Evaluation of sex-role stereotypes
Studies that support the difference between sex and gender:
Smith and Lloyd (1978): Used 4-6 month old babies. Dressed them in boys clothes half of the time and
girls clothes the other half of the time. Found that when babies were dressed as boys were given a
hammer shaped rattle and encouraged to be more adventurous. When babies were dressed as girls they
were handed a cuddly doll and were told they were pretty.
Rubin et al: Aimed to find out if new parents apply gender stereotypes to their babies. Asked parents to
describe their babies in the first 24 hours of being born. Found parents of baby boys described their
babies as being strong and alert whereas parents of baby girls described their babies as soft and
delicate. Shows parents stereotype babies from the moment they are born despite no stereotypical
behaviour being shown.
Seavey et al: Aimed to see whether gender label attached to baby affected adult responses. They
dressed a 3 month old baby in a yellow suit. A third of PP’s were told the baby was a girl, another third
of PP’s were told the baby was a boy, and the rest of the PP’s were given no label. PP’s were left to
interact with the child for three minutes. When described as being female PP’s were more likely to use a
doll when playing with the child. When described as being male they most frequently chose the plastic
ring to play with the child. When no gender was given the females interacted with the child more than
S the males did. When no gender was given PP’s spontaneously decided on a sex for the baby based on
stereotypes (e.g. soft = girl, good grip = boy).
Furnham and Farrager (2000): Aimed to demonstrate sex role stereotypes that were used in British TV.
Conducted a content analysis on a month’s sample of TV ads in the UK. They analysed the sex and role
of the key figure in the ads, location, type of product, use of humour and the sex of the voiceover. Found
that men were more presented in professional roles whereas women were more presented in domestic
roles (housewives, mums). Women were more likely to sell a household product and men were more
likely to sell motoring products. 70% of voiceovers were men, and the male voiceovers were more
humorous. Represents typical gender stereotypes.
Studies that don’t support a huge difference between sex and gender:
Ingalkaliker et al: Aimed to test the belief that women are better at multitasking than men. Used quasi
experiment. Scanned the brains of 949 young men and women aged 8-22 using MRI scanners. Mapped
different parts of the brain. Found that women’s brains have better connections between hemispheres.
Men’s display more intense activity in brain’s individual parts. Shows that the female brain is wired to
cope better with several tasks at once whereas the male brain can focus better on a single task.
Employment: Can be used to help employ more women into STEM careers and other careers and men
into nursing roles by placing both on adverts. Helps us to recognise the need for diverse representation
in workplaces.
P
-Deception in studies where people weren’t informed of gender
-Culture bias: There are countries that don’t have jobs in the tertiary or quaternary sector so these
I studies don’t inform us about gender and sex roles in those countries.
Studies that support the difference between sex and gender:
Smith and Lloyd (1978): Used 4-6 month old babies. Dressed them in boys clothes half of the time and
girls clothes the other half of the time. Found that when babies were dressed as boys were given a
hammer shaped rattle and encouraged to be more adventurous. When babies were dressed as girls they
were handed a cuddly doll and were told they were pretty.
Rubin et al: Aimed to find out if new parents apply gender stereotypes to their babies. Asked parents to
describe their babies in the first 24 hours of being born. Found parents of baby boys described their
babies as being strong and alert whereas parents of baby girls described their babies as soft and
delicate. Shows parents stereotype babies from the moment they are born despite no stereotypical
behaviour being shown.
Seavey et al: Aimed to see whether gender label attached to baby affected adult responses. They
dressed a 3 month old baby in a yellow suit. A third of PP’s were told the baby was a girl, another third
of PP’s were told the baby was a boy, and the rest of the PP’s were given no label. PP’s were left to
interact with the child for three minutes. When described as being female PP’s were more likely to use a
doll when playing with the child. When described as being male they most frequently chose the plastic
ring to play with the child. When no gender was given the females interacted with the child more than
S the males did. When no gender was given PP’s spontaneously decided on a sex for the baby based on
stereotypes (e.g. soft = girl, good grip = boy).
Furnham and Farrager (2000): Aimed to demonstrate sex role stereotypes that were used in British TV.
Conducted a content analysis on a month’s sample of TV ads in the UK. They analysed the sex and role
of the key figure in the ads, location, type of product, use of humour and the sex of the voiceover. Found
that men were more presented in professional roles whereas women were more presented in domestic
roles (housewives, mums). Women were more likely to sell a household product and men were more
likely to sell motoring products. 70% of voiceovers were men, and the male voiceovers were more
humorous. Represents typical gender stereotypes.
Studies that don’t support a huge difference between sex and gender:
Ingalkaliker et al: Aimed to test the belief that women are better at multitasking than men. Used quasi
experiment. Scanned the brains of 949 young men and women aged 8-22 using MRI scanners. Mapped
different parts of the brain. Found that women’s brains have better connections between hemispheres.
Men’s display more intense activity in brain’s individual parts. Shows that the female brain is wired to
cope better with several tasks at once whereas the male brain can focus better on a single task.
Employment: Can be used to help employ more women into STEM careers and other careers and men
into nursing roles by placing both on adverts. Helps us to recognise the need for diverse representation
in workplaces.
P
-Deception in studies where people weren’t informed of gender
-Culture bias: There are countries that don’t have jobs in the tertiary or quaternary sector so these
I studies don’t inform us about gender and sex roles in those countries.
