Do girls' and boys' playstyles differ?
Some kids prefer to play with dolls, while others like building blocks. It seems that traditional gender roles for boys and girls are evolving, but not entirely. When it comes to registering children for kindergarten or daycare, parents are often asked to specify their child's gender. In observing little kids at kindergarten, we often see girls in pink, glitter, and skirts playing "Mother, Father, Child" with each other or dancing and chatting. Boys, meanwhile, are more likely to be found in the building area or zooming around on tricycles. But is this down to nature or nurture?
Scientists call this question "Nature versus Nurture." A study in 2017, a review of 16 different studies covering children aged one to eight years, found that boys played more with toys typically associated with boys, such as cars and vehicles, while girls preferred toys typically associated with girls, such as dolls. However, the researchers suggested that this could be due to hormonal differences, but they also noted that the preference for boys increased with age and was more pronounced in older studies.
The influence of the environment starts even before birth. Color preferences (pink for girls, blue for boys) are entirely socially constructed. What children show in terms of toy preferences is difficult to determine, but environmental factors such as different wall designs, clothes, and blankets can affect their choices. The behavior of parents is also a factor.
"Children change quickly, and sadly so do their environments," says Almut Schnerring, an author and speaker who has studied the subject of "Pink-Blue Trap" and Equal Care for over a decade. "From the moment a baby is born, the environment is already there, and parents are already influencing their children."
Psychologist Doris Bischof-Köhler from Upper Bavaria believes there are inherent differences between boys and girls. If boys tend to prefer rough play in kindergarten, it could be for evolutionary psychological reasons.
The idea of typical boys' and girls' toys is also questionable. A 2020 review article looking at 75 studies concluded that there is no consensus on what should fall into the categories of "typical" toys for boys or girls.
However, it is clear that there is a connection between environment and biology. The environment can amplify existing gender differences, like when children only receive toys considered typical for their gender. There's even the possibility that the environment can change a person's genes (epigenetics).
"Gender differences increase significantly in the first years of life, and that's mostly due to gender marketing," says Schnerring. "Many children don't like this gender-segregated world at first, but their voices aren't heard."
Gender marketing is on the rise, with nearly everything being available in a boy or girl version: building blocks, dolls, surprise eggs, shampoos, cell phone cases, and slippers. This wasn't the case in previous generations.
While it's impossible to tell exactly how much of a child's preferences are due to nature or nurture, one thing is certain: gender stereotypes can be harmful. If you only give boys trucks and cars, you might have trouble later on when trying to get them interested in STEM careers. If girls hear repeatedly that girls are not as good at certain things as boys, it's known as the "stereotype threat" and can affect their performance at work or school.
Schnerring suggests offering a variety of toys to counter the binary distinction. "There's no need to constantly separate toys into boys' and girls' sections," she says. "Parents should talk to their children, let their children change their minds and make their own decisions."
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Despite the evolution of traditional gender roles, a study in 2017 found that international trends still show a preference among children for toys typically associated with their gender. For instance, girls often gravitate towards dolls, while boys tend to choose cars and vehicles. However, it's important to note that environmental factors such as marketing and parental behavior can significantly influence these toy preferences.
Source: www.ntv.de
