Drug addicts women in Spanish TV series from 2020 to 2022

Abstract

The representation of women in Spanish audiovisual media, especially in the cinematic sphere, tends to be stereotypical. While television series often lead the way, female characters are frequently still associated with issues such as motherhood. The COVID-19 pandemic, isolation, and the hardships endured, brought about an increase in alcohol and drug consumption, both legal substances like psychotropic medications, and illicit ones like marijuana or cocaine. Therefore, this article aims to ascertain whether, in the immediate years following, from 2020 to 2022, the representation of women with drug dependencies tends towards stereotyping like many other female representations, or if, on the contrary, the unprecedented nature of the situation leads to more diverse references. With a qualitative analysis methodology conducted through the development of an analysis sheet and the software programs Atlas.ti and Excel, applied to the 29 selected series, the study demonstrates that the represented women still tend towards stereotyping, especially concerning motherhood and as victims of sexual violence, although some nuances are presented for consideration.