Children's Affectionate Behavior Gender Differences

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in (a) the amount of affectionate behavior expressed by boys and girls and (b) the types of recipients of boys' and girls' affectionate behavior. Data were collected by conducting naturalistic observations of 76 children (32 males and 44 females) in six daycare centers. The affectionate behaviors observed were smiling, affectionate words, and active and passive affectionate physical contact. The results indicated that children's affectionate behavior was not gender typed as defined by social learning theory. However, there were gender differences related to the recipients of children's affectionate behavior. Children expressed more affection to (a) individual children and teachers than to groups and (b) same-gender peers than to opposite-gender peers. The specific behaviors making important contributions to the overall differences between boys' and girls' expressions of affection to male and female children differed. The results indicate there is a need to include the interpersonal context of the behavior when examining gender differences and to expand theory and research on the role of affection in children's development and relationships.     

Young children's play qualities in same-, other-, and mixed-sex peer groups

This research examined how children's play varied as a function of the sex of the child, the sex of the play partner, and whether they played in dyads or groups. Children (mean age = 52 months) were observed during their free play. Data revealed that boys' same-sex play was more active-forceful, further from adults, and more stereotyped than girls' play, and that this pattern was generally exaggerated in groups versus dyads. Children rarely played only with children of the other sex (other-sex peers), but about one fourth of their interactions involved children of both sexes (mixed-sex peers). Compared with same- or dyadic other-sex play, mixed-sex play was more likely to occur near adults, and was intermediate in active-forceful and stereotyped activity choices. Findings confirmed that children's experiences in peer groups vary depending on the sex of the child and sex of play partners.     

Sex and age differences in young children's reactions to frustration: a further look at the Goldberg and Lewis subjects.

This study reports 1-year follow-up data on the children originally observed by Goldberg and Lewis in a barrier frustration situation. Changes in reactions to frustration over a 2-year time span were examined for age and sex differences. Regardless of sex, over the first 2 years of life, barrier frustration was responded to with a decrease in stress and an increase in problem-solving behavior. The data suggest that sex differences in success at coping with the frustration may change with age and may be dependent on what behaviors are considered to be more instrumental in solving the frustration. Sex differences related to behavior in the barrier frustration were highly age specific. As previously reported in Goldberg and Lewis, at 1 year of age boys cried less and made more active attempts to get around the barrier than girls. However, at 2 years of age, girls vocalized more for help from the mother and made more attempts at problem solving than boys.     

Gender differences in response to auditory-verbal intervention in children who are deaf or hard of hearing

Recent research has questioned the role of gender in language development and in special education outcomes, yet neither issue has been addressed in literature on students who are deaf or hard of hearing. To determine if language and placement outcomes differ by gender, the present study considered the behavior of children who attended a clinical program subscribing to an auditory-verbal philosophy. Parents of 28 boys and 42 girls with hearing losses evaluated their children using the Parent Rating Scale of the Leiter International Performance Scale--Revised (Roid & Miller, 1997) and the Parental View of Therapy Scale (developed for the present study). Also, clinical file data were surveyed. The boys were found to be more likely than the girls to be rated by their parents as having basic features of temperament nonconducive to traditional clinical language intervention. The girls' language and placement outcomes surpassed the boys', although both groups' outcomes were positive. A possible limitation of the study was that the population was atypical of students with hearing losses in general.     

Gender Differences in Children's Normative Beliefs about Aggression: How Do I Hurt Thee? Let Me Count the Ways

This research was designed to assess whether children view relationally manipulative behaviors (i.e., those behaviors labeled relational aggression in past research) as "aggressive." 2 studies were conducted to evaluate whether children view relationally manipulative behaviors as associated with 2 defining features of aggression, anger (Study 1) and intent to harm (Study 2). Results of Study 1 ( n = 459, 9–12-year-olds) indicated that relational aggression was the most frequently cited angry behavior for girls' interactions whereas physical aggression was the most frequently cited angry behavior for boys' interactions. Results of Study 2 ( n = 60, 9–11-year-olds) demonstrated that relational aggression and verbal insults were the most frequently cited harmful behaviors for girls whereas physical aggression and verbal insults were the most frequently cited harmful behaviors for boys. These studies provide the first evidence that children view relationally manipulative acts (relational aggression) as angry, harmful behaviors (i.e., as "aggressive").     

