Influences of Social Expectations of Gender,Gender Stereotypes,and Situational Constraints on Children's Toy Choices

Children, whose ethnic/racial backgrounds (primarily caucasian) and household compositions (primarily two-parent homes) reflected local population statistics, were videotaped playing with toy dishes and tools. The amount of time spent with each toy was calculated to determine whether this varied as a function of children's perceptions of social expectations of gender, awareness of gender stereotypes, and situational constraints (no information, gender-typed information unrelated to the toys, gender-typed toy labels). In study 1, the toy choices of girls and boys with perceptions of having one or more familiar people who thought cross-gender-typed play was “bad,” were influenced by gender-typed toy labels. However, only boys with perceptions of having one or more people who thought cross-gender-typed play was “bad,” were somewhat influenced by gender-typed information unrelated to the toys. Furthermore, in study 2, boys' (but not girls') perceptions of having one or more people who thought cross-gender-typed play was “bad,” independent of an awareness of gender stereotypes predicted the amount of time boys spent with cross-gender toys. The discussion highlights the utility of measures of children's perceptions of others' social expectations of gender in gender research. Additionally, the discussion highlights the complex relationships between such perceptions, situational constraints, and different socialization that girls and boys experience in the domain of toy play.     

Qualitative differences among gender-stereotyped toys: Implications for cognitive and social development in girls and boys

Although it has been suggested that the early play experiences of girls and boys may contribute to gender differences in cognitive and social development, empirical support for this hypothesis is limited. This paper reports the development of a system of toy classification and may permit a more programmatic investigation of this problem. One hundred adult subjects rated 50 children's toys on 12 “functional” dimensions. Results showed that these toys could be reliably described according to multidimensional similarities and that toys considered appropriate for girls differed in many ways from those considered appropriate for boys. Thus this system may allow us to test more systematically the hypothetical relationship between sex-typed toy play and the development of differential cognitive and/or social skills in girls and boys.     

Development of gender discrimination: Role of stereotypic and counterstereotypic gender cues

Toddlers (41 girls and 35 boys) between 18 and 37 months old were given four gender discrimination tasks, each consisting of 6 pairs of color drawings. Three tasks depicted pairs of preschool girls and boys holding either sex-typical toys (stereotypic cues), sex-atypical toys (counterstereotypic cues), or no toys. The fourth task paired pictures of female-typed and male-typed toys. For each pair, subjects were asked to point to either the girl (girls' toy) or boy (boys' toy). Gender discrimination increased with age. Young children performed at chance level on all tasks. Older children made fewer correct choices on the Toy Alone task than on the tasks depicting children. Performance generally was unaffected by stereotyping or counterstereotyping of gender cues. Sex differences were minimal.Portions of this paper were presented at the meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Baltimore, MD, April 1987.     

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.     

Progression on Nickelodeon? Gender-Role Stereotypes in Toy Commercials

A content analysis was conducted to examine gender-role stereotypes in toy commercials airing during the after-school hours in October, 2004, on the U.S. Nickelodeon network. The sample included 455 toy commercials, which were analyzed for the type of toy, number of identifiable boys and girls, gender portrayal, gender orientation, age of children, type of interaction, setting, and color of setting. The majority of girl and boy characters were featured in gender-specific toy commercials, and there were more identifiable girls than boys. Almost one-half of the characters were children (6-to-10-years old) who predominantly played indoors, in mixed colored settings, and engaged in cooperative play. Boys were more likely than girls to be shown outdoors and playing competitively.     

Judging toy breakers: Gender stereotypes have devious effects on children

Second-grade children listened to short stories about male or female children who accidentally broke neutral and sex-appropriate or opposite-sex toys. Children then rated the severity of punishment due to each toy breaker and provided justifications for their ratings. The justifications were coded for citing intentionality (or lack thereof) and toy ownership (or lack thereof). No differences were found between boys and girls in the punishment severity ratings of targets of either gender who broke neutral toys. In the punishment severity ratings of toy breakers of sex-appropriate and opposite-sex toys, gender stereotype effects were found only for girls; they suggested more severe punishment for toy breakers of opposite-sex toys, irrespective of their gender. The citation of toy ownership was found to be a significant variable in boys’ nonuse of gender stereotypes in their punishment severity ratings; with the impact of toy ownership removed, gender differences in punishment severity ratings were eliminated. Although the citation of intentions did not influence the punishment severity ratings of either boys or girls, boys referred to intentions primarily in same-sex targets. The data illustrate both the direct and the devious impact of gender stereotypes on children’s social cognitive processes. Portions of this paper were written while the first author was on sabbatical leave at Princeton University and Carnegie Mellon University. We would like to thank Dale Miller for his helpful comments on a previous version of this paper.     

