Introduction
Preschoolers are characterized by thinking to identify contrasts, extremes, and stereotypes about gender and are born already at the age of 3. It is quite logical that many girls will choose their friends among other girls and vice versa since they are “similar” (King et al., 2020). Children grow closer over time; their choice of toys will depend on what their peers prefer for equal interests.
The Role of Parents
It is known for sure that the opinion of peers is especially important for teenagers, but preschoolers still depend on their parents in almost all aspects. Thus, family members play a primary role in forming and developing particular preferences in a child. Consequently, in a traditional family, a child will think accordingly; the baby’s choice will fall on the toy, which corresponds to “externally imposed opinions about gender” (King et al., 2020). For example, if a mother buys her daughter only tea sets and dad — cars, then children’s roles, as a rule, are already determined.
The Role of Society
Society plays a contradictory and ambiguous role in creating stereotypes about gender in a child. On the one hand, they give an idea of what behavior is expected from a girl and a boy, a woman and a man, and a person of a certain age. These schemes facilitate the process of interaction with generalized “others.” On the other hand, in reality, discrimination may be hidden behind the features attributed based on gender (Dinella & Weisgram, 2018). Stereotypes are biased, socially conditioned, and usually do not keep up with changes in society.
My Stance on These Concepts
In my opinion, children need to play with “neutral toys” and interact with “dissimilar kids.” I think that girls and boys would choose those toys that appeal to their tastes, interests, preferences, skills, and talents. However, this is a controversial comment that requires additional research. Nonetheless, one thing is clear today girls develop spatial thinking by interacting with the Lego set, and boys improve emotional reflection through doll games (King et al., 2020). With the help of “neutral” ways of entertainment, “youths” objectively evaluate themselves and others without putting specific labels; they develop more comprehensively and discover fundamentally new opportunities for themselves.
References
Dinella, L. M., & Weisgram, E. S. (2018). Gender-typing of children’s toys: Causes, consequences, and correlates. Sex Roles, 79(5), pp. 253-259. Web.
King, R. A., Scott, K. E., Renno, M. P., & Shutts, K. (2020). Counterstereotyping can change children’s thinking about boys’ and girls’ toy preferences. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 191, pp. 1-19. Web.