Media Influence on Gender Development
Psychology: AQA A Level, topic 10.1.10
Media Influence on Gender Development
Social learning theory not only examines the impact of parents and peers on gender development, but also media (TV, film, video games, books, magazines).
Role of media
- Social Learning Theory (SLT) explains that children learn behaviours by observing and imitating others.
- Media (TV, films, video games, books, magazines) is a source of observational learning.
Gender typical behaviours
- Media often portrays behaviours associated with boys or girls according to cultural norms.
- For example, many TV shows portray mothers as the primary caregiver and fathers as the breadwinner.
- TV shows also show male children as being mischievous and female children as the 'good ones.'
- Children may attend, imitate, and be reinforced for these behaviours, shaping their development.
Examples
- In the study of Williams (1986) children exposed to TV with gender-typical behaviours showed increased imitation of those behaviours.
- In TV shows like "The Simpsons" characters display culturally typical behaviours (e.g., adventurous, mischievous, caring, polite).
- These influences interact with parents, peers, and wider culture to shape behavioural development.
Studies Investigating Media and Gender
An important study published in 1986 by Williams demonstrated the impact of media on gender development.
Williams (1986)
- The study was done in Canada.
- She looked at the effect of the introduction of TV in a town (fictionally referred to as Notel) on gender stereotyping.
- She compared Notel to a town that was nearby and already had TV (fictionally referred to as Mulitel).
- Multitel had higher levels gender stereotyping behaviour compared to Notel.
Williams (1986) findings
- She discovered that gender stereotyping behaviour increased in Notel over the course of the study, eventually matching the levels of Multitel.
Williams (1986) strengths
- The experiment had high ecological validity because it was a natural experiment.
- Other studies have also drawn similar conclusions on the impact of media on gender development.
Leary (1982)
- Leary (1982) is another study that supports the fact that media has an influence on gender.
- It was a correlational study that concluded that the more TV a child watched, the more likely they were to have gender stereotypes.
Test yourself on Media Influence on Gender Development
Which of these is NOT an example of media influence on gender?
What were the fictional names of the towns Williams (1986) studied and where were they?