Research  commissioned by the government into the prevalence of sexualised goods has reported that tehre is "no simple policy intervention" that is likely to be able to tackle the issue.

The Government equal opportunities committee convener Margaret Mitchell MSP said the research marked an important contribution to the "complex debate and area of public concern".

"This is useful research which considers the prevalence of sexualised goods and explores the attitudes of parents and children towards them," she said.

The report, authored by Professor David Buckingham from the Institute of Education at London University said there was growing concern from a variety of perspectives about the sexualisation of children, and in particularly about the role of media and marketing.

"We have found that this is a complex topic, which is not amenable to simple explanations - or indeed simple policy interventions," he said.

"People define ‘sexualisation’ in different ways, and there is considerable diversity in terms of how they perceive the potentially sexual connotations of products. In general, children recognise and understand these issues in different ways from adults.
Both parents and children are making nuanced, contextual decisions about what they consume, in which several criteria are considered. The potential sexual connotations of products are only one dimension of this.

"Children are not in any sense simply the dupes of marketers; although neither are they wholly free to make their own choices and decisions. Children construct and develop their identities in part through what they consume; but there are limitations on the kinds of goods that are available in the marketplace.

"While it may be difficult to develop effective strategies for regulating the market, it may also be misguided to suggest that the ultimate responsibility for dealing with sexualisation should be down to the individual."

The report can be read here.