What is it about?
Children’s stereotypes about gender and academic subjects (e.g., “math is for boys”) are evident as early as elementary school, but little is known about the sources of these stereotypes. In this paper, we examined national patterns of gender disparities in society as possible sources of children’s stereotypes about gender and academic subjects around the world. The findings have implications for psychology, educational equity, and public policy.
Featured Image
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Gender stereotypes about STEM (e.g., math = boys) can have negative impacts on both girls and boys. The international, collaborative study involved 2,756 children from five countries. We found that societal gender disparities significantly influence the stereotypes held by girls in that society. This work advances our understanding about how prevailing beliefs in the culture in which children are raised shape children’s stereotypes about themselves and their opportunities for the future. Results also showed that stereotypes become stronger as children become older, demonstrating that stereotypes are still malleable in childhood.
Perspectives
This paper demonstrates the value of interdisciplinary collaborative science that exceeds what can be done in one’s own individual laboratory. The authors on this paper hail from a wide range of backgrounds and work at institutions in 5 different countries across 4 continents. This allowed us to test a diverse sample of children in terms of race, ethnicity, language, geography, and socioeconomic development, thus making the results more generalizable. It also allowed us to engage in behind-the-scenes theoretical debates that broadened the scientific viewpoints expressed in the paper. Integrating the input, email, and correspondence from 16 other coauthors, each with their own important ideas, was logistically challenging, but the product was immensely satisfying and went far beyond what could have been done in our Seattle laboratory alone.
Dario Cvencek
University of Washington
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: National disparities favoring males are reflected in girls’ implicit associations about gender and academic subjects., Developmental Psychology, August 2024, American Psychological Association (APA),
DOI: 10.1037/dev0001797.
You can read the full text:
Resources
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
