Gender schema theory

Question 1

Who talks about gender schema theory?

Answer 1

Martin and Halverson

Question 2

How do they agree with Kohlberg

Answer 2

• both a cognitive-developmental theory that argue a child’s understanding of gender increases with age.
• They also share the view that children develop their understanding of gender by actively structuring their own learning, rather than passively observing and imitating role models

Question 3

However how is it different from Kohlberg?

Answer 3

However, they argue that the process starts much earlier than Kohlberg suggested - children learn pre-programmed gender schema between age 2-3. This contrasts with Kohlberg who claims this only begins after they have progressed through all the stages around 7 with gender constancy.

Question 4

What is a gender schema?

Answer 4

A gender schema is a generalised representation of everything we know about gender and gender-appropriate behaviour.

Question 5

What do Martin and Halverson say about gender schemas and gender identity?

Answer 5

According to Martin and Halverson, once a child has established gender identity around the ages of 2-3 years, he or she will begin to search the environment for information that encourages the development of gender schema. The schema helps the child make sense of the world i.e. children form stereotypes of the ways that they think males and females behave [toys, clothes, behaviour]. A child learns information for these schemas from their environment e.g. peers, adults, media.

Question 6

Schema direct behaviour and self understanding

Answer 6

Schema expand to include a wide range of behaviours and personality traits. For young children, schema are likely to be formed around stereotypes and these provide a framework that directs experience as well as the child’s understanding of itself.

Question 7

What happens at 6 years?

Answer 7

By 6 years, the child has a fixed and stereotypical idea about what is appropriate for their gender. For this reason, children are likely to disregard or misremember information that doesnt fit in with their existing schema.

Question 8

What do children go on to do?

Answer 8

• Children go on to develop scripts of activities and/or actions that males and females perform (women make the dinner, men fix cars).
• Children monitor their environment for information and behaviours that are consistent with their ideas of appropriate male and female behaviour and add or assimilate this information into their thinking.
• If a behaviour is considered inconsistent they may just ignore it so that their stereotypes or schemas don’t need to be altered – they need to be able to predict behaviour and stereotypes allow them to do this.

Question 9

Explain ingroups and outgroups

Answer 9

Children have a much better understanding of the schemas that relate to their own gender - they view their own group as the ‘in-group’ and the opposite as ‘out-group’. This is consistent with the idea that children pay more attention to information relevant to their gender identity, rather than that of the opposite sex.

Question 10

What happens at around 8 years old?

Answer 10

By around 8 years old, children develop elaborate schema for both genders, as opposed to their own. Ingroup identity also serves to boost a child’s self esteem.