Masculine or feminine gender identity in boys: Developmental differences between two diverse family groups

Early developmental experiences of 66 boys, ages 4–11, who preferred the clothes, toys, and companionship of girls, preferentially role-played as females, and stated their wish to be girls, were compared with those of 56 conventionally masculine boys, selected on the basis of matched demographic features of their families. The “feminine” boys were more often described as having been “beautiful” infants, and were hospitalized more often during their early years. Mothers reported less physical contact with the “feminine” sons in the first years and less time spent with these sons. Fathers also reported spending less time with “feminine” sons during the first years. There was no difference between groups of parents regarding their wish for a girl or a boy during the pregnancy with this son. There were no major distinctions between the two groups of parents on marital role division or marital satisfaction.     

Stimulus control over sex-typed play in cross-gender identified boys.

Discriminative stimulus control over masculine and feminine sex-typed play behaviors was investigated in five boys, aged 5–8 yr, with “childhood crossgender identification.” Reliable observational measures of play were obtained with two sets of toys: (a) “dress-up toys” (girls' apparel vs boys' apparel), and (b) “affect toys” (maternal-nurturance play vs masculine-aggression play). With an ABA reversal intrasubject design, certain stimulus conditions (e.g., presence of father, mother, male, or female stranger) were found to be discriminative for reliable changes in sex-typed play. Sex-typed play was found to vary as a function of the social stimulus situation and as a function of the type of play response required. All children played predominantly feminine while alone in the playroom. While no single environmental stimulus was consistently discriminative for masculine play across children, at least one stimulus condition was found for each subject under which he played predominantly masculine.     

Gender Stereotyping of Children's Toys: A Comparison of Parents and Nonparents

Parents and nonparents were compared to examinedifferences in the use of gender stereotyping toclassify children's toys. Gender-stereotyping was alsoexamined based on the age of the child. Parents and nonparents were sampled from a predominantlywhite, middle and upper middle class population.Subjects rated the appropriateness of 206 toys for useby girls and/or boys and were in general agreementregarding toys identified as gender-stereotyped. Ingeneral, feminine toys were stereotyped more thanmasculine toys although parents were more gender neutralin their ratings of toys than nonparents. Comparisons across mothers and fathers suggest thatinteractions with children may influence parentalperceptions of gender-appropriateness differentially formothers and fathers and is partly dependent on the sex of the child(ren). Finally, it appears thatwhile toys are gender stereotyped for all age groups,there is more flexibility in gender stereotyping of toysfor infants and toddlers.     

Preferences for ‘Gender‐typed’ Toys in Boys and Girls Aged 9 to 32 Months

Many studies have found that a majority of boys and girls prefer to play with toys that are typed to their own gender but there is still uncertainty about the age at which such sex differences first appear, and under what conditions. Applying a standardized research protocol and using a selection of gender‐typed toys, we observed the toy preferences of boys and girls engaged in independent play in UK nurseries, without the presence of a parent. The 101 boys and girls fell into three age groups: 9 to 17 months, when infants can first demonstrate toy preferences in independent play (N = 40); 18 to 23 months, when critical advances in gender knowledge occur (N = 29); and 24 to 32 months, when knowledge becomes further established (N = 32). Stereotypical toy preferences were found for boys and girls in each of the age groups, demonstrating that sex differences in toy preference appear early in development. Both boys and girls showed a trend for an increasing preference with age for toys stereotyped for boys. Theoretical implications of the findings are discussed with regard to biological predispositions, cognitive development and environmental influences on toy preference. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Activity Level and Sex-Stereotyped Toy Choice in Toddler Boys and Girls

In the first study, the motor activity level and vigor of play of 52 toddlers was assessed as they played with a set of sex-role stereotyped and neutral toys. Boys and girls showed the same level of activity, and both were significantly more active when playing with stereotypically masculine toys. In the second study, 27 toddlers were observed playing with toys defined as potentially eliciting high, medium, or low activity within the masculine, feminine, and neutral categories. Again, boys and girls did not differ in overall activity level. All children preferred toys that allowed moderate to high activity, but given this preference, they selected toys stereotyped for their own gender above those stereotyped for the other gender.     

