What is gender role development
Gender-Role Development | Encyclopedia.com
Gender-role development is one of the most important areas of human development. In fact, the sex of a newborn sets the agenda for a whole array of developmental experiences that will influence the person throughout his or her life.
The often controversial study of the development of gender is a topic that is inherently interesting to parents, students, researchers, and scholars for several reasons. First and foremost, one's sex is one of the most salient characteristics that is presented to other people. Second, who one is as a male or a female becomes a significant part of one's overall identity; it is one of the first descriptors people use about themselves. Labeling oneself as a "boy" or "girl" can begin as early as age eighteen months. Third, gender is an important mediator of human experiences and the way in which individuals interact with each other and the physical environment. Individuals' choices of friends, toys, classes taken in middle school, and vocation all are influenced by sex. Finally, the study of sex, gender development, and sex differences becomes the focal point of an age-old controversy that has influenced the field of developmental psychology: the nature-nurture controversy. Are gender roles and sex differences biologically determined? What are the effects of society and culture on gender and sex? How do biology (nature) and environment (nurture) interact and mutually influence each other in this significant dimension of human development?
When discussing gender-role development, the definitions of the terms "sex" and "gender" need to be understood. Referring to the nature-nurture controversy, scholars have found it important to distinguish those aspects of males and females that can be attributed to biology and those that can be attributed to social influences. The term "sex" denotes the actual physical makeup of individuals that define them as male or female. Sex is determined by genetic makeup, internal reproductive organs, the organization of the brain (such as in the control of hormone production), and external genitalia. By contrast, the behavior of individuals as males or females, the types of roles they assume, and their personality characteristics, may be as much a function of social expectations and interactions as their biological makeup. For example, in American culture, females are expected to be nurturing, and males aggressive. These behaviors and characteristics are dependent upon the social context. In order to differentiate social roles and behaviors from biological features, scholars refer to these as "gender" and "gender roles." Obviously, sex and gender are intertwined. Social expectations usually are enacted once body parts reveal the biological makeup of the individual.
Both sex and gender have a developmental story to tell that begins before birth (prenatal) and continues throughout the lifespan. Important developmental changes occur from conception through the adolescence years, and there are important theoretical perspectives and research studies that have tried to shed light on these developmental accomplishments.
Prenatal Development
Gender-role development begins at conception. If the fertilized cell has an XY chromosomal pattern, the baby will become a genetic male; an XX chromosomal pattern will lead to a genetic female. There cannot be a genetic male without that Y chromosome. Sometimes there are aberrations to these patterns, which can ultimately lead to a number of syndromes such as females with only one X chromosome (Turner's syndrome) or males with two Xs and one Y (Klinefelter's syndrome). Frequently these syndromes result in some form of cognitive and physical impairment.
At around week six of gestation, the hormone testosterone will stimulate the tissues into developing into the male internal organs; otherwise, the organs will become part of the female reproductive system. Then, by around three or four months, the external genitalia are formed. It is also during early prenatal development that the brain, bathed by the male and female hormones, may differentiate into a "female" or "male" brain (for example, female brains may be more symmetrically organized), but most of this research is still inconclusive.
Prenatal sex differentiation culminates at birth. When the proclamation of "It's a boy!" or "It's a girl!" is made, the complex process of socialization begins. It is important to recognize that the path of prenatal development may take significant deviations. Aside from the chromosomal abnormalities already mentioned, there are instances during prenatal development when females are bathed by the male hormones (androgens), and situations where male genital tissues are insensitive to the differentiating function of the male hormones. Both situations can lead to a baby born with ambiguous genitalia. In such situations, parents face agonizing decisions: whether to surgically "correct" the condition and whether to raise the baby as a female or as a male.
Infancy
Overall, the sex differences between boys and girls in the first year of life are minimal. Boys may be a bit more active or fussier and girls more physically mature and less prone to physical problems, but that may be the extent of the significant differences. Yet, baby boys are bounced and roughhoused, whereas girls are talked to more. Mothers tend to ignore the emotional expressions of their infant sons, while fathers spend more time with their boys than with their girls. Even during infancy, their names, their clothing, the "sugar and spice" messages in baby congratulation cards, and their room furnishings shape girls and boys. According to Marilyn Stern and Katherine H. Karraker, adults will characterize the same baby as strong and hardy if they think it is a male, and delicate and soft if they think it is a female. In these and other ways, gender-role socialization has already begun in earnest.
