Same-sex imitation: The avoidance of cross-sex models or the acceptance of same-sex models?

This experiment examined whether acceptance of same-sex behavior and rejection of opposite-sex behavior contribute equally to the same-sex imitation effect in both boys and girls. Third- and fourth-grade children observed four male and four female peer models display preferences toward a variety of objects. For each object, only four models were asked for their preferences. In this way, it was possible for the objects to become sex-linked depending on the sex composition of the group of models endorsing a particular item. Subsequently, children were presented with pairwise combinations of the more masculine, feminine, or neutral objects and asked their preference. Results indicated that although there is no difference between boys' and girls' acceptance of same-sex behavior, boys tend to reject opposite-sex behavior more than girls.     

Ethnic and sex differences in occupational stereotyping by elementary school children

As part of the formative evaluation of an educational television and print package, fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-grade public school Black, Hispanic, and Anglo children were surveyed regarding career choice and perceptions of the appropriateness of selected occupations for male and female adults and children. Responses were analyzed by ethnic membership and sex. Results indicated that in general Hispanic and Anglo girls chose more non traditional, higher-status occupations than Black girls. For boys, however, there was no clear interaction between sex and ethnic group in career choice. Girls and boys in all three ethnic groups indicated preference for careers stereotyped for their own sex, although girls—particularly Anglo girls—showed a greater tendency to cross sex-stereotyped lines. In addition, while both girls and boys in all three groups stereotyped as appropriate only for females those occupations regarded as traditionally female, traditionally male occupations were stereotyped more frequently by boys than by girls, who tended to consider them appropriate for both sexes. No differences appeared between ethnic groups in boys' responses to male and female adult occupations. In general Black girls tended to hold the most stereotypic views of job appropriateness, while Hispanic girls did not show a clear trend. Black boys tended to stereotype more than the other two groups with reference to child jobs on a boy-stereotype scale. Some differences also appeared in both boys' and girls' responses on the basis of a median split between high and low stereotypers on boy and girl child-job stereotype scales. In general, subjects who stereotyped child jobs tended also to stereotype adult occupations, suggesting a link between the child's current experience and the more remote world of adults. Implications of the findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Influence of gender constancy and social power on sex-linked modeling

Competing predictions derived from cognitive-developmental theory and social learning theory concerning sex-linked modeling were tested. In cognitive-developmental theory, gender constancy is considered a necessary prerequisite for the emulation of same-sex models, whereas according to social learning theory, sex-role development is promoted through a vast system of social influences with modeling serving as a major conveyor of sex role information. In accord with social learning theory, even children at a lower level of gender conception emulated same-sex models in preference to opposite-sex ones. Level of gender constancy was associated with higher emulation of both male and female models rather than operating as a selective determinant of modeling. This finding corroborates modeling as a basic mechanism in the sex-typing process. In a second experiment we explored the limits of same-sex modeling by pitting social power against the force of collective modeling of different patterns of behavior by male and female models. Social power over activities and rewarding resources produced cross-sex modeling in boys, but not in girls. This unexpected pattern of cross-sex modeling is explained by the differential sex-typing pressures that exist for boys and girls and socialization experiences that heighten the attractiveness of social power for boys.     

Recall of sex-role appropriate and inappropriate models in children's songs

The function of sex of model and sex-role appropriateness of models' behavior in facilitating children's recall of song characters and content was explored. Fifty-eight boys and girls, aged 6 1/2, listened to two songs in one of three treatment conditions. The songs had male-dominant/female-subordinant, female-dominant/male-subordinant, or neutral-dominant/neutral-subordinant lyrics. As expected, children attended selectively to same-sex characters, recalling more when the same-sex character was dominant. Boys reported liking males more than females, while girls had no sexual preference. Surprisingly, both boys and girls more frequently reported that they wanted to be like the subordinant characters than like the dominant characters.     

