Kohlberg's Theory of Gender Development

Question 1

who’s views was Kohlbergs theory based one

Answer 1

PIAGET

Question 2

what were piagets view about development

Answer 2

he viewed that as we develop, our brains grow and develop the ability to learn greater and more complex things.
as a result, our development must be staged and therefore age related.
As they mature, so does their thinking (maturation).
He also believed that children are all egocentric until the age 6 or 7 – meaning they believe that everyone else sees the world as they do

Question 3

what does Kohlberg propose about gender development

Answer 3

there are 3 stages to gender development

Question 4

wha are the 3 stages of gender development

Answer 4

1. gender labelling
2. gender stability
3. gender consistency

Question 5

what age does gender labelling (stage 1) occur

Answer 5

ages 2-3

Question 6

what stage is gender labelling regarded as according to piaget

Answer 6

pre-operational stage

Question 7

what do children begin to do during gender labelling stage

Answer 7

they label themselves and others as boys and girls based on superficial and outward appearance e.g length fo hair, clothing

Question 8

what do children not understand during gender labelling stage of gender development

Answer 8

do not understand the. permanence of gender and therefore, people’s genders can change according to children.

Question 9

what happens to children towards the end of gender labelling stage of gender development

Answer 9

they can label themselves as a boy or girl

Question 10

what stage do children enter at age 4 during kohlberg’s theory of gender development

Answer 10

gender stability stage

Question 11

what do children begin to identify that gender is during gender stability stage

Answer 11

children begin to identify that gender is more a fixed term for an individual however, still inconsistent in places

example:
they may be able to identify that a boy grows into a man, they’re not able to tell that a boy plays with dolls

Question 12

what is the main issue within gender stability

Answer 12

Conservation
Theyre swayed by external appearances.
e.g they believe that you must be a girl to wear a dress. so can identify a boy normally but if he wears dress hes now a girl

Question 13

what age are children during gender consistency stage of gender developement

Answer 13

6 years old

Question 14

what do children realise during gender consistency stage of gender development

Answer 14

they realise that across a situations, gender is constant.

Question 15

what does gender constancy mean for children in gender consistency stage of gender development

Answer 15

they can now understand gender stereotypes and gender appropriate behaviour

Question 16

how do children learn gender stereotypes

Answer 16

through socialisation where they observe others and imitate behaviour frommodels of the same sex.

Question 17

what are children no longer at gender consistency stage

Answer 17

no longer EGOCENTRIc, menaing theyre now realising that other people do not see the world the same way they do

Question 18

what do children during gender consistency stage begin to seek

Answer 18

seek gender appropriate role models to identify and imitate

Question 19

who researched Kohlberg’s theory of gender development

Answer 19

SLABY AND FREY

Question 20

what was the aim of Slaby and Frey’s research iinto Kohlbergs gender developement theory

Answer 20

To investigate the valdiity of kohlbergs gender construct theory

Question 21

what was the procedure of slaby and frey research into Kohlberg’s gender development

Answer 21

they worked with young children to check their understanding of gender stability and gender constancy. Asking questions like ‘when you grow up will you be a mummy or daddy?’ – assessing gender stability

‘if you played football, would you be a boy or girl?’

Question 22

what did Slaby and Frey find when researching Kohlberg’s theory of gender development

Answer 22

Gender stability: they found that children didn’t understand that these traits were fixed and stable until about age 3-4.

Question 23

what did Slaby and Frey conclude from research into Kohlberg’s theory of gender development

Answer 23

they concluded that their results agree with kohlberg’s theory

Question 24

what is a strength of Kohlbergs theory of gender development

Answer 24

P:A strength of Kohlberg’s theory of gender development is that it is supported by research evidence.
E: Slaby and Frey found that children who had reached the stage of gender stability they found that children didn’t understand that these traits were fixed and stable until about age 3-4.
E: This supports Kohlberg’s idea that gender understanding develops in stages
L: This research adds validity to Kohlberg’s theory

Question 25

what is a limitation of Kohlbergs theory of gender development

Answer 25

P: A limitation of Kohlberg’s theory is that it may not apply equally across all cultures. E: Different cultures have varying expectations of gender roles and behaviours, may influence when children develop an understanding of gender E: This makes it difficult to determine whether Kohlberg’s stage-based theory is universally applicable L: Therefore, the theory may lack cultural validity, it does not fully account for the influence of cultural context on gender development.