I conducted my research and collected my data for this experiment at 3:30pm on Tuesday March 8th, 2016 at the Walmart Supercenter in Abilene, Texas. I walked around the toy section of the store and observed the differences between the aisles that are clearly assigned to certain genders. The store has sectioned off specific aisles for each gender and they make it very obvious which aisle is for girls and which aisle is for boys. The “girls” aisle has barbie dolls and princess dresses and the packaging on these items are bright pink. The “boys” aisle is filled with star wars action figures and toy guns all dressed in black packaging. There are obvious stereotypes and gender roles being subconsciously produced in these aisles. When at Walmart, …show more content…
Young boys are also being manipulated by marketers. Boys are naturally more aggressive than girls and companies use that to their advantage. Boys are taught to be tough and “manly”. Boys are raised with the belief that it is not okay to cry, or have any sort of overwhelming emotion that can be taken as “girly”. This puts terrible pressure on a kid, but toy distributors take it and use it to their advantage. Boys are taught to be tough so boys need “tough” toys like guns and swords. Girls are taught to be frail and dainty and boys are told to be violent and tough. The problem with this is that not every child is going to feel as if they belong in category “A”, when they see themself as a “B”. In other words, not every young boy is going to like being rough and tough and not every girl wants to be delicate and …show more content…
I will not impose “gender specific” toys on them or tell them that it is not acceptable for a boy to play with a baby doll or tell my future daughter that it is not allowed for her to pretend sword fight. My children will be able to decide what they like and what they do not like and I will not allow anyone to decide that for them. This assignment has definitely opened my eyes to the market that is out there stereotyping children without much notice. Taking time to actually look into what is being done with toys and society with children has broadened my understanding and awareness of the impending problem that children are being faced with. I hope that one day we will see an end to gender stereotyping so that my future children will not be forced to feel out of place if they do not identify with a specific feeling or emotion that a boy should have or a girl should have. It sickens me and breaks my heart that things so minuscule such as toys can have such a negative effect on lives, especially on such a young children. This ideology of gender segregation should not be supported or further produced because it is harmful to the children that are directly or indirectly being affected by
I noticed the girls’ toys engaged fine motor skills more than the boys’ toys did. The girls have several different types and sizes of dolls to choose from – however, this also makes dolls or items used with dolls (Barbie clothes, doll clothes, doll houses, Barbie cars, and doll furniture) over half of all the products in the girls’ section. This shows the stereotypical attitude that all girls like to nurture and will someday be expected to be mothers and the primary care giver for their children. Other toys I noticed that were very stereotypical were the child size vacuum, broom, and kitchen set. Even at this young age we teach girls it is part of their role to cook and clean.
This experiemtn showed kids a video of people acting violenctly toward the doll and then passively toward the doll. The kids how saw the doll actedupon aggressively were more inclined to do the same. Now that the impact of violence has been esstablished. It is important to adress how gender effects children.Tv shows and commercials often steroetype women and men into their roles. Generally in the idea of men being ggressive and dominating over women. Leading to young men thinking that being aggressive over women is ok and shows to young women that if a man is like that toward you it is ok and normal. (Earles, K., Alexander, R., Johnson, M., Liverpool, J., & McGhee,2015) This belief is also supported by an interview with Neil Malamuth from UCLA. in this interview there is one statement that is very relevant to this idea "that violence against women is more accepted and thus the acts of violence are more likely to occur." The easy thing to see is the increase in savage acts that has increased in the last few decades.what is less black a white but just as much a problem is how society as a whole has started
In order to fully comprehend the how gender stereotypes perpetuate children’s toys, one must understand gender socialization. According to Santrock, the term gender refers to the, “characteristics of people as males and females” (p.163). An individual is certainly not brought into the world with pre-existing knowledge of the world. However, what is certain is the belief that the individual has regarding him- or herself and life stems from socialization—the development of gender through social mechanisms. For instance, when a baby is brought into this world, his or her first encounter to gender socialization arises when the nurse places a blue or pink cap on the baby’s head. This act symbolizes the gender of the baby, whether it is a boy (blue cap) or a girl (pink cap). At the age of four, the child becomes acquai...
Based on my observation, Walmart is one of the toy retailers labeled and categorized toys by gender. They placed “Girls” and “Boys” signs over their toy aisles. Initially, I studied the toys under
Walmart, the world’s largest retailer and private employer, has established a highly profitable business centered on a low-cost strategy that utilizes logistical efficiencies to create a competitive advantage. Yet, to maintain this low-cost strategy, Walmart has engaged in ethically questionable practices, including gender discrimination in promotion and pay. While the Supreme Court recently ruled against class certification of 1.5 million women in the Dukes v. Walmart case due to a lack of proof that Walmart operated under a “general policy of discrimination”, overwhelming evidence demonstrates that gender discrimination is a persistent problem rooted in the culture of Walmart, despite gender-neutral policies (Biskupic, 2011).
Even though our country supports equality in gender, differences still exist. This issue of gender and sexuality of our society has had one of the biggest impacts in my life since I was raised with five brothers. Since birth, I was immediately perceived by my parents as my gender role of girl and daughter. My brothers were given action figures, cars, and guns to play with. I was given the traditional girl toys Barbies, baby dolls and kitchen sets. Of course, I enjoyed my traditional girl toys but it might have been nice to have a choice and be able to have the same toys as my brothers to play with. I eventually concluded that I should be satisfied with whatever toys were given to me by my parents.
