groups are represented among the child models (or drawings of children)depicted on toy packaging?
Are any groups conspicuously absent? Are there any interesting patterns in the representation of particular racial/ethnic groups?), Racial and Ethnic cues in toys (How is race/ethnicity encoded in toys?
What specific cues are used to signify race (e.g.,character's physical appearance, package description, character's name)?
Do these cues tend to be explicit (e.g., the product or packaging explicitly states the race/ethnicity of the toy character) or implicit (i.e., you infer the race/ethnicity of the toy character based upon latent cues)?, Race/Ethnicity and Social roles (What social roles (e.g., mother, pop-star, superhero) do you see represented in toys? Is there any racial/ethnic patterning of these roles?
Are toy characters from a particular racial or ethnic group (e.g., African American,Latino/a, white) any more or less likely to inhabit particular social roles?
Are there any social roles that are found exclusively among toy characters of a particular racial or ethnic group?
Are there any social roles that are notably absent among characters of a particular racial or ethnic group?
Do the social roles embedded in toys that show racial/ethnic patterning also show gender patterning?