EDP 362T Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Social Learning Theory, Observational Learning, Social Class
Chapter 6:
Theories of Gender Development:
• Gender as a developmental process: we learn how to do gender, by observe and
copy others; result of biological, cognitive, and social factors interacting with each
other.
• Social Learning Theory: emphasizes how children learn gendered behavior from
their environment and people they encounter in everyday life.
o Reinforcement: behavior is strengthened when followed by desirable
consequences; can be subtle, but most of the time it’s explicit. Made
easier if parents set up environment in a way that some activities are more
likely to occur than others. Effects occur whether or not parents intend to
influence behavior.
o Imitation: copying someone else’s behavior; spontaneous in young
children.
o Observational Learning: watching others’ behavior and storing it for later
use
o Punishment: more explicit form; doesn’t have to be severe, can be just not
getting parents’ approval.
o Child learns gender based on social class, ethnic group, and family
composition. Once children know there are two gender models, will pay
attention to same-gender model than to the other gender.
o Implies we can reduce gender typing in children – can be lessened or
eliminated if parents/teachers choose to do so.
• Cognitive theories:
o Cognitive developmental theory: children move through a series of stages
in their cognitive development and there are concepts they cannot grasp
until they have reached the appropriate cognitive stage. Children actively
try to make sense of the world around them. Occur in distinct stages.
▪ Gender constancy: understanding gender as a permanent
characteristic; similar to learning one’s eyes are a certain color. By
2 and 3, kids can identify boys and girls correctly. By 6 and 7,
becomes more gender schematic, understand gender constancy.
▪ External rewards and punishments for gender-typed behavior are
relatively unimportant. Children actively try to fit their beliefs,
values, and behaviors to their sex.
o Gender schema theory: gender schema info is learned very early, and
guides the individual in thinking and understanding gender. Occur in
gradual development of complex mental network about gender and its
assimilation to the self.
▪ Conceives of gender typing as readiness to organize the world in
terms of gender and to process info in terms of gender
associations.
▪ Gender schematic: high gender-typed; a stronger or rigid gender
schema and stricter reliance in making sense of the world.
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▪ Gender aschematic: less gender-typed; less-strong or flexible
gender schema and less reliance in making sense of the world;
more likely to choose male-dominated jobs.
• Both heavily related to social learning theory, socialization,
and gendering.
▪ Suggests children can be brought up in ways that minimize the
development of a gender schema and thus bypass gender-
stereotyped thinking and behavior.
Interactive Models of Gender:
• Societal definitions of gender-appropriate behavior different for different ages,
and gender is constructed interactively b/w child and environment.
• Children use gender as a critical dimension to classify self and others.
• Combo of social and cognitive factors create gender typing.
Gender in child’s daily life:
• Parental influences: at first, parents and family are the strongest gender type
influence on gender identity development, followed by peers and cultural
institutions. Environmental influences support social influences, as they provide
highly gendered messages.
o The child’s own concept of gender interacts with all of these influences, as
he/she forms cognitive schemas and progresses to more cognitively
mature ways of thinking about gender.
o Boys: the preferred sex
▪ Female infanticide: killing newborn female infants (9% of cultures;
females are most vulnerable).
▪ Female-selective abortion: aborting healthy fetuses only because
they are female.
• Correlated with patriarchal cultures and has artificially
skewed the ratio of men/women in some countries, with
negative outcomes.
• Essentialism: idea that women are all the same and
interchangeable; used to justify oppression/violence;
prevalent in societies with high rates of female infanticide
and other forms of violence against women. Men’s belief in
essentialism.
• Boys are still the preferred sex around the world, even
incorporated into the language.
o Parental gender typing is related to traditional gender stereotypes; more
so for mothers. Gender schemas of children are formed partly through
exposure to their parents’ gender schemas.
▪ Fathers tend to stereotype more because mothers see babies as
individuals, whereas fathers with less contact with infants may
stereotype more – but also may have less opportunity to convey
their gender schemas because spend less time overall with infants
and young children.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Made easier if parents set up environment in a way that some activities are more likely to occur than others. Effects occur whether or not parents intend to influence behavior. Once children know there are two gender models, will pay attention to same-gender model than to the other gender. Children actively try to make sense of the world around them. Occur in distinct stages: gender constancy: understanding gender as a permanent characteristic; similar to learning one"s eyes are a certain color. 2 and 3, kids can identify boys and girls correctly. By 6 and 7, becomes more gender schematic, understand gender constancy: external rewards and punishments for gender-typed behavior are relatively unimportant. Children actively try to fit their beliefs, values, and behaviors to their sex: gender schema theory: gender schema info is learned very early, and guides the individual in thinking and understanding (cid:1688)gender(cid:1689).