Early Childhood
The years from about age two to age six are crucial years in the development of gender roles. It is during these years that children become aware of their gender, where play styles and behaviors begin to crystallize around that core identity of "I am a girl" or "I am a boy," and that the social context of family, school, the peer group, and the media exert potent messages in stereotyped ways. Because of the centrality of gender-role development during these years, most theories of social and personality development highlight the early childhood years. For example, in the psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud, in the third stage of psychosexual development a male child encounters the Oedipal Crisis, a time when the only way in which he can cope with his desire for his mother and fear of his father is to completely identify and incorporate his father's characteristics within himself. Freud posited a similar process for girls' desires for their fathers (the Electra complex). Although many contemporary psychologists do not agree with this theory in general, Freud is credited with highlighting the development of gender and gender-role behaviors very early in childhood and their link to identification with parents.
Social learning theory, developed by Albert Bandura, emphasizes the importance of children's imitation of the behavior of others (models). The theory posits that boys learn how to behave as boys from observing and imitating masculine behaviors, especially from their fathers, and girls learn from imitating females, especially their mothers. When children imitate same-sex behaviors, they are rewarded, but imitating the other sex may carry the threat of punishment. Although the research indicates that most parents value the same behaviors for their sons and daughters, some rewards or punishments are given on the basis of gender typing, particularly during play. This is even more true for boys than for girls, with fathers being the most punitive if, for example, they observe their sons playing with Barbie dolls or sporting red fingernail polish.
Finally, cognitive developmental theory underscores the importance of understanding what it means to be a boy or girl in the development of gender roles. In 1966 Lawrence Kohlberg conceived of gender development as a three-stage process in which children first learn their identity ("I am a boy"), then gender stability ("I will always be a boy and grow up to be a man"), and finally gender constancy ("Even if I wore a dress, I would still be a boy"), all by about six years of age. A newer version of this approach, formulated by Carol Martin and Charles Halverson in 1981, emphasized the development of gender schemas— children's ideas of gender that help them categorize experiences as relevant to one sex or the other.
Regardless of which theoretical explanation of gender roles is used, the early acquisitions of such ideas and behaviors make for very stereotyped youngsters. Because young children see the world in black- and-white terms, they may go as far as to insist that only men could be physicians, even when their own pediatrician is a woman!
Middle Childhood
Whereas parents play a significant role in gender socialization when their children are very young, when most Western boys and girls enter school they separate into gender-segregated groups that seem to operate by their own set of peer-driven rules. Gender segregation is such a widespread phenomenon that boys and girls seem to work and play together only when there is a coercive adult present. During unstructured free time, the lapse into the "two cultures of childhood" (Maccoby 1998, p. 32) is quite obvious—the other sex becomes "toxic." A typical boys' group is large, competitive, hierarchical, with one or two boys at the top of the pecking order, and organized around large group outdoor activities such as sports. Rough-and-tumble play and displays of strength and toughness frequently occur. In contrast, girls' groups tend to be smaller and dependent on intense, intimate conversations where the emphasis is upon maintaining group cohesion. Girls try very hard to be "nice" to one another, even as they attempt to covertly promote their own agenda. In her 1998 book The Two Sexes, Eleanor Maccoby stated her belief that this segregation, hints of which may be seen as early as age four or five, begins when girls shy away from their exuberant, active male playmates, who do not rely as much upon language for persuasion and influence. The boys' groups ultimately evolve into a strict order that avoids anything perceived as feminine. Girls have much greater latitude in American society to cross that sacred border. Maccoby contended that these interaction styles, to some extent, continue throughout adolescence and adulthood.