Preschoolers' Relational Aggression with Siblings and with Friends

As part of a longitudinal study examining sibling and friend relationships in early and middle childhood, relational aggression by 4-year-olds and their interaction partners in semi-structured free play sessions with siblings and friends was examined during sibling sessions involving both same-gender and mixed-gender sibling pairs. Identifiable acts of relational aggression occurred during many of the interactions observed, but there was also a wide range in the amount of relational aggression produced. Both boys and girls used relational aggression with their siblings much more than they did with their friends. Although boys' and girls' relationally aggressive behaviors occurred at similar rates, the form and function of their relational aggression varied depending on the age and gender of their sibling.     

When friends disappoint: boys' and girls' responses to transgressions of friendship expectations

In this study, the prevailing view that girls are pervasively more skilled in their friendships than boys was challenged by examining whether girls respond more negatively than boys when a friend violates core friendship expectations. Fourth- and fifth-grade children (n = 267) responded to vignettes depicting transgressions involving a friend's betrayal, unreliability, or failure to provide support or help. Results indicated that girls were more troubled by the transgressions, more strongly endorsed various types of negative relationship interpretations of the friend's actions, and reported more anger and sadness than did boys. Girls also endorsed revenge goals and aggressive strategies just as much as boys. These findings lead to a more complex view of boys' and girls' friendship competencies.     

Reinforcing contingencies for sex-role behaviors in preschool children

Two groups of disadvantaged Afro-American children, a total of 30 boys and 25 girls, mean age about 42 months; and two groups of middle- and upper-middle-class children, most of them white, 35 boys and 31 girls, mean age about 44.5 months, were observed for patterns of sex-role-characteristic behavior and peer and teacher response to such behavior. At all times, the children in the two experimental groups were being taught by seven women and seven or eight men, about half of whom were Afro-American, half white-Anglo, and who were mixed in the two schools by race but evenly divided by sex. Boys engaged in 16% sex-characteristic behavior, 5.7% cross-sex behavior. The same figures for girls were 18 and 6%. There were no pattern or percentage differences by race or social status of children. Women teachers gave most of their sex-role connected rewards for feminine behavior to both boys and girls. Men teachers rewarded more equably, masculine behaviors for boys, feminine behaviors for girls. Children rewarded mainly their own sex, and gave rewards for sex characteristic behavior. The pattern was even clearer for boys than for girls. In Discussion, comparisons are made with other somewhat similar studies.     

Children's Temperament and Behavior in Montessori and Constructivist Early Childhood Programs

This study tested the hypothesis that curriculum type (Montessori and constructivist) moderates the impact of temperament (specifically activity level and attention-span/persistence) on the classroom behavior of 3- to 5-year-old children. Mothers enrolled in Montessori and constructivist preschools filled out the Colorado Childhood Temperament Inventory. The children's teachers filled out the Preschool Behavior Questionnaire and the Preschool Adjustment Questionnaire. A near-significant trend suggested that temperamentally active boys were more likely to be perceived by their teachers as having behavior problems if they were enrolled in Montessori programs than if they were enrolled in constructivist programs. There was no such trend for girls. There was no evidence that temperamental attention-span persistence moderated the impact of curriculum type on either boys' or girls' behavior. The findings thus give modest support to the notion that parents should be advised to select constructivist early childhood programs especially for boys who are temperamentally predisposed to be highly modifying their teaching practices to better accommodate the needs of these children active. In addition, directors and teachers in Montessori programs may consider modifying their teaching practices to better accommodate the needs of these children.     

Work-based antipoverty programs for parents can enhance the school performance and social behavior of children

We assess the impact of the New Hope Project, an antipoverty program tested in a random assignment experimental design, on family functioning and developmental outcomes for preschool- and school-aged children (N = 913). New Hope offered wage supplements sufficient to raise family income above the poverty threshold and subsidies for child care and health insurance to adults who worked full-time. New Hope had strong positive effects on boys' academic achievement, classroom behavior skills, positive social behavior, and problem behaviors, as reported by teachers, and on boys' own expectations for advanced education and occupational aspirations. There were not corresponding program effects for girls. The child outcomes may have resulted from a combination of the following: Children in New Hope families spent more time in formal child care programs and other structured activities away from home than did children in control families. New Hope parents were employed more, had more material resources, reported more social support, and expressed less stress and more optimism about achieving their goals than did parents in the control sample. The results suggest that an anti-poverty program that provides support for combining work and family responsibilities can have beneficial effects on the development of school-age children.     

