A comparison of gender role portrayals in magazine advertising: The Netherlands, Sweden and the USA

Examines the roles of men and women depicted in magazine advertising in The Netherlands, Sweden and the USA and attempts to discern any implication for advertisers crossing these cultural boundaries. Explores the relationship between role models depicted and Hofstede′s Masculinity index. Most of the roles shown for men and women are non‐working roles in all three countries. Within the non‐working roles, US and Dutch magazine advertisers are more likely to portray men and women in decorative roles than Swedish advertisers, who are more likely to portray men and women in recreational and family roles. This suggests that Swedish magazine advertisers feel more comfortable showing men and women, but especially women, in more of a variety of non‐working roles than do their Dutch and US counterparts.