• :00Days
  • :00Hours
  • :00Mins
  • 00Seconds
A new era for learning is coming soonSign up for free
Log In Start studying!

Select your language

Suggested languages for you:
StudySmarter - The all-in-one study app.
4.8 • +11k Ratings
More than 3 Million Downloads
Free
|
|

Gender Schema Theory

How do we determine gender? What cognitive processes determine what we would consider to be an object or behaviour associated with being a male or female? Gender schema theory plays out in our minds in our earliest ages, helping us to navigate the world and how we interpreted those around us.We are going to explore gender in the context of…

Content verified by subject matter experts
Free StudySmarter App with over 20 million students
Mockup Schule

Explore our app and discover over 50 million learning materials for free.

Gender Schema Theory

Gender Schema Theory
Illustration

Lerne mit deinen Freunden und bleibe auf dem richtigen Kurs mit deinen persönlichen Lernstatistiken

Jetzt kostenlos anmelden

Nie wieder prokastinieren mit unseren Lernerinnerungen.

Jetzt kostenlos anmelden
Illustration

How do we determine gender? What cognitive processes determine what we would consider to be an object or behaviour associated with being a male or female? Gender schema theory plays out in our minds in our earliest ages, helping us to navigate the world and how we interpreted those around us.

  • We are going to explore gender in the context of schema theory. First, we will define gender schema theory in psychology.
  • Then, we will discuss an example of gender theory in psychology, referencing typical gender roles in society.
  • After, we will evaluate the gender schema theory, analysing its strengths and weaknesses.
  • Lastly, we will further elaborate on the criticisms of gender schema theory.

Gender Schema Theory, multicoloured floral male and female icons, StudySmarter

Fig. 1 - Gender schema theory explores how children develop their gender identities.

Gender Schema Theory in Psychology: Definition

Gender schema theory in psychology, developed by Martin and Halverson (1981), refers to how children learn about appropriate gender behaviour through observation. Children add information they learn to their gender schema by watching adults and peers behave in gender-appropriate ways and developing a gender identity based on these observations.

A schema is an organising structure that helps clarify and categorise new information in our memory.

Gender schema theory states that individuals tend to focus more on information relevant to their gender. This gender information is stored in our memory to make it more consistent with existing gender schemas.

Gender Schema Theory in Psychology: Martin and Halverson (1981)

Martin and Halverson (1981) suggest that children develop a schema regarding their gender around age three, which is a basic gender identity, as we mentioned above. Children form in-groups and out-groups, in this case, boys and girls.

As children grow older, they expand their gender schemas through observation.

Because most children desire to belong, they begin to identify with their gendered group, view it positively, and seek information about behaving more like members of their group. This helps the child develop gender identity – learning from others in their group about the norms of their gender and how to behave accordingly.

The construction of in-group and out-group also leads children to view the out-group as unfavourable and avoid behaviours associated with that group.

Martin and Halverson note that this desire to connect with one’s in-group and learn from others within that group is why young children begin to develop their gender identity and gender expression.

The gender schema theory has two types of gender-related schemas -- superordinate and own-sex schemas.

A superordinate schema helps young minds of children categorise the bounds of new information that are new to them, such as objects, traits, and characteristics that are associated with socially considered male and female categories.

Common examples of these schemas are girls having long hair or boys playing with cars and trucks.

Gender Schema Theory, a photo of a person with long hair, StudySmarter

Fig. 2 - Gender-related schemas help children develop gender identities.

The second schema type is the own-sex schema. When an individual learns more in-depth information consistent with their own sexual identity, this is considered their sex schema.

Superordinate and own sex schema allows individuals to process information about attitudes, roles, or behaviours that categorize these aspects as feminine or masculine.

Gender schemas affect which information is noticed, encoded, and remembered. Information inconsistent with the existing schema is often overlooked.

Research also shows that gender schemas guide children's preferences, toy choices, and play partner choices.

Gender Schema Theory: Example

We can see various gender schema theory examples in society. A child living in a very traditional culture might believe that a woman's role is caring for and raising children, while a man's role is in work and industry. Through these observations, children form a schema about what men and women do within their cultures.

Another example of gender schema theory can be seen in how boys may watch their peers at school engage in sports typically deemed as masculine, such as rugby. They may then want to join other boys in playing these sports and attempt to join the in-group.

Alternatively, girls may watch their peers engage in sports that are deemed more feminine, and they will then seek to join the in-group and avoid joining sporting activities that are deemed masculine. Examples include sports such as netball.

Gender Schema Theory Evaluation

Genders schema theory has its strengths and weaknesses, so what are they? It's important to evaluate a theory before applying it.

Strengths

First, let's explore the strengths of gender schema theory.

