From Stranger Things to Sex Education, Netflix’s teen series are getting scrutinized for their depiction of pain. Research highlights how the shows mislead and often reinforce gender and racial pain stereotypes, which could have real-world implications.

By Andreea Toca

This article was written by Andreea Toca for the course ‘Skills in Science Communication’ in February 2024. 

Researchers from the University of Calgary (Canada) and the University of Bath (UK) revealed in a recent study how pain is illustrated in movies and TV shows produced for young adults. The scientists advised Netflix to stop using stereotypical scenes that prioritize male characters’ suffering over female characters’ and depict girls as helpless and in need of rescue. Research suggests that the lack of empathy displayed by characters in media could impact real-life behavior.

In the study published in Pain, researchers considered 10 popular films and the first season of six television series launched between 2015 and 2020 in North America. All chosen shows have teenage protagonists, including Stranger Things, Sex Education, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Enola Holmes.

The study looked at more than 60 hours of content on Netflix and found 616 scenes where characters experienced pain. On average, about 10 incidents of pain per hour occurred where most of the pain shown was related to violence and injuries. In contrast, everyday pain, such as bumping a knee or chronic pain, was not often acted on. In addition, they discovered that certain groups of people, such as girls (23%) and people from non-white backgrounds (22%), were not represented frequently in the pain scenes.

“If we’re not showing the types of pain that adolescents might typically experience, like back pain and menstrual pain, then we’re trivializing pain,” said Dr. Abbie Jordan, PhD, co-author and senior lecturer at The University of Bath, in a press release. 

Action preferred over empathy 

The researchers also noticed a general lack of empathy from other characters when responding to pain. Instead of being kind, they often ridiculed the person (10%) or said mean things (24%). Moreover, the study pointed out discrepancies in the way girls’ and boys’ reactions to other people’s pain are depicted in the shows. While girls are usually presented as being more upset when someone is hurt, boys are shown as brave heroes who help out.

“We’re not doing a great job of enabling them (teenagers) to think about how to manage pain, how to talk about pain, and how to show empathy when other people experience pain” added Dr. Jordan.

These findings reflect a previous study published in 2022 by the two universities. The researchers observed that pain is portrayed in children’s popular media from a young age. Parents of four to six-year-olds shared their opinions on this hypothesis. They noticed that shows use pain for entertainment to create a comic effect but also to teach children empathy through a valuable lesson. The researchers mention that watching a lot of violent media makes people less sensitive to violence and less likely to help people who are victims of violence.

“Media is one of the most powerful engines of influence on children’s development and could be harnessed to address pain and suffering in the world”, Dr. Melanie Noel of the Department of Psychology at The University of Calgary explains in a press release. “Fictional stories can matter more in some cases than real-life stories”.

Researchers said they would welcome the opportunity to work with Netflix and other content producers on scripts that reflect the pain this age group experiences. That way, they can ensure that more of what is witnessed in real life is conveyed on the screen. By broadening the types of pain depicted and featuring a diverse range of sufferers and empathetic responses, media can play a decisive role in educating and sensitizing viewers about the complexities of pain.

“I believe understanding how pain is portrayed in popular media – the societal and cultural narratives about pain – is among the most powerful influences on children’s developing understanding of not only their pain experiences but how they show up for others who suffer,” said Dr. Noel.