Teen girls still choose their moms as best role models

Contrary to conventional wisdom, teenage girls actually look to real-world figures like their mothers and friends when seeking role models and inspiration, rather than the pop-culture icons who dominate the headlines and vie for continued media attention, according to a recent survey of American teenage girls.

Moms Know Best

Nearly half of all respondents (48 percent) chose their own mothers as the best examples of "inner beauty," whereas second choice Reese Witherspoon scored 26 percent and Britney Spears ranked last among six choices, with four percent.

The online survey, conducted by Harris Interactive® on behalf of The Gillette Company, sought the insights of more than 370 girls aged 12 through 18. The results show that girls and young women have more than the latest trends or fads on their minds and take a strong stand when it comes to the ideals that are truly long-lasting.

Mothers and friends also scored high as sources of trusted advice; 46 percent of respondents chose their moms and 40 percent chose their friends; only 4 percent said that they thought a celebrity like Drew Barrymore would provide good advice.

Not Just "Pop-Culture" Please

"There is a misconception that young women’s heads are filled with the latest pop culture craze and little else," said Stephen Brissette, marketing manager, The Gillette Company. "This survey shows that for the most part, today’s young women do recognize how the world is defined and understand the difference between what is real and important and what is pretense."

Further evidence of this notion: when the survey asked young women to rate the power of fashion magazines, 55 percent said that magazines "promote unrealistic images" of women, while only four percent said that magazines "play the right role" in portraying women.

Of course, some of the prevailing thoughts on body type and image still exist: 52 percent of respondents said that physical appearance was "very important to feeling good" about themselves, vs. 9 percent who said it was "not important at all."

And while pop-culture icons took a backseat in survey rankings, the influence of the MTV-generation was still evident with 30 percent of respondents ranking "MTV Movie Award for Best On-screen Kiss" as the honor they’d most like to win.

The Nobel Peace Prize came in a close second with 28 percent; Pultizer Prize for Photojournalism (15 percent); Olympic Figure Skating Gold Medal (14 percent), and Survivor (8 percent), followed respectively.

Yes, Ms. President?

Young women also believe that they’ll play a significant role in matters of substance in the coming years. Forty percent of respondents said that America will have a female president in the next 10 years, while 25 percent chose 15 years as a realistic timeframe before America has a female commander in chief.

On another positive note for future generations, the respondents agreed nearly unanimously: when asked if they thought that women can combine both a successful career and a happy home and family life, "yes" was the emphatic choice of 97 percent of respondents.

The above was provided by the North American Precis Syndicate.