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Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
Lesson
18
DEVELOPMENT
OF GENDER ROLE IDENTIFICATION
The
process of the development of gender role
identification involves three
aspects:
1.
Gender
Role Preference
2.
Gender
Role Adoption, and
3.
Gender
Role identification (Lynn,
1959)
The
child prefers attributes and
objects associated with
his\her sex, adopt these,
and identifies one's self as
a
member
of that sex and sees
others as different.
Gender
Role Preference
It
is the perception that the role of one
sex is more desirable in
comparison to the other. This
preference
begins
at around 3 years of age and is
quite firm and established
by 5 years of age. This
preference is commonly
manifested
in children's preference for toys
considered to be associated with the
sex of the ones going to play
with
them; toys are seen as
"boys' toys" and "girls'
toys".
Around
3 years of age girls prefer to play
with dolls, doll's house, playing
house, tea cups etc.
usually indoors.
Boys
on the other hand prefer to play
more outdoors than indoors,
and show preference for
cars, trucks, and
airplanes.
Children younger than these do not
seem to be bothered about the gender
association of toys. In a
study
reported by Jacklin et al. (1973), a
variety of toys were presented to
one year old boys
and girls, in the
presence
of their mothers. The toys
included robots, stuffed animals, and a
ferries wheel that was
decorated
with
pink ribbons. No significant sex
differences were found in the children's
preference for toys except
that
boys
preferred robots; nor were the mothers'
selection of toys for boys
and girls.
Gender
Role Adoption
Displaying
sex-typed or sex-related behaviors In
this aspect children adopt
observable, sex-related
behaviors
performed
by members of their own sex.
There are difference in gender role
adoption by boys and girls.
In
case
of girls, gender role
adoption and gender role
identification develops simultaneously
with gender role
identification.
For boys the processes
follow a sequence. In case of
girls when they start
exhibiting sex-typed
behavior,
at the same time they begin internalization of the
female role and its
related attributes (Williams,
1987).
In a study reported by Ward, 1969, girls,
57 years of age, could perceive
similarities between
their
mothers
and themselves; same aged
boys could not do so with
reference their
fathers.
Gender
Role identification
Gender
role identification incorporates the
response characteristics of a gender
role into one's personality.
In
early
childhood both boys and
girls are closely attached
to the mother, but development of gender
identity
requires
boys to detach from the existing
behavioral pattern.
Gender
role identification is easier
for girls, since all they
have to do is to elaborate the early
parented
identification.
The boy has to step
out of the early parental
identification, learn and
adopt the "masculine" role.
Gender
Identity, Gender Roles and
Socialization
Gender
identity refers to children's
identification and acceptance of
themselves as male or female. It is
the
"awareness
developed in early childhood that
one is male or female"
(Papalia, Olds, and Feldman,
2001).
Although
used interchangeably, the terms "gender
identity" and "gender roles"
have a different
connotation.
Gender
identity is more of an internal
phenomenon, whereas gender roles pertain
to observable behaviors
typically
associated with the two
genders. Children may have
developed gender identity but
may not behave in
a
gender typical way.
Basic
ingredients of gender
identity
Certain
elements have to be present, in
order for a child to develop
gender identity:
a.
The
awareness that human beings
exist in two categories with
separate labels i.e. males
and females.
b.
Males
and females are different
from each other in terms of
their characteristics.
c.
What
behaviors or activities are undertaken by
men and women?
d.
The
basic cognitive data or
information about the basis on which the
child fits into one
category or the
other.
56
Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
Gender
Identity in Early
Infancy
Infants
do not have a sense of
gender identity; however parents
usually set up the environment in
such a
manner
that children, as they grow in age, are
automatically steered toward developing
accurate gender
identity.
Some
research evidence suggests
that even infants have some
sense of gender typical or atypical
behaviors.
In
one study 7, 9, and 12 month
old infants could distinguish between
male and female faces when
showed
their
photographs. The distinguishing cue was
the length of hair of the person
(Fagot, and Leinbach,
1994;
Leinbach
and Fagot, 1993).
Another
study yielded some clues to
suggest that 24 months old infants
have some knowledge of the
gender-
typical
or gender-atypical activities. Infants
attended to those photographs for longer
durations where people
were
performing gender-atypical activities
(Serbin, Poulin-Dubois, and Eichstedt,
2002).
