A second look at the impact of nontraditional vocational role models and curriculum on the vocational role preferences of kindergarten children

During a 10-week period 24 kindergarten children in a treatment group were exposed to nontraditional vocational role models and curricular materials, and a control group, consisting of 24 kindergarten children, was exposed to a curriculum unrelated to vocational or sex roles. Using a t test for related measures, the pretest and post-test scores were compared. The results were that the children in the treatment group were only slightly less traditional in their vocational role preferences at the end of the 10-week treatment. None of the t values were significant. These findings are compared to an earlier study in which one of the authors was involved and which used a similar, shorter term treatment (2 weeks). The results of this study are discussed in the context of L. Kohlberg's (E. Maccoby (Ed.), The Development of Sex Differences. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univ. Press, 1966.) Cognitive Developmental Theory of Sex Roles. Some possible implications for role-related education and further research are suggested.