has not been well studied. Children of six years or so see the traditional male jobs to be held at a higher status than the typical female jobs. It takes an older child to know that, for example, only men have been presidents and that males are held in higher esteem than females. Children around 8 to 10 years of age are also aware of gender discrimination. Because of gender role rigidity, children around five years of age are more punitive toward a peer who, for example, plays with a toy associated with the opposite sex. This did not get worse with age but, in fact, got better with age. In groups of children, there tends to be a “gender enforcer” who most limits what boys and girls can play with. This person is suggested to be more sexist than other children, even in preschool. Children also make negative judgments about peers that engage in gender-atypical behavior, particularly boys who do so. Most studies do not see an association with this phenomenon before the middle elementary school with increasing negativity as a child gets older. Children at age three years will be selective toward having same-sex peers. There is favoritism and exclusion of peers from gender stereotypic activities, such as baseball and ballet, even though the same children recognize that excluding an opposite-sex child is wrong. There is more rigidity in preschoolers than there is in older children about exclusivity in certain gender-related groups.
GENDER ROLES AND STEREOTYPES So far, we have looked at how children develop gender identity and gender roles. Now we will talk about gender roles in adults, within different cultures, and with regard to religion. A person’s gender role is the social role they play that determines what is appropriate and acceptable for their sex. Usually, gender roles are based on preconceptions about what is masculine and what is feminine. This varies significantly from culture to culture. No one knows what role biology and sociology play in determining gender roles. Gender socialization refers to the way in which a person acquires their gender role. Some cultures recognize androgyny as a third gender. This is a person who has features of 150
