Pink Frilly Dresses and the Avoidance of All Things "Girly": Children's Appearance Rigidity and Cognitive Theories of Gender Development

• Published in: Developmental psychology Vol. 50; no. 4; pp. 1091 - 1101
• Main Authors: Halim, May Ling, Ruble, Diane N, Tamis-LeMonda, Catherine S, Zosuls, Kristina M, Lurye, Leah E, Greulich, Faith K
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Psychological Association 01.04.2014
• Subjects: African Americans; Attitude; Child; Child Development; Child, Preschool; Chinese Americans; Clothing - psychology; Cognition; Comprehension; Continental Population Groups - psychology; Cultural Background; Epistemology; Ethnic Groups - psychology; Ethnicity; Female; Gender Differences; Gender Identity; Humans; Identification (Psychology); Immigrants; Incidence; Interviews; Interviews as Topic; Latin Americans; Low Income; Male; Mexican Americans; Middle Class; New York; Parent Child Relationship; Parents - psychology; Physical Characteristics; Preferences; Psychological Theory; Schemata (Cognition); Self Concept; Sexual Identity; Socioeconomic Factors; United States; Whites; Young Children; New York; United States

Many young children pass through a stage of gender appearance rigidity; girls insist on wearing dresses, often pink and frilly, whereas boys refuse to wear anything with a hint of femininity. In 2 studies, we investigated the prevalence of this apparent hallmark of early gender development and its r...