Adolescence
Erik H. Erikson believed that adolescence represented a crucial turning point in the development of a sense of identity. All of the physical, social, and cognitive changes of these years lead to frequent soul-searching about "Who am I?" Such uncertainty and insecurity also can further promote conformity into one's gender role, or "gender intensification." During early adolescence, boys may emulate "macho" role models and be quite homophobic; girls may adhere to strict dress codes (e.g., that which is "in") and play down their intellectual talents and abilities. The timing of puberty may also have significant implications for adolescent gender development. Girls are more likely to encounter social difficulties when they mature early, but for boys the opposite is true.
For many adolescents, the uncertainties, conflicting demands, and withdrawal of adult and community support are predictors of significant problems. Much has been written about how difficult the adolescent years are for girls, as they are more likely than boys to experience depression, eating disorders, and low self-esteem. This may vary, however, according to the ethnicity of the girl, as African-American teenagers do not seem to express such negative views about themselves. In his 1998 book Real Boys, William Pollack emphasized the realization that gender-role socialization makes life hard for boys. Because Western culture provides boys little opportunity for self-expression and close emotional relationships, the suicide rate and rate of violence in teenage boys is far greater than for girls.
By the end of adolescence, both sexes usually become more tolerant of themselves and others in terms of their consideration of gender-related behaviors. Individuals' evolution as men and women continues throughout the lifespan, however, as each person encounters major life transitions such as marriage, parenthood, middle age, and old age. It is important to recognize that although humans emphasize the differential paths of boys and girls in the development of gender roles, the fundamental dimensions of humanity—male and female—are more similar than different.
See also:ERIKSON, ERIK; PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT
Bibliography
American Association of University Women. Shortchanging Girls, Shortchanging America: A Call to Action. Washington, DC: American Association of University Women, 1991.
Bandura, Albert. Social Learning Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:Prentice-Hall, 1977.
Beal, Carole R. Boys and Girls: The Development of Gender Roles. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994.
Bridges, Judith S. "Pink or Blue: Gender-Stereotypic Perceptions of Infants as Conveyed by Birth Congratulations Cards." Psychology of Women Quarterly 17 (1993):193-205.
Denmark, Florence, Vita Rabinowitz, and Jeri Sechzer. Engendering Psychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000.
Erikson, Erik H. Identity, Youth, and Crisis. New York: Norton, 1968.
Fagot, Beverly I., and Mary D. Leinbach. "The Young Child's Gender Schema: Environmental Input, Internal Organization." Child Development 60 (1989):663-672.
Halpern, Diane F. Sex Differences in Cognitive Abilities, 3rd edition. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2000.
Kohlberg, Lawrence. "A Cognitive-Developmental Analysis ofChildren's Sex Role Concepts and Attitudes." In Eleanor E. Maccoby ed., The Development of Sex Differences. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1966.
Maccoby, Eleanor E. The Two Sexes: Growing Up Apart, Coming Together. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, Belknap Press, 1998.
Martin, Carol L., and Charles F. Halverson. "A Schematic Processing Model of Sex Typing and Stereotyping in Children." Child Development 52 (1981):1119-1134.
Pollack, William. Real Boys. New York: Henry Holt, 1998.
Rheingold, Harriet L., and Kaye V. Cook. "The Content of Boys' and Girls' Rooms as an Index of Parents' Behavior. " Child Development 46 (1975):445-463.
Stern, Marilyn, and Katherine H. Karraker. "Sex Stereotyping ofInfants: A Review of Gender Labeling Studies." Sex Roles 20 (1989):501-522.
Vasques, Melba J. T., and Cynthia de las Fuentes. "American-Born Asian, African, Latina, and American Indian Adolescent Girls: Challenges and Strengths." In Norine G. Johnson and Michael C. Roberts ed., Beyond Appearance: A New Look at Adolescent Girls. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 1999.
Illene C.Noppe
Gender Identity Development in Children
By: Jason Rafferty MD, MPH, EdM, FAAP
There are many ways parents can promote healthy gender development in children. It helps to understand gender identity and how it forms.
What's the difference between gender and sex?