The influence of televised models on toy preference in children

Eighteen boys and 18 girls aged 4–6 years viewed one of three videotapes in which fantasy characters used culturally stereotyped arguments to assign masculinity, femininity, or sex-role neutrality to a standard set of sex-neutral toys. After viewing the videotape, subjects were observed for 10 minutes in free play with the test toys and with a less attractive set of comparison toys which were not shown. The videotaped portrayal of sex appropriateness significantly affected toy choice. Children of both sexes spent more time playing with the test toys when they were identified as sex appropriate than with the comparison toys. When the test toys were identified as inappropriate for their sex, however, children spent more time playing with the less desirable comparison toys. The implications of these findings were discussed in light of media protrayal of male and female models.     

Nonsexist curricula,sex of teacher,and children's sex-role learning

This study examined the impact of nonsexist curricula and teacher's sex on children's sex role learning. Thirty-two boys and 32 girls, aged three to five, were equally divided among four programs: nonsexist curriculum, female director; nonsexist curriculum, male director; control curriculum, female director; and control curriculum, male director. Sex role discrimination and preference were measured at the beginning and end of a six-month period. Exposure to the nonsexist curriculum produced significantly greater reductions in sex stereotyping on all measures than exposure to the control curriculum. Moreover, children in the male-directed nonsexist program displayed greater decreases in stereotypic knowledge and preference for sex-typed children's activities than those in the female-directed nonsexist program, while children in the male-directed control program showed more stereotypic increases on these measures than their counterparts in the female-directed control program. Finally, children under the direction of an opposite-sex teacher exhibited less stereotypic changes in preference for adult activities than children under the direction of a same-sex teacher. Implications for early childhood programs are discussed.This research was partially supported by an Oregon State University Foundation grant from the Shell Foundation and a grant from the Milne Computer Center.     

Personal self and collective self: when academic choices depend on the context of social comparison

This research examines the impact of same-sex versus opposite-sex social comparisons on the perception of one’s own abilities at school and subsequent reported marks and academic choices. During their final year, male and female high school students were asked to describe themselves either in comparison with boys in their class, in comparison with girls in their class or without any explicit social comparison (control group). The interaction effects of gender and comparison context on academic selfconcept, school marks and academic choices indicated that gender differences depend on the comparison context. Particularly, as predicted, gender differences disappeared in the same-sex social comparison condition, and even became inverted for the intended academic choices. Here, boys intended to choose more than girls Preparatory Courses for Higher Education (PCHE) in the opposite-sex social comparison condition, while girls more often chose a prestigious PCHE than boys in the same-sex social comparison condition. The theoretical, methodological and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Cultural and sex differences in touch avoidance

250 male and female respondents from American, Mediterranean, Near Eastern, and Far Eastern cultures completed a self-report measure of touch-avoidance. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated factors for opposite-sex and same-sex touch-avoidance. These factors were used as dependent variables in a 4 x 2 (culture by sex) multivariate analysis of variance which yielded a significant interaction of culture by sex on opposite-sex touch-avoidance and a main effect of the respondents' sex on same-sex touch-avoidance.     

Sex roles and the psychiatric referral process

Three studies were undertaken to explore the relationship between sex-role standards and the psychiatric referral process. Based on observations from previous literature it was hypothesized that children who exhibited behavioral characteristics inappropriate to their sex would be more likely to be referred to psychiatric facilities than would children who exhibited behavioral characteristics appropriate to their sex. The first study examined the records of an outpatient child-guidance clinic. In accord with the hypothesis, it was found that more boys than girls were referred for being emotional or passive and more girls than boys were referred for being defiant and verbally aggressive. In the two subsequent studies, samples of parents and graduate students in clinical and school psychology read hypothetical case studies in which identical behavior problems were attributed either to a boy (Bob) or to a girl (Barbara). The data from the two samples indicated that the child exhibiting the behavior inappropriate to his/her sex was seen as more severely disturbed, as more in need of treatment, and as having a less successful future than the child exhibiting sex-role appropriate behaviors.The first phase of the research was done in collaboration with Merrily Kaplan, whose ideas contributed much to the thrust of the rest of the research. The second phase is based on the first author's undergraduate honors thesis which was supported by NIMH Undergraduate Research Fellowship MH 08027. The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Dorothy Bianco and William Cutler in distributing questionnaires, the cooperation of the New Britain Child Guidance in permitting us to examine their records, and the helpful comments of Benjamin Braginsky, Lorelei Brush, Abigail Stewart, and David Winter, who read an earlier draft of this paper.     

