An anatomically correct doll or anatomically precise doll is a

doll A doll is a physical model, model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and ...

that depicts some of the

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

and

secondary sex characteristic Secondary sex characteristics are features that appear during puberty in humans, and at sexual maturity in other animals. These characteristics are particularly evident in the sexually dimorphic phenotypic traits that distinguish the sexes of a sp ...

s of a human for educational purposes. A very detailed type of anatomically correct doll may be used in questioning children who may have been

sexually abused Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assau ...

. The use of dolls as interview aids has been criticized, and the validity of information obtained this way has been contested.

Overview

Some children's baby dolls and

potty training Toilet training (also potty training or toilet learning) is the process of training someone, particularly a toddler or infant, to use the toilet for urination and defecation. Attitudes toward training in recent history have fluctuated substantial ...

dolls are anatomically correct for educational purposes. There are also dolls that are used as medical models, particularly in explaining

medical procedure A medical procedure is a course of action intended to achieve a result in the delivery of healthcare. A medical procedure with the intention of determining, measuring, or diagnosing a patient condition or parameter is also called a medical test. ...

s to child patients. These have a more detailed depiction of the

human anatomy The human body is the structure of a human being. It is composed of many different types of cells that together create tissues and subsequently organ systems. They ensure homeostasis and the viability of the human body. It comprises a he ...

and may include features like removable internal organs. One notable anatomically correct doll was the "Archie Bunker's Grandson

Joey Stivic Joseph Michael "Joey" Stivic is a fictional character who first appeared on the 1970s American sitcom ''All in the Family''. Joey Stivic was the son and only child of Mike Stivic (played by Rob Reiner) and Gloria Stivic (played by Sally Struthers ...

" doll that was made by the Ideal Toy Co. in 1976. The doll, which was modeled after infant character Joey Stivic from the Television

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

series ''

All In The Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series '' Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'', was considered to be the first anatomically correct boy doll. The dolls are also sometimes used by parents or teachers as

sex education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual acti ...

Forensic use

A particular type of anatomically correct dolls are used in law enforcement and therapy. These dolls have detailed depictions of all the primary and secondary sexual characteristics of a human: "oral and anal openings, ears, tongues,

nipples The nipple is a raised region of tissue on the surface of the breast from which, in females, milk leaves the breast through the lactiferous ducts to feed an infant. The milk can flow through the nipple passively or it can be ejected by smooth mu ...

, and hands with individual fingers" for all and a "

vagina In mammals, the vagina is the elastic, muscular part of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vestibule to the cervix. The outer vaginal opening is normally partly covered by a thin layer of mucosal tissue called the hymen ...

clitoris The clitoris ( or ) is a female sex organ present in mammals, ostriches and a limited number of other animals. In humans, the visible portion – the glans – is at the front junction of the labia minora (inner lips), above the ope ...

and

breasts The breast is one of two prominences located on the upper ventral region of a primate's torso. Both females and males develop breasts from the same embryological tissues. In females, it serves as the mammary gland, which produces and secret ...

" for each of the female dolls and a "

penis A penis (plural ''penises'' or ''penes'' () is the primary sexual organ that male animals use to inseminate females (or hermaphrodites) during copulation. Such organs occur in many animals, both vertebrate and invertebrate, but males do n ...

and

testicles A testicle or testis (plural testes) is the male reproductive gland or gonad in all bilaterians, including humans. It is homologous to the female ovary. The functions of the testes are to produce both sperm and androgens, primarily testostero ...

" for each of the male dolls. These dolls are used during interviews with children who may have been

.Cohn, D. S. (1991). "Anatomic doll play of preschoolers referred for sexual abuse and those not referred". ''Child Abuse & Neglect'' 15:455 – 466.; Everson & Boat, 1991; Jampole, L. & Weber, M. K. (1987). "An assessment of the behavior of sexually abused and nonabused children with anatomically correct dolls". ''Child Abuse & Neglect'': 11 187 – 192.; Sivan, A., Schor, D., Koeppl, G., Noble, L. (1988). "Interaction of normal children with anatomic dolls". ''Child Abuse & Neglect'', 12:295 – 304. Cited in Larsson, 2000, op. cit. The dolls wear removable clothing, and the anatomically correct and similarly scaled body parts ensure that sexual activity can be simulated realistically. There is some criticism with regard to using anatomically correct dolls to question victims of sexual abuse. Critics argue that because of the novelty of the dolls, children will act out sexually explicit maneuvers with the dolls even if the child has not been sexually abused. Another criticism is that because the studies that compare the differences between how abused and non-abused children play with these dolls are conflicting (some studies suggest that sexually abused children play with anatomically correct dolls in a more sexually explicit manner than non-abused children, while other studies suggest that there is no correlation), it is impossible to interpret what is meant by how a child plays with these dolls.

References

{{reflist Sexuality and society Dolls Forensic equipment