Explanations of Gender Development (AQA A Level Psychology)

Beatrix is three years old. At her nursery, there are lots of toys to play with but Beatrix nearly always chooses to play with the dolls and the toy kitchen. When she comes home from nursery she tells her mother about other girls at nursery but hardly ever mentions any of the boys.

Use your knowledge of gender schema theory to explain Beatrix’s behaviour at nursery and at home.

Outline social learning theory as an explanation for gender development.

Explain one strength of social learning theory as an explanation for gender development.

Outline and evaluate Kohlberg’s theory of gender development

Olga and Frank are talking about their five-year-old son, Donny.

Olga says, “Remember when he was very little and he used to say he would be a mummy when he grew up?”

Frank replies, “Now look at him at the playground. He only plays with tractors and wants to be ‘a tractor man’. He has no interest in watching his sister and the other girls. He concentrates on what the other boys are doing and why.”

Use your knowledge of cognitive explanations for gender development to explain the comments made by Olga and Frank.

Outline and briefly discuss Freud’s theory of the Oedipus complex as an explanation for gender development in boys.

Discuss the effects of media on the development of gender roles.

Describe and evaluate Kohlberg’s explanation for gender development.

Discuss what psychological research has told us about the influence of social learning on gender development.

Describe and evaluate Kohlberg’s explanation of gender development.

Social psychologists are writing a report about their research into children’s toys. They write, ‘Parents still tend to buy pink for girls. In fact, it is hard to find any adverts aimed at girls that are not ‘pink and fluffy’.

For boys, parents tend to buy more competitive or combat-type toys. Good against evil is a common theme in adverts aimed at boys.

Even at school, playground activities are different. As children get older, boys and girls tend to have more shared interests like music’.

Discuss the influence of culture and media on the development of gender roles. Refer to the report above in your answer.