Sex differences in competition—cooperation behavior of children at two age levels

Competitive or cooperative behaviors of children were observed in two experiments. In Experiment 1, 7- to 9-year-old boys and girls played a board game with same- or opposite-sex partners under instructions which stressed either group or individual performance. Girls' behavior varied as a function of both instructions and partner sex. Girls playing the game with boys showed more highly competitive behavior than did girls who played the game with girls. Boys were highly competitive under all conditions. In Experiment 2, preschool children were observed in a similar game. For both sexes, children who played the game with opposite-sex partners were more competitive and obtained fewer rewards than those who interacted with same-sex partners. Thus, with development, boys show a change from selective competitiveness to a very general tendency to compete, while girls show a consistent tendency to vary their game behavior according to situational cues such as those provided by instructions or the sex of a game partner.A report of the first experiment was made at the Third Biennial Southeastern Conference of the Society for Research in Child Development, Chapel Hill, March 1974. The authors would like to thank the personnel of St. Francis Cabrini School and the Children's House Montessori School of New Orleans, Louisiana, for their cooperation in providing research participants.     

Interests and Leadership among Adolescents

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether there is a differential relationship in the socialization of children with respect to gender identification when responses of children were examined with respect to race and sex (N = 596 fifth and sixth grade boys and girls). Strong father preference was found to have no effect on the choice a boy will make when choosing between male and female peers, during preadolescence, while a strong mother preference by a girl is related to the sex of the peers she chooses. Preadolescent girls who identify with their mothers chose girls with whom to interact in a variety of activities more frequently than they chose boys. A greater proportion of girls preferred to engage in activities with their mothers than boys preferred to engage in activities with their fathers. No differences were observed between racial groups in terms of girls' choices involving peers. Black boys, however, preferred to engage in activities with opposite-sex rather than same-sex peers to a greater extent than white boys.     

Gender differences in preadolescent children's online interactions: Symbolic modes of self-presentation and self-expression

Preadolescent children who did not know one another interacted in a multiuser domain (MUD), an online site designed to facilitate identity exploration and peer interaction. Each child participated in two separate sessions, one with a same-sex and one with an opposite-sex peer. Children created characters that reflected real-life properties of themselves, such as gender and interests in popular culture. Boys in same-sex pairs interacted with one another through action, rapid changes, and playful exchanges. Girls in same-sex pairs interacted primarily through written dialogue. In mixed pairs, boys wrote more and engaged in less playful exchanges, and girls wrote fewer and increased their actions. The results suggest that boys and girls have their own unique play styles with same-sex peers, but will moderate those patterns during late childhood to communicate with peers of the opposite sex.     

Television and Sex-Role Stereotyping1

The possible influence of television on sex-stereotyped behavior was investigated in three studies. In Study I the portrayal of male and female central characters on children's Saturday morning television programs was examined, and a number of differences consistent with current sex-role stereotypes were found. Males and females were portrayed in different roles, they manifested different behaviors, and their behaviors were followed by different consequences. In addition, male characters were more frequent than females, and they exhibited higher rates of behavior. Similar differences in the portrayal of males and females in the commercial announcements accompanying these programs were found in Study II. The sexes differed in their frequency of appearance, their location, their roles, their expertise, and the consequences of their behavior. In Study III the effects on children's behavior of exposure to sex-stereotyped vs. non-stereotyped behavior by adult televised models were examined. It was found that children manifested greater imitation and recall for the behavior of a same-sex model with the result that boys exposed to “stereotyped” behavior by a male and female model manifested and recalled relatively more “masculine” behavior than those exposed to “non-stereotyped” behavior, while the opposite trend obtained for girls. Implications of these three studies for television's contribution to sex-stereotyped behavior are discussed.     

