Human Development & Quantitative Methodology
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2248
The departments within the College of Education were reorganized and renamed as of July 1, 2011. This department incorporates the former departments of Measurement, Statistics & Evaluation; Human Development; and the Institute for Child Study.
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Item RESISTING STEREOTYPES: EVALUATIONS OF PEER GROUP EXCLUSION(2013) Mulvey, Kelly Lynn Sara; Killen, Melanie; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Gender stereotypes permeate peer groups, often functioning as the norms, or conventions, which contribute to group identity. Little is known about the conditions under which children will resist the norms of their peer groups, including norms that reflect stereotypic expectations. This study investigated this issue by measuring how children responded to members of their gender groups who disagreed with the group about gender stereotyped aggressive behaviors (female stereotype: relational aggression, male stereotype: physical aggression) as well as about social activities (football and ballet). Social domain theory as well as social identity theory provided the basis for formulating the design and the hypotheses. It was expected that children and adolescents would expect their peers to challenge the group, but that they would be concerned about the consequences of challenging the group in terms of social exclusion. Participants (N = 292, 9-10 and 13-14 years of age) assessed members of same-gender peer groups who disagreed with their group. The findings revealed that children and adolescents generally expected that their peers will resist the group's gender stereotypic norms surrounding aggression, but that this may be more difficult for boys when voicing their counter- stereotypic opinions. Further, participants themselves believed that they would be less influenced by gender stereotypes than would their peers. They asserted that they would, individually, be more likely to resist the group than they expect a peer would be. This research also revealed important barriers to resisting the group. Specifically, children and adolescents expected that group members who dissent from or resist the group are likely to be excluded from the group for voicing their dissent. This stands in sharp contrast to much research which indicates that children are not accepting of exclusion. Rejecting the behavior of one's peer group, especially when that behavior has negative intrinsic consequences for others, is a key step towards changing the culture of peer groups more broadly. However, the findings indicate that, while children and adolescents are optimistic about their peers challenging the peer group, they also see exclusion as a very real possibility and consequence for such resistance.Item Korean American Children's Evaluations of Parental Gender Expectations of Children's Gender-related Peer Activities(2004-11-22) Kim, Jennie; Killen, Melanie; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study was to examine the nature of children's social reasoning about parental authority and gender expectations of boys' and girls' participation in gender stereotypic peer activities. Participants were 102 third and sixth grade Korean American children who were interviewed about six stories in which a boy and a girl desire to engage in gender-congruent, gender-incongruent, and gender neutral peer activities. A series of assessments were administered for each story in which participants were asked to make several judgments and provide a reason for their judgments regarding gender expectations, parental jurisdiction, autonomy, the fairness of gender bias, and cultural expectations. In addition, participants' beliefs of parental gender-expectations were assessed using a stereotype knowledge measure. The findings in this study demonstrated that Korean American children's evaluations of parental expectations for children's participation in gender stereotypic peer activities were multifaceted. Participants' decisions involved different forms of reasoning that varied according to the features of the context such as fairness, gender stereotypes, authority, autonomy, and culture. Overall, Korean American children supported participation in gender related activities using personal choice reasons to support their decisions. However, when issues such as authority, autonomy, and exclusion were made salient, participants' evaluations differed, particularly between third and sixth grade children and in some cases, between boys and girls. Younger children often deferred to parental decisions and supported gender stereotypes more often than older children. Further, girls were more willing to reject stereotypic expectations than were boys appealing to gender equity. Thus, children use moral, social-conventional, and stereotypic reasons when evaluating parental expectations of children's engagement in peer-related activities. Examining Korean children's conceptions of gender-based expectations and exclusion in the family elucidates the complex nature of decisions individuals must make in these types of situations which reflect real life issues for many families from different cultures. The results of this study contribute to theories about culture, social reasoning, family relationships, and gender expectations.