When it comes to adaptation, Barbie continues to demonstrate to be an exaggerated case. Mattel’s latest adaptation is an inclusive Barbie doll, representing the lived experiences of children with Type 1 diabetes.
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Her new doll has a hot pink insulin pump, a glucose monitor on her arm, as well as a phone that includes an app to maintain and track her blood glucose level. She even has a snack bag that is not too out of proportion for a doll, to manage her own diabetes – teaching kids that health management can be a part of everyday life, that it should not be anything to be shy about, or hide away.
Inclusive Barbie Doll Expands Representation in Play
According to Mattel, the new doll represents their continuing commitment to inclusivity and representing everyone. Since 2019, Mattel has released numerous dolls with different racial and cultural representations, including hearing aids, wheelchairs, visual impairments, and a doll with Down syndrome. By releasing an inclusive doll with disability representation and diabetes, the opportunity for representation is expanded even more for children to see themselves in their doll in everyday play and pretend.
Krista Berger, a Mattel executive, expressed, “Barbie has the world to change how kids see the world they live in. When we put a medical condition, like diabetes, in orientation of Barbie we can give more kids the opportunity to feel even more seen in the stories they create, when they are playing and imagining.”
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While she has a real pump, Barbie is still Barbie, offering a fun position on a real medical device. The pump and glucose monitor are heart-shaped and pink, offering a medical device with a light-hearted view, helping to normalize in a fun way.
This launch is not just a doll launch; it is a wonderful opportunity to continue conversations and discussions about health and health-related topics, empathy, and inclusion. It also brings up a wonderful opportunity to remind us that play can be bright and beautiful when we have the ability to include in our fictitious experiences what we have lived through. Kids are going to learn through the creative style of a new imagined story about how management of diabetes is just another part of who you are, instead of invalidating or taking away from your fabulousness.
The inclusive Barbie doll is more than a new doll sitting beside other dolls on a shelf to children; it is a step towards recognizing and living in the differences, accepting individualism, and allowing children to see the beauty in being different and different looking.
