gender schema theory (cognitive)

•  Martin and Halverson proposed the gender schema theory which argued children’s understanding of gender developed with age and shared the view that children actively structure their learning of gender instead of just passively observing and imitating role models.
• Gender schema - an organised set of beliefs and expectations related to gender that are derived from experience. They guide a person’s understanding of their own gender and gender-appropriate behaviour
• Once a child has established gender identity at age 2 or 3, they will begin to search the environment for information that will encourage development of gender schema.
• For young people, schemas are likely to be formed around stereotypes
• By 6, they have a rather fixed and stereotypical idea of what is gender-appropriate. This is why children are likely to misremember or disregard information that does not fit with their existing schema
• Children pay more attention to information relevant to their gender identity (the ingroup) rather than the opposite gender (the outgroup). Ingroup identity bolsters the child’s self esteem
• It isn’t until around 8 that the child develops elaborate schemas for both genders
• Martin and Halverson’s study in 1983 found that children were more likely to remember photos of gender consistent behaviour when tested one week later. Children tended to change the sex of the person in the photo when carrying out gender-inconsistent behaviours.
• A criticism of the gender schema theory is the overemphasise of the importance of schemas in determining behaviour, not enough consideration is given to social factors such as the influence of parents.