12
and 24 months old children
were studied in another research
that investigated their knowledge of
gender-
typical
toys. It was reveled that
girls demonstrated some such
knowledge but not the boys
(Serbin, Poulin-
Dubois,
Colburne, Sen and Eichstedt,
2001).
Beginning
of the use of gender
labels
When
children start talking, they
start using different words
denoting gender.This is the beginning of
gender-
labeling.
Children may make errors in
their use of gender labels
in the beginning e.g. a girl
addressing herself as
a
boy or labeling boys as
girls.
This
error may be found more
commonly in languages like Urdu
that treat not only people
but also all
objects
and
even events as male or
female and grammar changes
with the gender of the person or object
being talked
about.
But children soon overcome
this problem with the guidance of
significant others.Gender-labeling has
been
observed to develop after 18 months of
age.
In
a study by Fagot and Leinbach,
(1989), no toddler under 18 months of age
could pass the gender-labeling
tasks.The
gender-labeling task could be done
successfully by few children 20 months olds
(Levy, 1999).
Most
children are capable of
correct gender-labeling by 24 months of age. Correct
gender-labeling by half of
the
27 months olds sampled has
been reported in a study (Fagot
and Leinbach, 1989). Another
study found
that
67% of two-year olds could use
gender-labeling accurately. All 28 months
olds have been reported to
be
successful
in gender-labeling (Levy, 1999).
Knowledge
of Gender-related Behavior, Traits and
Attributes
Successful
gender-labeling does not
ensure that the child can
successfully adopt and
understand gender
roles.
Their
labeling may not be based
upon accurate cues of
information; they may label a person as
male or female
considering
his\her dress or haircut. Accurate
understanding and knowledge about
gender-related behaviors
and
characteristics develops after accurate
gender-labeling. Some indication of the
understanding of male
and
female
categories, and objects
associated with each
category has been found in
20-28 months olds (Levy,
1999).
Research
shows that 3 year olds
are able to label the sexes,
from groupings based on gender,
and exhibit some
knowledge
of the behaviors typically associated
with men and women
(Martin, and Little, 1990;
Ruble, and
Martin,
1997).Most children have not developed
gender-constancy at three years of
age.
Although
they are aware of their own
gender they thin gender can
be changed by changing appearance
e.g.
hairstyle,
make-up or dress.
Gender
Constancy, Stability, Consistency, and gender
Discrimination
Gender
constancy refers to the knowledge that
gender is a permanent an unchangeable
feature of one's
self.
Gender-stability
and gender-consistency are
two cognitive ingredients of gender
constancy. Gender
stability
refers
to the awareness and knowledge the gender
is a stable personal
characteristic.
Gender
consistency refers to the beliefs
that gender is an unchangeable
characteristic, that remains
fixed and
unalterable
even when appearances or
actions change.
Gender
stability can be observed in
children even in the absence of
gender-consistency, but the latter can
not
be
in the absence of the former (Martin,
and Little, 1990).Most children, by years
of age are successful in
tests
of
gender-discrimination and gender-stability; they also
have developed an understanding of
gender-typical
clothes
and toys that is closer to
the stereotype (Martin, and
Little, 1990; Ruble, and
Martin, 1998).But this can
not
be taken as a rule.
57
Gender
Issues In Psychology (PSY -
512)
VU
Preschoolers
and even some elementary
school children may not
have acquired gender-stability and
gender-
consistency
(Warin, 2000). In elementary school
children, changed appearance, and
changed name of a
character
may produce confusion about the character's
gender (Beal, and Lockhart,
1989).
Once
children have developed both
gender-stability and gender-consistency,
gender becomes a more
salient
aspect
of their lives. They are
more concerned about gender-appropriate
behavior and making gender
fiends
(Warin,
2000). Children who develop
gender constancy become
motivated to adopt gender
role behaviors,
causing
them to avoid some activities and
engage in others (Newman, Cooper,
and Ruble, 1995).
Therefore
gender constancy is accompanied by a
motivation to adopt, and practice
gender-typical behaviors.
External
variables contributing to gender
identity
Parental
attitudes
Peers
and siblings
School
Media
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