Birth order,sex of child,and maternal help-giving

As part of a larger study of birth order, sex of child, and mother—child interaction, mothers were asked to supervise their child's performance on memory and puzzle tasks. Subjects were 56 5-year-old boys and girls and their mothers, half with a same-sex older sibling, half with a same-sex younger sibling. Mothers showed no differences in spontaneous help-giving as a function of sex or birth order of child, but were more likely to give requested help and support to daughters than sons, and to respond contingently to daughters' mistakes. Implications of greater reinforced help-seeking for girls' orientations to achievement and problem-solving are considered.The work for this study was financed in part by Public Health Service Predoctoral Fellowship 5F1MH20, 971-02 and Special Fellowship 1-F03-HD-49722-01 from the National Institutes of Health. The authors wish to express gratitude for the assistance of Dan Eisenberg in performing data analysis.Portions of this paper were presented at meetings of the Western Psychological Association, San Francisco. 1974.     

Person, situation, and person-by-situation interaction components in person perception

The hypothesis that people store situation and person-by-situation interaction information as well as trait information about one another's behavior was tested by administering modified S-R Inventories of Anxiousness and Hostility to 54 male and 59 female undergraduates. Subjects rated the strength of affect that would be evoked by a series of situations in the two same-sex college students whom they knew best, the best-known opposite-sex person, a casually known same-sex person, and the “average college student.” Indices were constructed to measure the extent of (a) perceived average differences among people (traits), (b)perceived average differences over situations, and (c) perceived person-by-situation interaction. Analyses of variance showed that: (a) the ratings of the two best-known same-sex persons and the best-known opposite-sex person contained more interactive information than did the ratings of a casually known person and (b) females perceived more situational variability in the behavior of their own sex than did males. The amount of perceived person-by-situation interaction did not differ as a function of sex of rater or affect to be rated. It was concluded that the naive psychologist, like many professional psychologists, is an interactionist.     

Gender,gender role identity,and children's reported feelings toward the same and opposite sex

The present study explored the relative importance of gender role identity, gender role attitudes, and biological gender in determining the intensity of anger, disgust, hurt, envy, fear, pity, and liking reported toward same- and opposite-sex children. Sixty male and 60 female 6–12-year-old children reported on the intensity of emotions that a hypothetical child would experience toward same- and opposite-sex children in various situations. The Children's Personal Attitudes Questionnaire, the Children's Attitudes toward Women Scale, and a self-reported toy preference measure were used to assess gender role identity and attitudes. The results indicated that girls were more angry at males than at females, and that both sexes tended to be more hurt and disgusted by opposite-sex than by same-sex children. Girls also tended to report more fear than did boys, and both sexes tended to report more fear of males than of females. Most importantly, gender role identity and attitudes accounted for more of the variance in predicting the quality of reported emotions than did biological gender. Biological gender predicted to only one feeling: pity toward males, after the variance accounted for by the gender role traits was removed. In general, both boys and girls who scored highly on feminine gender role identity were both communal and vulnerable in their reported emotions (high in reported liking, fear, and hurt). Children's reported feelings toward the same- and opposite-sex children seemed to be based on the evaluation of whether other children's biological gender differed from the children's own gender role identity characteristics.This research was supported by a Gender Roles Grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. We are grateful for their support. The authors wish to thank the parents, teachers, and children in the Milton, Norwood, and Watertown school systems, and especially Frank Guiliano, Rod Smith, and Daniel O'Connor. We are also grateful for the computer and statistical expertise of Robert H. Harrison, John Houlihan, and Lance S. Davidow, and for the editorial comments made by Robert H. Harrison.     