Relations between Attachment, Gender, and Behavior with Peers in Preschool

40 4-year-old children and their mothers participated in a study investigating concurrent links between attachment and peer interactions. Security of attachment was assessed in the laboratory from reunion episodes following a 10-min separation. Focal child observations were carried out during indoor free play in preschool. Relations between insecure attachment and peer interactions were different for boys and girls. Insecure boys showed more aggressive, disruptive, assertive, controlling, and attention-seeking behavior than secure children. Insecure girls showed more dependent behavior than secure children but less assertive and controlling behavior, and more positive expressive behavior and compliance. Secure girls and secure boys did not differ significantly. Gender differences in social behavior may be accounted for by a subgroup of children, those classified as insecure, and the same attachment classification may lead to different predictions depending on whether the child is a boy or a girl.     

Is Caregiver Gender Important for Boys and Girls? Gender-Specific Child–Caregiver Interactions and Attachment Relationships

Outcomes of studies with exclusively or predominantly female caregivers suggest that boys in child care are involved with interactions, attachment relationships, and care of lower quality than girls. We investigated to what extent child gender (N = 38, 19 boys) and caregiver gender (N = 38, 19 males) is associated with child–caregiver interactions and attachment relationships. Children’s involvement and caregivers’ sensitive and stimulation behaviors were observed using systematic observations of semistructured play. Children’s secure attachment with caregivers was observed using the Attachment Q-Sort. Research Findings: Male and female caregivers showed similar sensitive behaviors toward boys and girls, and children had similar levels of secure attachment with male and female caregivers. Female caregivers had a tendency to stimulate boys more than girls, and this behavior was associated with a lower secure attachment in boys. Girls’ involvement with the caregiver was associated with male and female caregivers’ sensitive behavior and with male but not female caregivers’ stimulation. Conversely, boys’ involvement with the caregiver was elicited by sensitive but not stimulating behavior of male caregivers but not by female caregivers. Practice or Policy: Boys and girls can have equally positive interactions and attachment relationships with both male and female caregivers.     

Children''s Housework and Psychosocial Functioning: The Mediating Effects of Parents'' Sex-Role Behaviors and Attitudes

We examined sex-typed housework of children from dual- and single-earner families and its implications for children's adjustment as a function of congruencies between children's work and parents' sex-role behaviors and attitudes. Participants were 152 firstborn 9-12-year-olds (85 girls, 67 boys) and their parents. All fathers and 50% of mothers were employed. In home interviews parents rated their sex-role attitudes, and children rated their competence, stress, and parent-child relationships. In 7 nightly telephone interviews, children and parents described their household tasks for that day. Analyses revealed sex and earner-status differences in children's and parents' involvement in traditionally feminine and masculine tasks. Correlations between levels of parents' and children's task involvement were significant only in the case of fathers and sons in single-earner families. Regarding the connections between task performance and child adjustment, we found that incongruency between boys' sex-typed tasks and their fathers' sex-role behaviors and attitudes was linked to poorer psychosocial functioning, a pattern that did not hold for girls.     

Sex stereotypes in adult-infant play

24 14-month-old infants played with adult strangers in a laboratory playroom. To examine the effects of sex-role labeling on adult behavior, each infant was introduced as a boy and as a girl in 2 different sessions. After controlling for the adult's scores on the Spence-Helmreich Attitudes toward Women Scale, the adults were found to engage in more Encouragement for Activity and more Male Role Toy Choice when playing with children designated as boys. They showed more Interpersonal Stimulation and more Nurturance Play when playing with children designated as girls. No significant differences were observed between the behavior of the real girls and boys. Men and women showed some differences in their style of play.     

