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The Star Wars universe is truly a wondrous experience. To this day many children and adults enjoy the movies, animated TV series (The Clone Wars, Rebels), and novelizations of the Star Wars series. Today, May 4, we celebrate Star Wars, as in “May the Force be with you.”

From the Jedi training to the wars that take place in the Galaxy far, far away, Star Wars sets an example of how great science fiction can be. And it does even more than that. In 1977, when Star Wars, A New Hope (back then it was just called “Star Wars”), Princess Leia was among the first female characters to represent a woman who could be in a position of power, one who could fight alongside with her male companions, and one who stood up for what she believed in.

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The representation of a female character in what would stereotypically be a male-type role is of great importance. People watching the original series could see men and women portrayed more or less in equal positions (though, sadly, not in equal quantity).

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There are many reasons to believe that portraying women in equal roles to men could be extremely relevant to someone’s gender development. Research studies looking at how movies and TV shows affect gender development find that when women are portrayed in stereotypical ways (in particular, in submissive ways) and when men are portrayed in aggressive ways, the male viewers are actually more likely to display harassing behaviors, whereas the female viewers are more likely to experience anxiety and submissive behaviors. On the other hand, when women are portrayed as independent and powerful, neither male nor female viewers are negatively affected.

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So today, on this holiest of all Star Wars holidays, let us celebrate the incredible characters of this franchise. In particular, let us celebrate Princess Leia and the other amazing characters who stood up for what they believed in, showing us what it means to be a hero.

If you’d like to learn more about the effects of Star Wars on girl power/feminism or other aspects of psychology, check out the [easyazon_link identifier=”1454917369″ locale=”US” tag=”legoflei07-20″]Star Wars Psychology book[/easyazon_link], including chapters written by a few members of The Legion of Leia.

 

Dr. Janina Scarlet is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, a scientist, and a full time geek. She uses Superhero Therapy to help patients with anxiety, depression, PTSD, and chronic pain to become the very best versions of themselves and become their own heroes. She can be reached via Twitter @shadowquill, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Shadow.Scarletl, or via her website at www.superhero-therapy.com

 

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Dr. Janina Scarlet

Dr. Janina Scarlet is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, a scientist, and a full time geek. She uses Superhero Therapy to help patients with anxiety, depression, chronic pain, and PTSD at the Center for Stress and Anxiety Management and Sharp Memorial Hospital. Dr. Scarlet also teaches at Alliant International University, San Diego. Her book, Superhero Therapy, is expected to be released in 2016 with Little, Brown Book Group.If you would like to learn more about Superhero Therapy, please feel free to contact Dr. Janina Scarlet via Twitter@shadowquill, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Shadow.Scarletl, or via her website at www.superhero-therapy.com