Gender schema theory

• schemas

  mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processing they are developed from experience forming a stereotype of what is expected
• gender schema theory

  cognitive-developmental theory

  children's understanding of gender increases with age

  SLT- approach sees children learning appropriate patterns of behaviour by learning through observation
• acquiring gender schemas

  schemas are mental constructs that develop via experience

  used by cognitive system to organise knowledge

  gender schema is a generalised representation of everything we know in relation to gender
• timeline

  2/3 child will search the environment for information that encourages development of gender schema

  key distinction of male/female acts as a magnet e.g girl leans towards princesses, dolls, baking, castle
• schema direct behaviour

  young children- schemas likely to be formed around stereotypes e.g boys play with cars, girls play with dolls

  stereotypes privide a framework that directs experience and Childs understanding of themselves e.g I am a boy so I play with trucks

  by 6- child has fixed idea for what is gender appropriate
• in groups/ out groups

  children gave better understanding of schemas that are appropriate to their own gender

  consistent with the idea that children pay more attention to information relevant to they gender identity

  8yrs- children develop shemas for both genders
• early adolescence

  rules are just social conventions

  gender-role schemas are more flexible

  teenagers abandon the automatic assumption that what their own gender does is preferable
• strengths- research

  Martin and Halversons

  children under 6 more likely to remember photos of gender consistent behaviour than gender-inconsistent behaviour

  tested on what they saw a week later

  Campbell- children between 3-18 months had a preference for watching same sex babies
• weakness research

  Campbell found that two year old boys didnt display preferences to play with gender specific toys
• weakness

  overemphasis on the individual little attention to role of social factors e.g parental influences, rewards and punishments

  reductionist- ignores any biological facts