Francis’s study analyzes three to five-year-old preschool students as well as their parents about their views about toys and viewing materials based on gender. The study showed that parental beliefs shaped their child 's opinions of gender roles based on the toys they played with. The parent 's idea of what is female and what is male is transferred onto the toys their child plays with which in terms developed their child 's stereotype of what is male and female based on their toy selection and color. In the article “How do today 's children play and with which toys?”, by Klemenovic reference that a child 's view on gender stereotypes is developed by their parents who train them on how to use the toys. Klemenovic (2014) states "Adults start training in the first months of a child 's life because knowledge of objects is the outcome of other people 's behavior towards us" (Klemenovic, 2014, p. 184). Young children’s development of gender stereotypes is largely influenced by his or her parent’s actions and view on what they consider male or female. A parent’s color preference and toy selection can influence a child’s gender bias or association to a specific
First off, I will describe the role the toys are playing when it comes to the socialization process for boys and girls. The masculine wrestling action figures and construction vehicles are showing boy 's their gender roles. In the book, “You May Ask Yourself”, defines social roles as “the concept of gender roles, set of behavioral norms assumed to accompany one’s status as male or female” (Conley, pg 130). In the store it is fairly easy for parents to find which part of the store will fit their kids gender roles. For parents with young boys, all they have to do is look for the blue in the store. When looking for the girl toys, parents just need to find the pink. Parents are actively doing gender in their child
...sed to them makes me more interested and intrigued by the material we are learning in class. I think children’s clothing/toys have a significant impact on gender socialization and gender inequality. I saw this because when kids are young, they are learning and picking up different things every day. If they see their friends doing something, they will most likely follow in their footsteps because they feel that’s what it takes to be like the other kids. I do not think parents actually realize the impact they have on their children when they buy them specific gender specified clothing and toys. At the same level, parents want their children to be the same as their other parent friends because if their children are different, that means the parents are deemed different as well. I think this activity will definitely make me second guess on what I am buying for my child.
From this research of examining how gender socialization is projection through toys to children, have led to conclusion that in order to prevent children from living by these stereotypes portrayed through toys, parents should encourage gender-neutral and cross-gender play in children at an early age. Just for the mere that their brain is so receptive to knowledge into creating to become the person they are to be in life. Give children a chance to not only have fun while playing with their toys and that there aren’t any pressures on them that this what they should be and that there a mind full options that they can choose from.
To conduct the research, YouTube was utilized to find The Home Depot video advertisements. Videos were analyzed that demonstrated typical gender scripts as well as neutral ones. Notes were also taken for each of the videos for later reference. Each of the videos was discussed among the group members to come to conclusions. Some hypotheses were made such as the belief that men were thought to have been more likely to be targeted with stereotypical items for men, such as grills and construction supplies, while women would be steered towards kitchen and cleaning goods.
The goal for my ethnographic study is subjected to the study of the people of Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart is a place that varies from city to city, but still attracts many of the same people. Everyone knows the weird people that wear ridiculous things to do their normal routine of shopping. That is why I have chosen to do my mini ethnography one day while shopping as an insider at the local Wal-Mart in Auburn, Alabama. Wal-Mart is a large center for shopping that attracts many different types of people, while creating an environment within itself.
As a child, our toys were not exactly as gender neutral as earlier times, but also were not as gender stereotypic as the toys in today’s time. The fact that everyone eventually comes into contact with buying toys whether you have kids or you have a friend or family member who have kids which makes this an important topic. Eventually, everyone has to buy a child a present. Would it bother you that all toys are either pink or blue and there is no in between? Or does sticking to what your child is already familiar with and knows the more ideal option when it comes to gender stereotyping with children’s toys? Authors James Delingpole and Eleanor Muffitt both do a good job at arguing both sides to this issue. Although both authors provide valid points throughout each article, about gender stereotyping with toys, James Delingpole clearly was more effective in persuading the audience because he used all three elements; ethos, logos, and pathos to support his idea.
The gender stereotypes we are experiencing today are outdated and need change. Right now, gender marketing is higher than it has ever been. A comparison can be shown as Robb states “In the 1970s…few children’s’ toys were targeted specifically at boys or girls at all; nearly 70% of toys had no gender-specific labels at all” (Robb). Since the 70’s gender marketing has climbed its way up to its peak. There is a sort of disconnect between marketing and new gender advancements that have been occurring recently. The gender standards that are currently being used are outdated and do not hold true as more women are excelling in the sciences, while more men choose to become stay at home fathers. The “Let Toys be Toys” campaign website claims that “themes of glamour and beauty in toys and playthings directed at even the youngest girls tips over into a worrying emphasis on outward appearance. Stereotyped attitudes about boys are equally harmful as the constant assumption reinforced in toy advertising and packaging that boys are inevitably rough, dirty, rowdy…which feeds low expectations of boys that undermine their performance at school”(“Let Toys be Toys”). These outcomes are not acceptable, and gender-neutral toys may aid in combat against these old age ideals, and could possibly help make the
Secondly, playing with gender-typed toys has an impact on the child's psychosocial development. It influences the children on expressing themselves and behave according to how they perceived their genders to be like. One aspect affected is the child’s expression of masculinity and femininity in their