  • Martin and Little (1990) found that children under the age of four showed no signs of gender stability, let alone signs of gender constancy. However, they did display strong gender stereotypes about what girls and boys were "allowed or permitted" to do. But what does this mean? This suggests that they had acquired information about gender roles before Kohlberg suggested it.
  • Bussey and Bandura (1992) found that boys and girls aged four said they felt good when playing with "gender-appropriate" toys and badly about playing with "gender-inappropriate" ones. What would Kohlberg say? Kohlberg would say that this wouldn't happen until later, suggesting that the gender schema theory could be considered a more accurate explanation of gender development in a child's mind.
  • A study by Bradbard et al. (1986) shows how gender schemas relate to our memory. Bradbard et al. (1986) told four to nine-year-olds that gender-neutral items were boy/girl items. The children took a greater interest in the items labelled as their in-group (one week later, they could remember more details about in-group objects).

Weaknesses

Now, let's examine the weaknesses of gender schema theory.

  • Hoffman (1998) found that children whose mothers work have less stereotyped views of what men do. But why would that be so? This construct showed that children are not entirely fixed on gender schemas and can take on some gender-inconsistent ideas.
  • Gender schema theory cannot explain why children with much of the same environmental influences respond differently to gender-appropriate behaviours. Gender schema theory, for example, cannot explain why some girls prefer action figures and some boys prefer dolls. Researchers speculate this may be due to possible biological differences such as genes and hormones.
  • Campbell et al. (2002) found that although children had an idea of their gender and the stereotypical behaviours associated with it, this did not prevent them from engaging in nonstereotypical behaviours.

Gender Schema Theory: Criticism

One limitation of this theory is the many methodological problems with interviewing young children. One of these is that they are more likely to exhibit demand characteristics than adults.

Demand characteristics refer to when a participant behaves the way they think the researcher expects them to behave rather than to behave naturally.

Martin and Halverson (1983)

In a later study, Martin and Halverson (1983) found that children absorb and retain more information when it fits their gender schema. They showed 48 five- and six-year-old children pictures of males and females performing stereotypical or nonstereotypical actions of their respective genders. One week later, they had to recall the activities and the sex of the person in the pictures. Children were more likely to correctly identify the gender and activity of the person in the picture if that person performed the stereotype-matching action. This finding suggests an internal schema for appropriate gendered behaviour.


Gender Schema Theory - Key takeaways

  • Gender schema theory in psychology, developed by Martin and Halverson (1981), refers to how children learn about appropriate gender behaviour through observation. They combine cognitive theory and social learning theory. Martin and Halverson (1981) suggest that children develop a schema regarding their gender at around age three.
  • Children add information they learn to their gender schema by watching adults and peers behave in gender-appropriate ways and developing a gender identity based on these observations.
  • Children form in-groups and out-groups, in this case, boys and girls. Children desire to belong, and they begin to identify with their gendered group, view it positively, and seek information about behaving more like members of their group. This helps the child develop gender identity.
  • The construction of in-group and out-group also leads children to view the out-group as unfavourable and avoid behaviours associated with that group.
  • Various studies support gender schema theory, such as Martin and Little (1990), Bussey and Bandura (1992), and Bradbard et al. (1986), whereas other studies dispute gender schema theory, such as Hoffman (1998) and Campbell et al. (2002). One limitation of gender schema theory is the methodological problems with interviewing children.

Frequently Asked Questions about Gender Schema Theory

Martin and Halverson (1981) proposed the gender schema theory. They suggested a child’s perception and development of gender identity stems from a particular thought pattern called a schema. It combines cognitive developmental theory and social learning theory. Because most children desire to belong, they begin to identify with their gendered in-group, view it positively, and seek information about behaving more like members of their group whilst viewing out-groups negatively.

Martin and Halverson (1981).

Role schema, object schema, self schema, and event schema. 

Gender schema theory has been influenced by the work of Jean Piaget, in which he described schemas for the first time as small ‘pockets’ of information that we have regarding certain subjects. It combines cognitive developmental theory and social learning theory to understand gender development.

A good example of gender schema theory is when children develop the ability to label their gender and the gender of others. These labels allow children to form in-groups and out-groups, in this case, boys and girls. #


This helps the child develop a gender identity – learning from others in their group about the norms of their gender and how to behave accordingly. This construction of in-group and out-group also leads children to view the out-group as negative and avoid behaviours associated with that group.

Final Gender Schema Theory Quiz

Gender Schema Theory Quiz - Teste dein Wissen

Question

Who developed gender schema theory?

Show answer

Answer

Martin and Halverson (1981).

Show question

Question

When was the gender schema theory developed?

Show answer

Answer

1981.

Show question

Question

Who first proposed the idea of a schema?

Show answer

Answer

Frederick bartlett.

Show question

Question

What is a methodological issue associated with conducting interviews with child participants?

