DECEMBER 2020

SPOTLIGHT ON
PUBLIC POLICYUNITED KINGDOMCOMMITTEE OF ADVERTISING PRACTICE RULES AGAINST GENDER STEREOTYPING
New rules aimed at curbing gender stereotyping in advertisement
were introduced by the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) in
the UK in June 2019.
British advertising is regulated through two independent sister organizations, the CAP and the Advertising Standards Association (ASA).
The members of the advertising industry prepare advertising rules
through the CAP and ensure that they are being followed throughASA, which conducts reviews and oversees a ban on ads that failto comply.

The advertising codes are based on standards that are required by
UK law,1 such as the UK Equality Act 2010 which prohibits discrimination of “protected characteristics”, including sex, sexual orientation,
gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race and religion.2
The law is enforced through ASA as a preliminary step, which takes
action without the case having to go to court. 3

KEY FEATURES OF RULES• Advertisements must not include gender stereotypes thatare likely to cause harm, or serious or widespread offence(Committee of Advertising Practice Rule 4.9 and the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice Rule 4.14).

• Gender stereotypes cause harm and offence by reinforcing
perceptions of gendered appearances and behaviours,

potentially lowering people’s self-esteem and restricting
their potential to advance in life, and which can also have a
detrimental impact on society.

• CAP guidance identifies certain stereotypes such as a woman
cleaning a messy home, or a man changing a tyre.

SPOTLIGHT ON PUBLIC POLICY • UNITED KINGDOM | 1

BACKGROUND
Gender stereotyping came under ASA’s scrutiny in 2012 during areview into ads that had the potential to cause harm and offence. In2015, an ad that mentioned the phrase “beach body ready” led to 380
complaints to ASA. The case, along with ASA’s own reviews, led theorganization to look into developing a position on gender stereotypes in case of more complaints.4 The UK Advertising Codes alreadyaddressed harmful or offensive ads, but did not specifically address
gender stereotypes.
In April 2016, an ASA project focused on gender stereotyping in ads
and on whether advertising codes addressed them sufficiently.5 The
report suggested that a tougher stance was needed. 6

ASA identified six categories of genderstereotypes:7• Occupations or positions usually associated with a specific gender• Attributes or behaviours associated with a specific gender• Mocking people for not conforming to stereotype• Portraying individuals in a highly sexualized manner• Depicting someone in a way that focuses on their bodyor body parts• Depicting an unhealthy body image.

RULES
Consequently, new rules were developed. CAP Rule 4.9 and theBroadcast Committee of Advertising Practice (BCAP) Rule 4.14 state:“[Advertisements] must not include gender stereotypes that are likely to cause harm, or serious or widespread offence.”8 According toguidelines issued by CAP, harm and offence are caused by genderstereotypes as they reinforce perceptions of how certain genders
should look and behave, which can lower people’s self-esteem andrestrict their potential to advance in life, a situation that can havedetrimental impact on individuals as well as on society.
CAP also used the evidence found in the ASA report to clarify standards on already existing regulatory positions on ads that objectify
women and girls, and suggest unhealthy appearance standards.

GUIDANCE
CAP issued guidance to help advertisers comply with the requirements of CAP and BCAP rules and to ensure that gender stereotypes
are not depicted in advertisements. The ASA takes into account thisguidance in its assessments.

Potentially harmful categories
identified by CAP include:9The guidance includes a list of some scenarios and principles.

• Women shown as cleaning up a messy home, reinforcing

The guiding principle is avoiding the suggestion that roles and characteristics are always:•••

Uniquely associated with one gender
The only options available to one gender
Never carried out or displayed by another gender.10

perceptions that they are primarily responsible for careduties• Men shown performing a “masculine” activity, such aschanging a tyre, and women shown as dainty• A person of a particular gender failing in an activity normally assigned to other genders• Women prioritizing their appearance• Men being demeaned for sharing emotions.

SPOTLIGHT ON PUBLIC POLICY • UNITED KINGDOM | 2IMPACTSince the rules were launched in June 2019, several ads have beenbanned, mostly because of the way they portray gender roles andcharacteristics.11 One of the lessons learned since the ban was enforced is that humour should not act as a mitigating factor whenpresenting a harmful stereotype, such as fathers not being adept attaking care of their children. Similarly, terms such as “girl boss” should
not be used as they depict the concept of a female boss as something novel and frivolous. Another lesson is that women and men
performing roles associated with their gender is allowed, provided
this is not shown to be uniquely associated with one gender.

CONCLUSIONSThe UK advertising industry, supported by UK law, has taken a concerted step towards advancing gender equality in marketing andadvertising practices by introducing rules that are easy to understandand implement. In only one year, the new rules have created positivechanges in the advertising industry, with an increased understandingthat representation plays an important role in shaping people’s perceptions about gender roles and characteristics. Prohibiting negative
gender stereotypes, therefore, are crucial for making advancements
towards gender equality in society as a whole.

ENDNOTES
1. Advertising Standards Authority/ Committee of Advertising Practice, Depictions, Perceptions and Harm.
A report on gender stereotyping in advertising, Summary Report. Available at: https://www.asa.org.uk/
asset/FA0CDD1A-6453-42FF-BD2892D70C53C5E7/
2. Equality and Human Rights Commission, “Protected characteristics”, Equality Act. Available at: https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/equality-act/protected-characteristics
3. Advertising Standards Authority, “Self-regulation and co-regulation”. Available at: https://www.asa.org.
uk/about-asa-and-cap/about-regulation/self-regulation-and-co-regulation.html
4. ASA/CAP. Depictions, Perceptions and Harm.

7. Ibid.
8. Advertising Standards Authority,) “Harm and Offence: Gender Stereotypes”, 13 August 2020. Available
at: www.asa.org.uk/advice-online/harm-and-offence-gender-stereotypes.html
9. Committee of Advertising Practice, Advertising guidance on depicting gender stereotypes likely to cause
harm or serious or widespread offence. Available at: https://www.asa.org.uk/uploads/assets/uploaded/
f39a881f-d8c9-4534-95f180d1bfe7b953.pdf
10. Ibid.
11. ASA/CAP, “Gender stereotyping – Lessons one year on”, 17 July 2020. Available at: https://www.asa.org.
uk/news/gender-stereotyping-lessons-one-year-on.html

5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.

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DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the European Union, UN Women, International Labour Organization or the United Nations
and their Member States.