Being a boy or a girl, for most children, is something that feels very natural. At birth, babies are assigned male or female based on physical characteristics. This refers to the "sex" or "assigned gender" of the child. Meanwhile, "gender identity" refers to an internal sense people have of who they are that comes from an interaction of biological traits, developmental influences, and environmental conditions. This may be male, female, somewhere in between, a combination of both or neither.
Self-recognition of gender identity develops over time, much the same way a child's physical body does. Most children's asserted gender identity aligns with their assigned gender (sex). However, for some children, the match between their assigned gender and gender identity is not so clear.
How does gender identity develop in children?
Gender identity typically develops in stages:
Around age two: Children become conscious of the physical differences between boys and girls.
Before their third birthday: Most children can easily label themselves as either a boy or a girl.
By age four: Most children have a stable sense of their gender identity.
During this same time of life, children learn gender role behavior—that is, doing "things that boys do" or "things that girls do." However, cross-gender preferences and play are a normal part of gender development and exploration regardless of their future gender identity. See The Power of Play - How Fun and Games Help Children Thrive.
The point is that all children tend to develop a clearer view of themselves and their gender over time. At any point, research suggests that children who assert a gender-diverse identity know their gender as clearly and consistently as their developmentally matched peers and benefit from the same level of support, love and social acceptance.
What parents can do:
All children need the opportunity to explore different gender roles and different styles of play. Parents can make sure their young child's environment reflects diversity in gender roles and encourages opportunities for everyone. Some ideas would be to offer:
Children's books or puzzles showing men and women in non-stereotypical and diverse gender roles (stay-at-home dads, working moms, male nurses and female police officers, for example).
A wide range of toys for your child to choose from, including baby dolls, toy vehicles, action figures, blocks, etc.
By age 6, most children spend most of their playtime with members of their own sex and may gravitate towards sports and other activities that are associated with their gender. It is important to allow children to make choices regarding friend groups, sports and other activities they get involved in. It is also a good idea to check in with your child to learn about their preferences and to make sure they feel included without teasing or bullying.
How do children typically express their gender identity?
In addition to their choices of toys, games, and sports, children typically express their gender identity in the following ways:
Clothing or hairstyle
Preferred name or nickname
Social behavior that reflects varying degrees of aggression, dominance, dependency and gentleness.
Manner and style of behavior and physical gestures and other nonverbal actions identified as masculine or feminine.
Social relationships, including the gender of friends, and the people they decide to imitate.
While a child's gender-specific behavior (i.e. gender expression) at any time seems to be influenced by exposure to stereotypes and their identification with the people in their lives, the internal sense of being a girl, boy, in between or something else (i.e. gender identity) cannot be changed.
How have gender stereotypes changed over time?
Our expectations of "what girls do" and "what boys do" have changed. Many female athletes excel at their sports. Girls increasingly pursue subjects traditionally thought of as "masculine." There are many famous male chefs, artists, and musicians―fields traditionally thought of as "feminine." Over time, society has recognized that stereotypes of "masculine" and "feminine" activities and behaviors are inaccurate and limiting to a child's development. Such interests also do not determine or influence one's gender identity. Furthermore, our ability to predict who a child is based on early preferences is not very accurate and may be harmful if it leads to shame or attempts at suppressing their skills, talents and genuine self.
Still, when a child's interests and abilities are different from what society expects, they may be subjected to discrimination and bullying. It is natural for parents to have gender-based expectations for their children and to want to protect them from criticism and exclusion. Instead of pushing children to conform to these pressures and to limit themselves, parents can play an important role in advocating for safe spaces where their children can feel comfortable and good about themselves.
If your child doesn't excel in sports or even have an interest in them, for example, there will still be many other opportunities and areas in which they can thrive. Regardless of gender identity, each child has their own strengths that may not always conform to society's or your own expectations, but they will still be a source of current and future success.
Remember
Gender development is a normal process for all children. Some children will exhibit variations―similar to all areas of human health and behavior. However, all children need support, love and care from family, school and society, which fosters growth into happy and healthy adults.
