Gender Identity and Stereotyping in Early and Middle Childhood

Without much effort, one can easily imagine a young girl, at age 3 or 4, happily wearing a pink, frilly dress. She twirls, she dances, she skips in her dress, reveling in its femininity and flounce. In the same vein, with great ease one can imagine a small boy, a towel draped around his neck, his bony arms outstretched in fists. He imagines his muscles bulging and his strength abounding, running here and there in an attempt to fly off to combat unseen evil forces. What can explain these gender differences in behavior? There are many different possible explanations. Some might say girls and boys come into the world this way, that DNA causes a preference for pink or an adoration of superheroes. Others may say these children simply learn from examples around them, seeking to imitate their mothers or fathers, for example. Many forces may interact, but in this chapter, we consider these behaviors through the lens of cognitive-developmental theory. Cognitive-developmental theory emphasizes a few central tenets. It emphasizes close links between gender development and children’s basic cognitive development (Martin, Ruble, & Szkrybalo, 2002). It also views children as internally, self-initiated “gender detectives”—agents who actively construct the meaning of gender categories, rather than as passive recipients of external gender socialization agents. In addition, cognitive-developmental theory posits that a motivational drive to master these gender categories causes children to seek out information about their sex and to behave in accordance to what they deem appropriate gendered ways (Stangor & Ruble, 1987). Hence, in the present chapter, we focus on the development of gender identity and gender stereotyping, two constructs that involve cognition. We first broadly define gender identity and stereotyping. Next we discuss their possible antecedents. Finally we connect gender identity and stereotyping with gender-typed behavior and preferences, adjustment, and intergroup relations in early childhood. Throughout we incorporate recent research and classic literature, and also provide examples from our own laboratory.