Explanations of Gender development

LO: Outline & Evaluate Gender schema theory

Gender Schema Theory

Martin and Halverson (1983)

What are schemas?

• Are like rules which help us make sense of the world

• A cluster of beliefs about something

Function: Organise

information in our heads

Schemas affect how individuals

behave and what

information they attend to.

At three years (gender identity) children begin to search for rules and ‘create

schemas’ about how males and females

should behave.Their schema’s develop and get more and

more complex.

Gender schemasRigid and inflexible

Gender Schema theory

Gender identity gender schemas

more attention to same sex gender consistent behaviours

Activity

• I will show you a picture of a clock• You have 2 minutes to draw the clock as

accurately as possible.

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=JJZFckANh6inQM&tbnid=ljxoDJq4eDwdtM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http://www.gogreen.cellande.co.uk/shop/products/clock/clock.php&ei=k6gNU_jVNIeU0AWf_IHoBg&bvm=bv.61965928,d.d2k&psig=AFQjCNEe3Cot_DClp8ueWR2hxXHolzQqGA&ust=1393490437999037

2 minutes

• Draw the clock as accurately as possible.

• Anyone draw the number 4 like this?…..

Gender schema theory

Children pay attention to information that fits with their schemas, and ignore information that does not fit with their schemas Liben et al (1993)

Task

• Identify two similarities and two differences between the gender schema theory and Kohlberg's consistency theory

Evaluation of the gender schema theory

AO2

Support for his theory

Aubry et al followed children for 3 years. They asked them about their beliefs for gender related items. They found that if a child showed awareness that an item was meant for the opposite sex, the following year they showed a reduced preference for it.

Fill in the gaps

1. How does Aubry et al’s study support the gender schema theory (link back)2.Can you identify any problems with his study?3. The study’s results are unreliable, what does this mean?

• Found children that could label gender at 2.5 showed more gender consistent behaviour

• Parents of ‘early labellers’ had given more negative/positive responses to sex type toys when they were 1.5 years old.

Fagot (1985)

What can you conclude from these results?

Fagot concluded that parents influence children's schemas, therefore gender behaviours, which the GST did not acknowledge.

Paired Discussion

• The film Billy Elliot involves a boy who, even though he knows ballet is for girls, he does it anyway. Eventually his beliefs about ballet ‘not for boys’ change.

• How does this story conflict with the gender schema theory?

Paired Discussion

• Research has shown that boys tend to engage in more gender activities than girls.

• E.g boys have a stronger preference for gender consistent toys

• BUT, boys do not have more developed schemas/knowledge about gender compared to girls.

How does this pose a problem for the gender schema

theory?

Task- You are the teacher

• Read the students answer• Highlight the A01 and A02.• Underline where she has wrapped her A01 in

A02 language or cross where she has not done it.

• Mark on the side where she has elaborated.• Circle where she has linked back to the

question or write ‘link back’ where she hasn’t.

Homework

Describe and evaluate one or more cognitive developmental theories of gender development (8 marks + 16 marks).