Additional Information & Resources:
Gender-Diverse & Transgender Children
Parenting a Gender-Diverse Child: Hard Questions Answered
Sex, Gender Identity & Puberty
How You Can Help Your Child Avoid & Address Bullying
Ensuring Comprehensive Care and Support for Transgender and Gender-Diverse Children and Adolescents (AAP Policy Statement)
About Dr. Rafferty
Jason Rafferty, MD, MPH, EdM, FAAP, is a "Triple Board" residency graduate who is pediatrician and child psychiatrist at Thundermist Health Centers, a Patient-Centered Medical Home in Rhode Island. He specializes in adolescent substance use disorders and gender and sexual development, and also practices in related specialty clinics at Hasbro Children's Hospital and Emma Pendleton Bradley Hospital. Dr. Rafferty is an advocate in his local community and on a national level through work with the American Academy of Pediatrics on issues including the emotional health of young men, access to care for LGBTQ youth, and prevention of childhood homelessness.
The information contained on this Web site should not be used as a substitute for the medical care and advice of your pediatrician. There may be variations in treatment that your pediatrician may recommend based on individual facts and circumstances.
Gender role. What is a "gender role"? The concept and definition of the term "gender role" - Glossary
Glossary. Psychological dictionary.
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Gender role - a set of norms that define the rules of behavior for a person, depending on which gender he belongs to. It should be noted that in science there is no clear differentiation between which gender roles are determined by biological attitudes, and which are social.
However, available evidence suggests that gender development is influenced by biological, cognitive and social factors as well. Gender roles are positive when they correspond to the nature of a person and his sense of self. When there is dissonance, gender role is perceived as something imposed by the external environment, and becomes a source of stress - in this case, it is customary to talk about gender non-conformity.
The modern world is dominated by a binary gender system, which involves the division into male and female. However, the division into only two sexes is not universal: for example, in many indigenous cultures of North America, three or four genders are distinguished, each of which is assigned the corresponding gender roles . It is also important to note that the gender role corresponding to the same sex and dictated by the same social attitudes is not always unambiguous.
So, for example, in many cultures since ancient times, a woman is expected to be soft in character, thrifty, maternal instinct - in a word, to be the keeper of the hearth. Which, at the same time, does not free her from working attitudes, the requirements for which are sometimes not much inferior to those accepted in the male environment.
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Gender Issues - World Bank Student Resource "Did you know.
..?"What does this mean?
Gender affiliation is a set of characteristics of a person that determines his belonging to men or women, mainly in cultural and social terms.
Gender identity is revealed through socially defined roles, learned and expected patterns of behavior that are associated with men and women. When people talk about gender, they usually mean gender inequalities – conditions in which women and girls are less empowered simply because of their gender. However, the term "gender identity" also refers to boys and men, who are equally defined as such on the basis of the rights and social roles assigned to them by society. Giving women and girls equal rights and respect should not be seen as something done to the detriment of males.
Although many studies have been done by women around the world proving that they are not far behind men in terms of intelligence and ability, in many countries women are still not treated as equals. Girls and women are not given the same rights, opportunities, responsibilities and choices that are considered inherent in men and boys from birth.
Why does this concern me?
Women make up half of the people living on Earth. The double standard for girls and women is detrimental to society as a whole and has a negative impact on economic development. Countries where women enjoy equal rights are wealthier. Such countries develop faster, their economic situation is better, they have more effective systems of public administration, which is an important factor in growth and development.
Conversely, according to the World Bank's Gender and Development report, which highlights the importance of addressing inequality for the development of countries, gender inequality tends to be most pronounced in poor countries.
A study in India (included in the Voices of the Poor interviews with more than 60,000 poor men and women around the world) found that in some Indian villages, men tend to spend most of their income on personal needs (for example, cigarettes, alcohol, gambling), while women spend all their earnings on family needs (for example, food, medical care, school expenses and children's clothes).
In Africa, where the majority of the population is employed in the agricultural sector, women do at least 70% of agricultural work. However, their votes are practically not taken into account in the distribution of income. Mark Blackden, World Bank Lead Gender Specialist for Africa, explains that it is more difficult for the poor to get out of poverty when women are not allowed to make decisions about the allocation of financial income to improve the situation of the family. The situation becomes even more difficult in those households headed by women. The situation of the poor is often exacerbated by a lack of access to legal, economic and social services.
