Abstract
Purpose :
Strabismus is known to negatively affect patients' self-confidence and ability to interact with society. Strabismus is commonly depicted in animated films marketed to children, and such depictions may affect the perception of strabismus by young impressionable audiences. We aimed to identify and characterize characters with strabismus in major animation studios.
Methods :
We reviewed all 123 animated films released by four major studios (41 from DreamWorks, 26 from Pixar, 23 from Studio Ghibli, and 33 from Walt Disney since 1989) and identified all characters with strabismus. We performed a character trait analysis of all identified characters with strabismus, and a chi-square test was used for statistical comparison of these traits.
Results :
We identified 45 characters with strabismus, with at least one character identified in 32 of the 123 films (26%). These characters were more likely to be portrayed as unintelligent (40%) than intelligent (2%), villains (20%) than heroes (7%), and followers (31%) than leaders (7%). Twenty-six (58%) did not speak, 24% were portrayed as frightening, 29% had other physical deformities, and 31% were clumsy. The most common type of strabismus was exotropia (53%), followed by esotropia (20%), vertical (13%), and roving eye movements (13%). There was no significant difference in frequency of characters with strabismus between studios.
Conclusions :
Characters with strabismus are common in animated films, where they are significantly more likely to be portrayed negatively than positively. These films are targeted at children, and their negative depictions of strabismus are likely to exacerbate the social stigma faced by children with strabismus. Pediatric ophthalmologists should advocate that animation studios refrain from using strabismus to visually convey negative character traits.
This abstract was presented at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans, LA, April 23-27, 2023.