Gender effects in children's beliefs about school performance: a cross-cultural study

Do young boys and girls understand what leads to academic success (e.g., talent, effort, good teaching, luck) in the same way? Do young girls and boys have equivalent perceptions of their academic competence? Are these beliefs engendered in the same way across sociocultural contexts? In a cross-cultural study of over 3,000 children in grades 2 to 6, ages 7.2 to 13.6, we discovered that boys and girls around the world have very similar ideas about what generally leads to academic success. Moreover, in the few contexts where boys' and girls' academic performances were equal, their beliefs were also equal. However, when girls outperformed boys, their beliefs in their own talent were no greater than boys' beliefs, even though they did have stronger beliefs than boys in other facets of their achievement potential (e.g., putting forth effort, being lucky, getting their teacher's help). Our findings support the generally close correspondence between children's achievement and their competence-related beliefs, with the exception that young girls appear to specifically discount their talent. The effects held regardless of the children's achievement, intelligence, or age (approximately 8 to 13 years). Girls were more biased in some contexts than in others, however, suggesting that competence-related biases are rooted in culture-specific aspects of school settings.     

Gender, adult structuring of activities, and social behavior in middle childhood

The study was designed to test the relations among gender, adult-provided activity structure, and social behavior for children in middle childhood. Adult-provided structure was defined as verbally presented rules, guidelines, suggestions, and modeling. Children aged 7-11 years attended a 1-week summer day camp in which activities characterized by high or low adult structure were available. As predicted, girls spent more time in highly structured activities, whereas boys spent more time in low-structure activities. Once in high-structure activities, however, both genders displayed high rates of adult-directed bids for recognition, leadership attempts, and compliance and low rates of peer interaction. In low-structure activities, children directed high rates of leadership and other social behaviors to same-sex peers. Children who chose high-structure activities most often were also most likely to interact with adults in those activities. Those who chose low-structure activities showed the highest rates of interaction with male peers. Sex-typed personality attributes were not related to activity choice. The results are interpreted in a framework encompassing the interactions of "person" attributes, environmental variables, and behavior.     

The effects of specialized training on caregivers and children in early-years settings: An evaluation of the foundation course in playgroup practice

This study examined the effects of a 120-hour preschool training course on caregivers’ behavior and children’s development in early-years settings. Sixteen caregivers attending this training course and 17 comparison caregivers were assessed on a measure of caregiver sensitivity in the child-care centers in which they were employed. Sixty-eight children, two from each center, were assessed for social and cognitive competence. Both the training and comparison caregivers and children were observed before and after the former group attended the training course. Caregivers who received training made significant gains in positive relationship and decreased in levels of detachment. The children in their care made significant gains in complex social and cognitive play from pre- to post-training. The comparison group adults and children showed no significant improvements from pre- to post-test times.     

Contributions of Male and Female Guests and Hosts to Peer Group Entry

92 7–9-year-old children (47 girls) were observed while attempting to join 2 relatively unfamiliar same- or opposite-sex peers who were playing a board game. Female guests were less obtrusive than male guests in their entry approaches, whereas male guests were more active and assertive. Guests were less behaviorally constrained when approaching same- than opposite-sex hosts. Female hosts were more attentive to the guests than male hosts, who tended to ignore the newcomers. Successful guests received initiations from the hosts, responded contingently to host initiations, and performed activity-related behavior. Since female hosts initiated more behavior to the guests than male hosts, and female guests were more contingently responsive than male guests, girls entering female groups were the most successful. These findings support the thesis that peer group entry processes and outcomes are affected by the personal characteristics and contexts of both the entering children and their hosts.     

Parents' Reactions to Children's Negative Emotions: Relations to Children's Social Competence and Comforting Behavior

The purpose of this study was to examine the relations of mothers' and fathers' reported emotion-related practices to parents' and teachers' reports of third-to sixth-grade children's social skills, popularity, and coping, as well as the quantity and quality of children's comforting of an infant. Mothers' problem-focused reactions tended to be positively associated with children's social functioning and coping, whereas maternal minimizing reactions tended to be linked to lower levels of social competence and high levels of avoidant coping. There were few findings for fathers' reactions, although fathers reported fewer problem-focused reactions with socially competent, in contrast to less competent, daughters. Emotion-focused and problem-focused maternal reactions, as well as encouragement of the expression of emotion, were associated with boys' children's comforting behavior, although a moderate level of maternal encouragement of the expression of emotion was associated with quality of girls' comforting.