Think about it
A World Bank study found that if countries in South Asia, Africa and the Middle East gave girls and boys equal access to schooling, as they did in East Asia between 1960 and 1992, then their annual per capita income would most likely increase by 0.5–0.9%.
It is easier for the poor to get out of poverty and improve their standard of living if society is equally concerned about the well-being of men, women and children.
The manifestation of inequality in the lives of women
There are women on Earth who may never receive:
- Personal freedom.
The Voices of the Poor report states that in Ghana, for example, a woman is the legal property of her husband, while in other countries a woman cannot leave her home or get a job without a man's permission. - Education.
Girls are less likely than boys to be sent to school and rarely receive primary or secondary school education, although research has shown that investing in girls' education is good for the economy. - Work and the same wage as men.
In some developing countries, there are labor laws and regulations that actively discourage women from working. If a woman still gets a job, then her salary can be 27% lower than the salary of a man doing the same job, regardless of length of service and education. - Legal rights.
Women's limited legal personality has negative consequences ranging from the inability to borrow money because women are not legally entitled to own land, to the inability to make decisions about raising their children and when and how women can be touched. If a woman is legally and, therefore, economically dependent on her husband or other male relatives, there is practically nothing left for her but to come to terms with the existing state of affairs. For example, in Ukraine, Latvia and Macedonia, where there are anti-rape laws, women say they are slow to report rape cases because the authorities are not taking action. - Political representation.
In all developing countries, women are underrepresented at all levels of government, although they are able to represent their people. In these conditions, very little attention is paid to changing laws that limit the opportunities for girls and women.
Facts only
Women in Eastern Europe and Central Asia enjoy the greatest rights in developing countries. In South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East and North Africa, women are the most disenfranchised.
Difficult task of overcoming barriers
Combating gender discrimination can be a difficult task because it goes against deep-seated local traditions. Thus, while laws are being revised, people continue to live according to deep cultural beliefs.
For example, in the 1960s, India passed a law that abolished the tradition of paying a dowry, according to which the bride had to come to her husband's family with her property, otherwise he would not marry her. However, this tradition has become so deeply embedded in Indian society that in most cases, dowries are still given for brides. Traditions change slowly. You may have heard in the news about cases of brides protesting against this tradition and their appeals to the authorities.
What is the global community doing?
In 1995, at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, the international community adopted the Platform for Action for the Advancement of Girls and Women. The conference participants recognized that progress and development are impossible if one half of the country's population does not have the same rights as the other.
The World Bank and other development organizations are actively involved in the fight for gender equality in all aspects of life. For the period from 19In 1995, the World Bank provided $6.3 billion for girls' education, and more than two-thirds of its loans went to health, food, and community needs covering areas related to gender inequality. A separate program of legal reforms has also been developed to strengthen women's legal personality, especially by granting women the right to own land.
The international community has also begun to pay attention to the problems faced by boys. For example, in some Caribbean countries in Central Europe and Latin America, many boys drop out of school, especially high school. They often do not see the point in continuing their education and prefer to find work, which in many cases turns out to be associated with illegal activities.
What can I do?
If you are a woman or girl, never lose faith that your voice matters and is needed to make the world around you a better place. Study in school and make your dreams come true, no matter how hard it takes. If you are a man or a boy, respect women the same way you respect yourself. Respond to the smallest manifestations of inequality.
Are you concerned about gender inequality in your country or around the world? There are a number of organizations dedicated to providing equal opportunities for men and women in all aspects of society.
Visit the following websites to expand your knowledge of gender inequality.
- The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) works in 140 countries to educate about reproductive health and HIV/AIDS, promote gender equality, and help reduce violence against women.
- Women Thrive promotes international economic policies and human rights that enable women around the world to end poverty in their lives, communities and countries.
- The International Women's Health Coalition promotes health, population and population policies, programs and funding to promote and protect the rights and health of girls and women around the world, especially in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and former socialist countries.