Show answer

Answer

Demand characteristics.

Show question

Question

Which of these groups of people do children tend to consider more favourable than the other?

Show answer

Answer

In-group.

Show question

Question

Who proposed Gender Schema Theory?

Show answer

Answer

Martin and Halverson.

Show question

Question

What does Gender Schema Theory suggest about a child’s perception and development of their gender identity?

Show answer

Answer

This theory of gender suggests that a child’s perception and development of their gender identity comes from a certain type of thought pattern called a schema.

Show question

Question

What is a schema?

Show answer

Answer

A schema is our mental representation of a particular concept, an information package. Schemas are abstract cognitive structures, like a mental toolbox containing information about various things.

Show question

Question

At what age do Martin and Halverson state children begin to develop a schema regarding their gender?

Show answer

Answer

3.

Show question

Question

According to Kohlberg’s theory of gender development, what do children develop at the age of three?

Show answer

Answer

According to Kohlberg's theory of gender development, this is when children develop the ability to label their gender and the gender of others. These labels allow children to form in-groups and out-groups, in this case, boys and girls.

Show question

Question

As they grow, children add (through observation) to their gender schemas. True or false?

Show answer

Answer

True.

Show question

Question

How do children develop their gender identity in their in-group?

Show answer

Answer

Because most children desire to belong, they begin to identify with their gendered group, view it positively, and seek information about behaving more like members of their group. This helps the child develop a gender identity.

Show question

Question

What do out-groups suggest about others not in the in-group?

Show answer

Answer

This construction of in-group and out-group also leads children to view the out-group as negative and avoid behaviours associated with that group.

Show question

Question

Does gender behaviour have an evolutionary basis?

Show answer

Answer

A child’s desire to fit into their in-group may be an evolutionary trait. This could be because staying with like-minded people, such as members of your gender, was much safer than spending time with people very dissimilar to you (e.g., an unfamiliar group) because they would not have much incentive to raise you and help you survive.

Show question

Question

What did Liben and Signorella (1993) find in their study?

Show answer

Answer

They found that the majority of children recalled photos displaying stereotypical gendered behaviours more accurately than photos displaying unconventional behaviours.  

Show question

Question

Does the Gender Schema Theory help fill in the gaps of Kohlberg’s theory of gender development?

Show answer

Answer

Yes. Martin and Halversonvs theory helps explain why the gender labelling stage occurs, and how the child develops their gender identity, as opposed to just describing what that development looks like. 

Show question

Question

Are there methodological issues with gender schema theory?

Show answer

Answer

Somewhat, yes. A limitation of this theory (and studies investigating it) is many methodological issues with interviewing young children. One is that they are more likely than adults to display demand characteristics. 

Show question

Question

What are demand characteristics?

Show answer

Answer

Demand characteristics refer to when a participant behaves the way they think the researcher expects them to behave, rather than to behave naturally.

Show question

Question

What did Martin and Halverson (1983) find in their later study?

Show answer

Answer

In a later study, Martin and Halverson (1983) found that children absorb and retain more information when it fits their gender schema.

Show question

Question

What did Campbell et al. (2002) find in their study?

Show answer

Answer

This study found that although children had an idea of their gender and the stereotypical behaviours associated with it, this did not prevent them from engaging in nonstereotypical behaviours. Gender schemas may be present, but they are not the main factor in overall gender development.

Show question

60%

of the users don't pass the Gender Schema Theory quiz! Will you pass the quiz?

Start Quiz

How would you like to learn this content?

Creating flashcards
Studying with content from your peer
Taking a short quiz

94% of StudySmarter users achieve better grades.

Sign up for free!

94% of StudySmarter users achieve better grades.

Sign up for free!

How would you like to learn this content?

Creating flashcards
Studying with content from your peer
Taking a short quiz

Free psychology cheat sheet!

Everything you need to know on . A perfect summary so you can easily remember everything.

Access cheat sheet

Discover the right content for your subjects

No need to cheat if you have everything you need to succeed! Packed into one app!

Study Plan

Be perfectly prepared on time with an individual plan.

Quizzes

Test your knowledge with gamified quizzes.

Flashcards

Create and find flashcards in record time.

Notes

Create beautiful notes faster than ever before.

Study Sets

Have all your study materials in one place.

Documents

Upload unlimited documents and save them online.

Study Analytics

Identify your study strength and weaknesses.

Weekly Goals

Set individual study goals and earn points reaching them.

Smart Reminders

Stop procrastinating with our study reminders.

Rewards

Earn points, unlock badges and level up while studying.

Magic Marker

Create flashcards in notes completely automatically.

Smart Formatting

Create the most beautiful study materials using our templates.

Sign up to highlight and take notes. It’s 100% free.

Start learning with StudySmarter, the only learning app you need.

Sign up now for free
Illustration