Movie superheroes 'make bad role models for boys'

Dr Sharon Lamb of the University of Massachusetts compared the comic book heroes of previous generations, like Superman who fought for social justice and had a day job as a reporter, with the new wave of movie superheroes, such as playboy millionaire Iron Man.

Dr Lamb told the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, 'Today's superhero is too much like an action hero who participates in non-stop violence; he's aggressive, sarcastic and rarely speaks to the virtue of doing good for humanity. When not in superhero costume, these men, like Iron Man, exploit women, flaunt bling and convey their manhood with high-powered guns.'

She said the comic book heroes of the past did fight criminals, 'but these were heroes boys could look up to and learn from because outside of their costumes, they were real people with real problems and many vulnerabilities.'

Dr Lamb surveyed 674 boys aged from four to 18 to find out what they read and what television and films they watched.

'In today's media, superheroes and slackers are the only two options boys have,' she said. 'Slackers are funny, but are not what boys should strive to be; slackers don't like school and they shirk responsibility. We wonder if the messages boys get about saving face through glorified slacking could be affecting their performance in school.'

In a separate presentation, Dr Carlos Santos of Arizona State University examined the ability of 426 middle school boys to resist stereotyped images of masculinity. He found boys' ability to resist macho images declined as they moved into adolescence.

'Helping boys resist these behaviours early on seems to be a critical step toward improving their health and the quality of their social relationships,' he said.