Activity level and sex-stereotyped toy choice in toddler boys and girls

In the first study, the motor activity level and vigor of play of 52 toddlers was assessed as they played with a set of sex-role stereotyped and neutral toys. Boys and girls showed the same level of activity, and both were significantly more active when playing with stereotypically masculine toys. In the second study, 27 toddlers were observed playing with toys defined as potentially eliciting high, medium, or low activity within the masculine, feminine, and neutral categories. Again, boys and girls did not differ in overall activity level. All children preferred toys that allowed moderate to high activity, but given this preference, they selected toys stereotyped for their own gender above those stereotyped for the other gender.     

The gender-stereotyped nature of christmas toys received by 36-, 48-, and 60-month-old children: A comparison between nonrequested vs requested toys

This research provides normative information on the gender-stereotyped nature of Christmas toys that children received from their parents. A list of over 500 toys was obtained from the parents of 86 children between the ages of 31 and 65 months. The toys were rated and placed into gender-stereotyped groups, and were categorized into child requested or nonrequested groups. It was found that the children had considerable input into the types of toys they received from their parents for Christmas, requesting approximately one half of the toys. Toys the children requested were judged to be more gender stereotyped than nonrequested toys. Very few boys received either requested or nonrequested toys considered stereotyped for the opposite sex. In contrast, one third of the girls received at least one toy judged to be stereotyped for the opposite sex. Also, boys appeared to develop sex-typed interests in toys at an earlier age than girls, and they requested 72%, 76%, and 75% gender-stereotyped toys in the corresponding age groups of 36-, 48-, and 60-months. The girls' sex-typed interests in toys lagged behind the boys', with girls requesting 29%, 51%, and 73% gender-stereotyped toys for the same age groups. In the nonrequested condition, parents selected types of toys judged to be traditionally more sex role neutral and emphasized musical instruments, art supplies, and educational toys for their sons and educational toys for their daughters.     

The Impact of Parenting Experience on Gender Stereotyped Toy Play of Children

The purpose of this study was to examine gender role socialization as a function of parenting experience in an actual toy play situation and as a function of adults' perceptions of typically gender-stereotyped children's toys. Each of 48 children (24 boys and 24 girls) played with 3 adults: either his or her own mother or father, a matched mother or father of another child, and a matched man or woman who was not a parent. The amount of time children and adults played with gender-specific toys, adults' categorization of toys into gender categories, and adults' desirability ratings of gender-specific toys were examined. The gender-sorting task revealed that adults did not agree with traditional expert categorizations of some of the toys, which suggests a shift in the perceived function of some traditionally stereotyped toys. Regardless of how parents sorted toys into categories, when playing with boys, most time was spent with masculine toys. With girls, however, there was greater flexibility in the categories of toys with which they played. Parenting experience influenced the perceived desirability of toys; parents found toys more desirable than nonparents but these differences did not affect the actual play session with children. These results suggest a change in perceptions of traditionally stereotyped toys and differences as a function of gender in what is appropriate gender-typing behavior.     

Effects of neutral toys on sex-typed play in children with gender identity disorder

This study assessed the relative influences of approach and avoidance behaviors toward same-sex and cross-sex toys in the play of children with gender identity disorder and in normal boys, normal girls, and psychiatric controls. Three forced-choice situations with toys and three forced-choice situations with dress-up apparel were presented that paired same-sex and cross-sex stimuli, same-sex and neutral stimuli, and cross-sex and neutral stimuli. In the same-sex/cross-sex situation, the gender-disordered group played a significantly shorter time with the same-sex stimuli and a significantly longer time with the cross-sex stimuli than the normal boys and the psychiatric controls, whereas the play patterns of the normal girls fell in between that of the gender-disordered group and the other two control groups. Within-groups analyses showed that the normal boys and the psychiatric controls preferred the same-sex toys, whereas the gender-disordered group and the normal girls showed no preference. When the neutral toys were the alternative, avoidance of cross-sex toys appeared to be stronger than the attraction to same-sex toys in the normal boys and in the psychiatric controls. The relative influence of approach-avoidance tendencies was more equivocal in the gender-disordered group, though they appeared to have a weaker attraction to same-sex toys and less avoidance of cross-sex toys in comparison with the normal boys and the psychiatric controls. The approach-avoidance patterns of the normal girls fell in between that of the gender-disordered group and the other two control groups.     

