Australian Alcohol Advertising, Gender Stereotypes, and Alcohol-Involved Sexual Assault

Abstract

This thesis aims to investigate the relations between representations of gender and sexuality in Australian alcohol advertisements and the formation and perpetuation of gendered alcohol expectancies which could represent a factor in the high prevalence of alcohol-involved sexual assault observed in Australia. The theoretical framework employed in this work lies firmly within the social constructivist views of gender and sexuality, with notions such as hegemonic masculinity and homosociality playing a central role in the analyses. Noting the literature on representation, particularly of gender and sexuality in advertisements, a comprehensive framework is defined for analysing a sample of Australian alcohol advertisements. A combination of visual content analysis and semiotic analyses are used to uncover the ways in which Australian alcohol advertising promotes a gender-segregated drinking culture, and how such gender-biased notions of alcohol consumption can become problematic. A sample of 74 Australian advertisements published between 2012 and 2017 are considered in the content analysis, with a focus on gender stereotypes associated with hegemonic masculinity and emphasised femininity. Semiotic analyses informed by Barthesian semiotics are then carried on sub-sections of the sample, with particular interest on the notion of cultural myths. The analyses reveal that despite considerable criticism of advertising throughout the years, stereotypical representations of men and women remain widespread, cementing gendered attitudes and expectations prevalent in society - particularly with regards to alcohol use. These gender biases, as I argue, play a role in the normalisation and ubiquity of sexual violence in situations involving the consumption of alcohol.