Sex differences in children's discrepant perceptions of peer acceptance

Sex differences in children's play patterns during middle childhood are thought to promote greater awareness of social acceptance among girls compared with boys. The present study posited that girls are more discerning of peer acceptance than are boys; however, these sex differences were predicted to vary depending on how discrepant perceptions were assessed (i.e., inaccuracy versus bias). Additional differences were expected if children perceived acceptance by same- versus opposite-sex peers. Participants were 912 third through fifth graders (420 girls and 492 boys). Consistent with predictions, boys were more inaccurate than girls, but only for perceived acceptance by same-sex peers. As expected, girls were more negatively biased than boys, but only for perceived acceptance by opposite-sex peers. Results did not support the hypothesis that boys have more positively biased perceptions of peer acceptance than girls. Overall, these findings raise important issues regarding the evaluation of children's discrepant self-perceptions of peer acceptance.     

Why is cross-sex-role behavior more approved for girls than for boys? A status characteristic approach

Previous research has found that cross-sex-role behavior is less approved for boys than for girls in contemporary American culture. The investigation reported in this paper developed a general theory of the effects of status variables on evaluation of role behavior performance. Several propositions in the specific area of sex roles were tested empirically and all were confirmed. Subjects were 169 college students who responded to either a measure of disapproval of cross-sex-role behavior or a measure of disapproval of appropriate sex-role behavior. The results indicated that male-role behavior was more approved for both male and female actors, but that this difference was greater for boys than for girls. In addition, the results indicated that the cost in disapproval is greater for males who engage in cross-sex-role behavior than for females. Finally, the difference by sex of actor in approval-disapproval of female-role behaviors was larger than that for male-role behaviors. These results were discussed within the context of sex as a status variable. The general applicability of the propositions developed in the study was discussed. Also found were sex differences among subjects in response to cross-sex-role behavior and appropriate sex-role behavior.The author would like to thank Irv Gray, Barbara Wylie, and Gene Adams for their help in data processing and analysis. The comments received from those who read the earlier work of this author are greatly appreciated. Address correspondence to the author at Department of Sociology, University of Wyoming, Box 3293, University Station, Laramie, Wyoming 82071.     

Effects of peer presence on sex-typing of children's play behavior

Effect of peer presence on the sex-typed toy choices of 3- and 4-year-olds was investigated in a repeated measures experimental design. Twenty-six girls and thirty-six boys were tested under three conditions: (a) alone; (b) in the presence of a same-sex peer; and (c) in the presence of an opposite-sex peer. Amount of time spent playing with three feminine- and three masculine-stereotyped toys was recorded. For both boys and girls, play with “sex role-inappropriate” toys was significantly lower in the presence of an opposite-sex peer than in the solitary condition. Across conditions boys exhibited less play with opposite-sex-typed toys than girls. Rate of play with opposite-sex-typed toys increased in successive trials for both sexes. These results indicate that the presence of an opposite-sex peer functions as a discriminative stimulus for avoidance of “sex role-inappropriate” play in preschoolers and suggests that preschoolers may have a history of differential reinforcement for sex-typed play in the presence of peers.     

Children's relationships with nonparental adults: Sex-specific connections to early school success

This report asks, Do the social networks of six-year-old girls and boys differ? It then extends previously reported findings by asking, Do different groups of nonparental adults affect the early school success of boys vs girls? Data were collected from the mothers of 162 six-year-olds, using a standard procedure. The networks of boys and girls in one-parent and two-parent households are contrasted throughout the presentation of results. The composition of networks was quite similar for boys and girls, except that each group had more same-sex than opposite-sex peers. In analyses predicting early school success, the number of adult male relatives who took the child on outings away from home was positively related to the child's report card score. This effect, however, was restricted to the subgroup of one-parent (mother-only) boys. This had been predicted, based on knowledge that single-parent boys are the most at-risk subgroup in the sample, the effect of social network resources are known to be accentuated by environmental press, and male adults represent the most salient models for young boys.