Tween

The tween is an age-based market segment, which is chronologically, biologically, and sociologically on the cusp of being something else. It is carved out of the liminal spaces between the child and the teenager. As a market segment, the tween has slippery edges shifting between 6 and 8 years old on the low end and 12–15 years old on the upper end of the [Page 1604]scale. Tweens are often described in marketing literature as “too old for toys, too young for boys.” The phrase highlights not only the liminality of the tween but also the feminization of the market segment, as well as the assumed heterosexuality of tweens. Notably, the tween is most often framed as an 8- to 12-year-old girl. This entry examines the ...