Cognitive explanations: Gender schema theory Flashcards
1
Q
Gender schema
A
- Developed by Halverson
- Gender schema = An internal mental representation of gender that is derived from experiences - these schema guide a person’s understanding of their own gender and stereotypically gender-appropriate behaviour in general
2
Q
Gender schema after gender identity
A
- Once a child has established gender identity around age 2-3 years - child will begin to search the environment for information that encourages development of gender schema
- Contrasts Kohlberg’s theory as he thought this process began after they had progressed through all 3 stages
3
Q
Gender schema determines behaviour
A
- Gender schema expand to include a wide range of behaviours and personality traits
- e.g boys play with cars and girls play with dolls
- By age 6 they have a stereotypical idea about what is appropriate for their gender
- So children are likely to disregard info that doesn’t fit within their existing schema
4
Q
Ingroup and outgroup
A
- Ingroup = own gender - better understanding of schema
- Outgroup = opposite gender - less understanding of schema
- By age 8 children have schema for both genders
5
Q
Gender schema theory - evaluation - strength
A
- Research support
- Halverson’s own study - Found children under age of 6 were more likely to remember photos of stereotypically gender-appropriate behaviour as opposed to photos of gender-inappropriate behaviour when tested a week later
- Supports idea of gender schema theory that children under 6 would do this
6
Q
Gender schema theory - evaluation - limitation
A
- Gender identity probably develops earlier than Halverson suggested
- A longitudinal study looked at onset of gender identity - data was obtained twice a week from reports written by mothers
- Key measure was how and when children labelled themselves as a boy or a girl - on average it occurred at 19 months which was earlier than Halverson suggested
