Gender Stereotypes

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Parents’ Perception on Gender Spectrum. In a society that is negatively rich with gender biases and stereotypes, children eventually resort in adopting gender roles which does not necessarily give fair perception to both sexes. Children who are exposed to both internal and external factors shapes their attitudes and behaviors towards traditional gender roles as they move through stages of adolescence and ultimately in adulthood. Witt (1997) argued that these attitudes, character, and behaviors are learned at firstly at home which are then heightened by the school experience, child’s friends or peers, and television viewing and other external factors after social bonds are formed outside a family setting. However, it is primarily the family…show more content…
A further reinforcement of the notion of what is an acceptable and appropriate behavior is shown to children through the different media platforms, specifically the television. These gender stereotyped biases are developed by social factors. These gender stereotypes will eventually become deeply entrenched and doctrinated beliefs and thus become a part of the child’s concept of self. Parents contributes to the first notion of the children about trsditional gender roles according to Santrock (1994) and Kaplan (1991). Parents treat sons and daughters differently, From the time of their children’s incipience, dressing infants in traditional gender specific colors like pink for girls and blue for men, giving gender differentiated toys like dolls and trucks, and expecting different behavior from either genders like brave and shy (Thorne, 1993). According to Rubin, Provenzano, & Luria (1974), a study shows that “there is a whole world difference in the parents’ expectations on their sons and daughters which is formed as early as a day after the child was born.” These messages about gender are received by the children early in their childhood years primarily from their…show more content…
This assignment of household tasks by gender leads children to classify certain types of work with gender. Some studies have suggested that parent influence as a prime socializing factor has little impact on a child's sex role development (Lytton & Romney, 1991). Some research, however, suggests that parents primarily influences on gender role development during the early years of life (Santrock, 1994). Kaplan (1991) said: “Because socialization is not a one-way interaction, each person in the interaction influences the other's perception and behavior; thus, parents and children engage in two-way interaction, with children responding to behaviors and eliciting character. Also, development is influenced by many factors and children may best be understood in terms of their environment (Bronfenbrenner, et al., 1984). Many studies gave evidence that parents treat sons and daughters differently. The parent-child relationship has effects on development that lasts well until they turn into

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