“Girls Are as Good as Boys at Math” Implies That Boys Are Probably Better: A Study of Expressions of Gender Equality

Although “Girls are as good as boys at math” explicitly expresses equality, we predict it could nevertheless suggest that boys have more raw talent. In statements with this subject‐complement structure, the item in the complement position serves as the reference point and is thus considered more typical and prominent. This explains why “Tents are like houses,” for instance, sounds better than “Houses are like tents”—people generally think of houses as more typical. For domains about ability, the reference point should be the item that is typically more skilled. We further propose that the reference point should be naturally more skilled. In two experiments, we presented adults with summaries of actual scientific evidence for gender equality in math (Experiment 1) or verbal ability (Experiment 2), but we manipulated whether the reference point in the statements of equality in the summaries (e.g., “Boys’ verbal ability is as good as girls’”) was girls or boys. As predicted, adults attributed more natural ability to each gender when it was in the complement rather than subject position. Yet, in Experiment 3, we found that when explicitly asked, participants judged that such sentences were not biased in favor of either gender, indicating that subject‐complement statements must be transmitting this bias in a subtle way. Thus, statements such as “Girls are as good as boys at math” can actually backfire and perpetuate gender stereotypes about natural ability.     

Aspects of preschoolers' comprehension of indoor and outdoor gender-typed toys

Forty-nine 44- to 81-month-old predominantly white children's classification of and clustering in recall of gender-typed indoor and outdoor toys, and their gender schematicity, were assessed. Consistent with predictions, children high in gender schematicity demonstrated significantly greater clustering in their recall by gender type than children low in schematicity. As expected, all children demonstrated more accurate classification of same-sex than other-sex gender-typed toys in general. However, boys and girls showed distinctively different patterns in their abilities to accurately classify same-sex and other-sex indoor and outdoor gender-typed toys. Results are discussed in terms of the different social and play contexts inhabited by preschool boys and girls.Completion of this project was facilitated by funds received when the author was a National Institute of Mental Health Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Denver; Grant 5T32 MH 15780-09, in addition to an Academic Challenge Award from the University of Toledo. This support is gratefully acknowledged. Special thanks to Maryjo Jones for her data collection efforts and to the faculty, children, and parents of Iliff Preschool of Denver, Colorado, and especially to Director Jean True for assisting in the completion of this research. Thanks also to Joan M. Barth, Narina N. Nightingale, Kathy A. Park, and Peg Hull-Smith for their comments on earlier versions of this article. A shorter version of this paper was presented at the Conference on Human Development, Richmond, Virginia, March 1990.To whom reprint requests should be addressed at Department of Psychology, University of Wyoming, P.O. Box 3415, Room 135 Biological Sciences Building, Laramie, WY 82071-3415.     

The Production of Meaning through Peer Interaction: Children and Walt Disney’s Cinderella

For many years researchers have understood that gender roles in children’s literature have the capacity to create and reinforce “meanings” of femininity and masculinity (Currie, Gend. Soc., 11: 453–477, 1997; Gledhill, Genre and gender: The case of soap opera. In S. Hall (Ed.), Representation (pp. 339–383). London: Sage, 1985; Tatar, Off with their heads!: Fairy tales and the culture of childhood. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1993; Zipes, Happily ever after. New York: Routledge, 1997). The purpose of this study was to investigate children’s interpretation of a popular gendered fairy tale at the level of peer interaction. Walt Disney’s Cinderella was used in elementary school reading groups to investigate the ways that children understand messages regarding gender and the influence of peer culture on the production of meaning. The findings indicate that gender and gendered expectations were essential to the process of interpretation and the construction of meaning for the children. Gender unified the boys and girls into two distinct groups, particularly around the “girls’ book,” Cinderella. Gender was reinforced along traditional lines in the peer group, serving as a deterrent to the production of alternate interpretations to traditional messages in the text.