Gender - SLT Flashcards
what does SLT believe boys and girls are like at birth
psychologically the same
how does SLT believe gender differences develop
through differential treatment (differential reinforcement)
how do children learn gender-related behaviour
by observing parents or older siblings and receiving vicarious reinforcement
how are children treated if they show gender appropriate behaviour
praised
what are the internal mental processes associated with acquisition of behaviour
attention and retention
what are the internal mental processes associated with performing of behaviour
reproduction and motivation
what is the key belief of SLT in terms of gender
gender is a social construct, that is always evolving with society and culture
what happens if behaviour is repeated enough and continues to be praised
it becomes internalised and therefore part of an individual’s identity
strengths of SLT explanation of gender
+ Fagot (1985) found peers are more critical boys being feminine than girls being masculine
+ Eccles (1987) found teachers praise boys for being clever and girls for being tidy
+ Smith and Lloyd (1978) 4-6 month of babies half dressed as boys and half as girls. differential reinforcement. call girls ‘pretty’ encourage boys to be ‘active’
limitations of SLT explanation of gender
- explains gender roles in western society
- not a developmental theory, doesn’t explain how learning processes change with age. suggests modelling can occur from birth onwards which isn’t realistic
how does SLT compare with biological theories of gender dev.
places little emphasis on genes and chromosomes. David Reimer demonstrated that biology can’t be overruled. biosocial approach more appropriate?
how does SLT compare with psychodynamic theories of gender dev.
Freud would agree that same-sex parents are v influencial in gender dev. but would argue that SLT places too much emphasis on conscious processing rather than unconscious
