cognitive explanations Flashcards
what did sandra bem argue
challenged the concept of just two gender types
a person can show both masculine and feminine traits
androgyny definition
an individual that has both masculine and feminine characteristics
why is androgyny a good thing
more psychologically healthy, flexibility and better adjustment
how did bem measure gender
the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI)
how was gender scored in the BSRI
masculine - high masculinity low femininity
feminine - high femininity low masculinity
androgynous - high masculinity high femininity
undifferentiated - low masculinity low femininity
strength of androgyny
families with one or more androgynous parent have been found to be highest on scores of parental warmth and support
develop a sense of self-worth in children
strength of BSRI
reliability - Bem readministered the BSRI to a sample of participants 4 weeks after they originally completed the test and found participants were consistent both times
suggests good test-retest reliability
3 weakness of BSRI
- lacks temporal validity
the inventory was based on what American students assessed as desirable traits for men and women in the 1970s and therefore has limited validity as a measure of masculinity and femininity in all societies at all times - scale devised by a panel of judges all from USA and so their notions of maleness and femaleness may not be shared across all cultures and societies
- social desirability bias used in self-report method
participants may exaggerate or lie which could lead to social desirability bias
cognitive approach to gender considers
the development of our though patterns and cognitions
kolhbergs first stage
basic gender identity
kohlbergs second stage
gender stability
kohlbergs third stage
gender constancy
basic gender identity
age 2-3 years
children recognise themselves as boy or girl
merely labelling
no idea what it means to be a boy or girl
unaware sex is permanent
evidence for gender identity
study found that two year olds were 76% correct in identifying their sex whereas three year olds were 90% correct
this supports kohlbergs theory that the child progresses through stages as their knowledge of gender increases
gender stability
3-4 years
realise sex is permanent
confusion about stability of sex in others
confused by non-stereotypical appearances
sex is stable over time but not over situations
evidence for gender stability
study asked young children questions such as ‘were you a girl or a boy when you were a baby?’ and ‘when you grow up will you be a mummy or a daddy?’
as predicted by Kohlberg, infants only started to give correct answers once they had recognised that gender is stable over time
gender constancy
6 onwards
they realise sex is fixed for everyone across all situations regardless of appearance and behaviour
children begin to seek out gender appropriate role models, resulting in imitation and internalisation of gender appropriate behaviours
evidence for gender constancy
in a study, children were presented with split screen images of males and females performing the same tasks
younger children spent roughly the same time looking at males and females, whereas those in gender constancy stage spent more time looking at the model the same gender as them
this supports Kohlbergs assumption that children will seek out same gender role models once they reach the gender constancy stage
strength of kohlbergs theory of gender development
holistic - is a cognitive explanation of gender development but is compatible with biological explanations and social learning theory
2 weakness of kohlbergs theory of gender development
- is able to describe the development of understanding about gender but is not able to explain it
unable to explain why boys tend to show stronger sex-typing than girls. these differences are likely to be social in origin as boys may be told off or ridiculed more for playing with girls toys or taking part in activities that are perceived to be for girls - stages appear to be universal - some stages are found in children in a range of cultures (e.g. kenya, belize, samoa)
this suggests there could be potential biological factors involved in the formation of gender identity
gender schema theory developed by
martin and halverson
what is gender schema theory
suggests that children play a more active role in their gender development from an earlier age
children aged around 2-3 years old begin searching for rules or schema with regards to the world around them
how is gender schema theory different from Kohlbergs theory
argues that children behave in gendered ways from a much earlier age
kohlbergs theory says that children start imitating gender appropriate role models at 6 years old whereas GST suggests children ages 2-3 years old begin searching for schemas
what are gender schemas
gender schemas are a set of frameworks that outline how men and women should appropriately behave
how do schemas help children
schemas help children to make sense of what is happening around them and the roles that men and women play
in group and out group schemas
in group schemas - childrens enhanced interest in their gender
out group schemas - less interest
weakness of gender schema theory
methological issues with interviewing children . children may be more subject to demand characteristics (answer they think will please the researcher) which might not be what they actually believe
2 strengths of gender schema theory
a study found that children under the age of 4 showed no signs of gender stability let alone signs of gender constancy, but did display strong gender stereotypes about what boys and girls were permitted to do. this suggests that they have acquired information about gender roles before kohlberg suggested, in line with gender schema theory
a study found that children aged 3-5 have stereotypical beliefs about which toys and clothes go with each gender, which suggests they have developed gender schema by this age
