How gender roles and stereotypes affect children Essay

Like most people I have nieces and nephews. Whenever I take my niece to McDonalds she always orders the Happy Meal. Without asking whether we wanted a girl or boy toy, they automatically gave her the Polly Pocket Doll, instead of the Smurf toy that she actually was hoping for. Being a girl, the cashier assumed that she would prefer the doll over the Smurf toy. This sort of incident happens more often than you would think. It really made me, wonder how gender roles and stereotypes affect children in their everyday lives. Gender roles and stereotypes have a significant effect on children. They are constantly bombarded with images of what a girl is supposed to act like. The same thing is portrayed to the boys. They are taught that they are supposed to be tough individuals, while girls are seen as little weak beings who are obsessed with superficial things. In the long run these images of what they are supposed to act like eventually shape who they become as adults. Gender roles refer to the set of social and behavioral norms that are considered to be appropriate for individuals of a specific sex in the context of a specific culture, which differ widely between cultures and over time. Gender stereotypes are simplistic generalizations about the gender attributes, differences, and roles of different groups or individuals, According to Joan, Ferrante, Seeing Sociology: An Introduction 2011. They are relevant in more ways than most people even care to recognize. Sources such as advertisements, television, sports, and even parents are where children pick up most of their behavior traits. These factors could affect sexuality, growth, development, personality, and job choices. There are several ways for children to be influenced gender stereotypes. Researchers such as Adrian Furnham and Twiggy Mak, show that advertisement is one of the main factors in keeping gender stereotypes alive in children. Toy commercials are the ones usually perpetuating these roles and stereotypes. Commercials that are targeted towards girls usually show playing house or cooking. They almost always have a doll in their hand. Being popular, beautiful, and passive are key points the media tries to get across. Girls are never seen playing with â€Å"boy toys† such as trucks or guns. In addition, commercials targeted towards boys they are seen as power seekers. Speed and physical ability are a huge factor when it comes to the toys that are supposedly for their gender. The children in the commercials are told to act aggressively and independently. Society wants boys to take and learn more dominant roles. The boys in commercials will never be seen playing with â€Å"girl toys†. By the time a child reaches four they realize their sexuality and pick toys targeted towards their sex group. That is also around the time where they learn the behaviors associated with their specific gender. Children tend to associate the toys they play with to what they see in their environment. If a child’s behaviors and interests stray away from what is believed to be normal then they are subject to discrimination and ridicule by their peers and adults. Carol Lynn Martin thinks, â€Å"Most children display traits of both sexes†. When a child notices that they act outside of what is considered â€Å"normal† for their gender, they become sexually confused. On the inside they tend to question why they are not like most children of the same sex. Most children who show opposite sex characteristics are often labeled â€Å"gay†. Boys who show more feminine traits are called â€Å"effeminate†. They are seen as the boys who want to be girls. Usually they gravitate more towards female or domestic activities, have all female friends, and tend to cross-dress. Girls who participate in the more masculine activities are labeled as â€Å"tomboys†. They usually enjoy boyish sports, have all male friends and often wish to be a boy. Despite many of our beliefs, parents also influence their children on what is and what is not appropriate for their gender. Children learn a lot of day to day duties and behaviors from what they pick up from their parents. Normally parents tend to treat their children of different genders differently from the time they are born. They always expect different behaviors and reactions. For example, if a little girl falls and cries, she is immediately consoled and nurtured. At the same time if this same incident were to happen to a little boy he would be told to â€Å"suck it up crybaby† or â€Å"crying is for girls†. Instead of enforcing societies expectations on the child parents should help them aspire to become the unique person they are destined to be. Even the color that a child wears contributes to what are seen as â€Å"girl† or â€Å"boy† colors. Most boys are dressed in blue, red, black, dark green, and brown. In contrast girls traditionally wear pink, yellow, light green, and purple. If you little boys’ favorite color just so happens to be yellow there is a possibility that you would you judge him and tell him it’s a girl color. Many would not embrace his individuality. You should not see your son as less of a man because of a color. Many parents do each and every day. In relation to environment, girls tend to pick up on what they see the female figure in the house doing. Barbie Dolls tend to heavily reinforce roles such as domestic duties, narcissism, and popularity, which show that there is not much to women besides their outer appearance and reputation. Toys such as Baby Born teach girls that women have babies and stay home to care for and nurture them. Toys such as Easy Bake Ovens teach girls that the woman cooks while the man of the house is at work. Boys always pick up on the behaviors of the male figure in the house hold. Such as taking out the trash, fixing things around the house, and going to work. On another note, toys aimed at boys are usually more aggressive and independent. Guns, tools, and trucks are seen as things that boys tend to gravitate towards because they are all seen as norms as it relates to male hobbies. Male children are more influenced to be strategic thinkers in relation to military based toys and games. From early childhood to adulthood boys are taught to be in charge as head of the household. Showing authority and superiority are the standard roles and stereotypes that boys are held to. Children are also restrained to gender roles and stereotypes through sports. According to society girls and women are supposed to do more feminine sports. It is rare that you hear about a female football player winning the Superbowl. In the world of sports girls are seen as weak and fragile. Boys are typically seen as better athletes. They are being told that they need to be stronger and faster than the next boy by parents and society. Boys are expected to do more contact and man-to-man aggressive sports. A boy usually would not be seen in a dance recital for The Nut Cracker. This is because it is outside of their set of â€Å"norms†. When it comes to gender roles in the work place, girls see on TV that they are supposed to be a secretary, nurse or any other job that is under a male figure. That goes back to the toys they play with enforcing a tidy and nurturing personality, also that women are supposed to be passive and submissive to men. Most girls see it as they should be the nurse to a male doctor. Boys think they should be the business owner with a female secretary. Boys do not usually see themselves as a hairstylist, but it does occasionally happen. Just like girls do not see themselves as a world famous football player, because of gender stereotypes girls tend not to strive as high in the work place because most feel that the males should take care of most of the financial needs, since they grow up seeing males as the head of the household. Society and parents should do a better job in promoting gender neutral toys and ideas. Fisher price and leapfrog are great manufacturers of toys that lean towards no specific gender with toys that focus more on education than anything else. Which is what we as a society should be pushing instead of colors and stereotypical gender roles. Don’t let the gender of your child be determined by what color he or she has, or what toys they play with. Kids should not be pushed into a specific category when it comes to their sexuality or gender. America needs to learn that everyone is an individual and has different ideas on how they should think or behave. Overall I feel that kids should just be kids, which entails them making their own life choices when it comes to their personality and sexuality. Their gender and personality should not be determined by what color they are wearing, what toys they choose to play with or who they hang around. They should be treated with respect no matter what their preferences are. Parents should embrace gender neutral ideas. This would make children more comfortable with whatever choices they make. There is no reason any child should feel like an outcast in society because their personality does not fit the â€Å"norms† that goes within their gender. Acknowledgements I would like to first and foremost thank my mother. Without her I would not have been as focused on getting this project done as I am now. Secondly I want to thank me boyfriend for making me take time out of our quality time to make sure I was doing my work as far as the research and writing process goes. Also I would like to thank the Writer’s Studio and the Center for Academic Success. Last but not least I want to give a huge thank you to myself for pushing through the toughest times and getting this paper done. Seeing as how this paper has been the biggest obstacle academically this semester, I still managed to persevere and hopefully make a good grade.