Lotte D. van der Pol

Boys Don’t Play with Dolls: Mothers’ and Fathers’ Gender Talk during Picture Book Reading

SYNOPSIS Objective. This study examines mothers’ and fathers’ gender talk with their daughters and sons and investigates the association between parental gender talk and parental implicit gender stereotypes. Design. Mothers’ and fathers’ gender talk was examined in 304 families with two children aged 2 and 4 years old, using the newly developed Gender Stereotypes Picture Book. Parental implicit gender stereotypes were assessed with the action inference paradigm. Results. The picture book elicited different forms of gender talk, including use of gender labels, evaluative comments related to gender, and comments about gender stereotypes. Mothers used positive evaluative comments more than fathers to convey messages about gender, but fathers made more comments confirming gender stereotypes than mothers. Fathers with two boys were more inclined to emphasize appropriate male behavior in their gender talk than fathers in other family types. Implicit gender stereotypes were associated with gender talk to the children only for mothers. Conclusion. The assessment of gender talk with the Gender Stereotypes Picture Book can provide insights into the roles of mothers and fathers in child gender socialization.

Mothers' and Fathers' Sensitivity with Their Two Children: A Longitudinal Study from Infancy to Early Childhood.

To examine the effects of child age and birth order on sensitive parenting, 364 families with 2 children were visited when the second-born children were 12, 24, and 36 months old, and their older siblings were on average 2 years older. Mothers showed higher levels of sensitivity than fathers at all assessments. Parental sensitivity increased from infancy to toddlerhood, and then decreased into early childhood. The changes in parental sensitivity with child age were similar for mothers and fathers, and mothers’ and fathers’ sensitivity levels were related over time. However, the changes in parental sensitivity toward the firstborn and second-born child were not related to each other, suggesting that parents’ experiences with the firstborn child do not have implications for their sensitivity toward their second-born child. Instead, the child’s own unique characteristics and developmental stage seem to play a more important role. These findings highlight the importance of considering developmental child characteristics in the study of parenting, and suggest that individual differences in attaining developmental milestones may affect parental sensitivity.

Sibling Gender Configuration and Family Processes

The current study focuses on the effects of sibling gender configuration on family processes during early childhood. In a sample of 369 two-parent families with two children (youngest 12 months, oldest about 2 years older), both siblings’ noncompliant and oppositional behaviors and fathers’ and mothers’ sensitivity and discipline strategies were observed. Both siblings’ aggressive behaviors and empathy of the oldest sibling were assessed with parent-reports. Children in families with two sons showed more problematic interaction patterns compared with children in families with an oldest girl. In families with two boys, older siblings were more aggressive and fathers were less sensitive toward their youngest child in comparison with families with two girls. Furthermore, in boy–boy families older siblings showed more oppositional behavior and younger siblings more noncompliance compared with girl–boy families. These findings highlight the importance of sibling gender configuration in the development of child behavior and parent–child interactions.

To share or not to share : Parental, sibling, and situational influences on sharing with a younger sibling

Sharing is an important indicator of internalised prosocial values. We examined predictors of sharing of 302 preschoolers with their younger siblings in a one-year longitudinal study. Sharing was observed during different home visits, once with father and once with mother. We examined the following predictors: both children’s externalising behaviour, observed parental sensitivity, and situational factors. Preschoolers’ sharing was stable and increased with age. Preschoolers shared more when sharing was preceded by a structured interaction with a parent compared to free play with an unfamiliar adult. At age 4 they shared more in fathers’ presence than in mothers’ presence. Neither parental sensitivity nor child behaviour were related to sharing. These findings demonstrate stability and the importance of situational factors in the development of prosocial behaviour.