Social Approach to Gender Development
Psychology: AQA A Level, topic 10.1.8
Social Learning Theory Explanation of Gender Development
The social learning approach summarises how we learn by two simple concepts: observing behaviour and then imitating the behaviour. The social learning theory has also been used to explain how gender develops.
Modelling and mimicking
- Social learning is the concept whereby children learn behaviours through modelling.
- They observe behaviours from a role model, then mimic those behaviours.
- This is especially true when children identify and relate to their role models.
- For example, a boy modelling the behaviour of his father as they are of the same gender.
Passive and active learning
- There are two main sorts of learning: passive and active.
- Passive learning is when the behaviours and actions are watched and copied.
- Active learning is when the behaviours are reinforced through rewards and discouraged through punishments.
Passive learning
- Children will tend to identify with their parent or caregiver of their own gender. So they are more likely to mimic and copy the behaviours of their same gender parent.
- For example, boys will mimic behaviours of their father
- The copying of the behaviour is passive if they are not rewarded or discouraged for copying those behaviours.
Active learning
- But the learning will become active if the parents/caregivers reward their children for exhibiting correct gendered behaviours or punish them for showing incorrect behaviours.
- For example, a boy might be punished for playing with dolls and encouraged to play with trucks.
- Eventually, the children will adopt gender typical behaviour, i.e. boys behaving/acting like boys and girls behaving/acting like girls.
Parental Reinforcement of Gender Development
Parents react differently to children of different genders. This most likely will reinforce gender typical behaviour. There are three studies that examined this concept.
Rubin et al. (1974)
- Rubin et al. (1974) conducted a study that examined how fathers describe their infants.
- They were more likely to describe their daughters as “beautiful” and “soft” whereas they describe their sons as “strong” and “firm”.
Culp et al. (1983)
- A study by Culp et al. (1983) compared how women treated babies who were dressed in gendered clothing.
- They were given no other information about the baby.
- The women tended to smile more at the boy babies but talk more to the girl babies.
Hron-Stewart (1988)
- A final study looked at how quick adults were to comfort a crying/upset child.
- The adults were faster to comfort the crying baby girls and slower to comfort the boys.
- This was because they expected the baby boys to be stronger or braver.
- The same study (Hron-Stewart, 1988) found that mothers were less likely to help their sons complete a task and more likely to help their daughters.
Children's Peers and Gender Development
Peers also react differently to their own peers, depending on their genders. Three studies researched the role of children’s peers on gender development.
Lamb and Roopnarine (1979)
- Lamb and Roopnarine (1979) found that children in a nursery setting encouraged gender typical behaviour while criticising gender non-typical behaviour.
- They found that boys were more likely to reinforce gender typical behaviour than girls.
Maccoby and Jacklin (1987)
- Another study by Maccoby and Jacklin (1987) discovered that toddlers as young as three years old had preference to play with children of their own gender.
- I.e. girls tended to play with other girls; boys with other boys.
Maccoby (1990)
- Later, Maccoby (1990) found that children sorted themselves by gender when organising their own play activities.
Test yourself on Social Approach to Gender Development
What theory suggests that we observe and imitate behaviour from role models?
What are the two types of learning in social learning theory?
What does social learning theory suggest about gender typical behaviour?
What do studies show about parents and their children?