In recent years, there has been a growing interest in understanding how gender influences children’s play. Some studies have suggested that girls engage in more pretend play and play cooperatively more than boys. However, the research on gender differences in play has been mixed. In this article, we will examine the evidence on whether girls really do play more than boys.
What are the different types of play?
Before looking at gender differences, it is important to understand the different types of play that children engage in:
- Physical play – This involves physical activities like running, climbing, and rough-and-tumble play.
- Object play – This involves manipulating or pretending with toys and objects.
- Pretend play – This involves pretend roles, imaginary situations, and fantasy characters.
- Social play – This involves playing cooperatively with other children through games with rules, turn-taking, and role assignment.
Research suggests that the amount of time spent in different types of play changes with age. Younger children tend to engage in more physical, object, and pretend play. Older children spend more time in games with rules and social play.
Do observational studies show girls playing more?
A number of observational studies have compared the play behaviors of boys and girls in preschool or childcare settings. Some of these studies have found differences favoring girls:
- In one study, preschool girls spent more time in pretend play during free play sessions than boys.
- Another study found that girls showed more cooperative play and turn-taking than boys in a preschool classroom.
- Researchers also observed that girls engaged in more role-playing and role assignment during pretend play situations.
However, other observational studies have found fewer differences or have failed to find any gender differences:
- One study found no differences in the time boys and girls spent in social pretend play in preschool.
- Another study did not find gender differences in the frequency of pretend play episodes in a preschool classroom.
- Some studies have found no differences in time spent in physical play or play disruption.
On the whole, observational studies present an unclear picture regarding gender differences in overall playtime.
What do surveys and interviews reveal about play?
In addition to observations, some studies have used surveys, interviews, and diaries to examine parents’ perceptions of their children’s play:
- Interviews with mothers indicated that they viewed their daughters as engaging in more pretend play than sons.
- Surveys of parents of preschoolers found that parents perceived their daughters as spending more time playing house, dolls, and make-believe.
- Parent diaries showed girls playing more with dolls and stuffed animals than boys at home.
Based on these self-reports, girls appear to engage in more pretend play and play with toys like dolls and stuffed animals than boys. However, these studies rely on parents’ memories and perceptions rather than objective observations.
How do parents influence play?
Parents play an important role in the type of play children engage in at home. Research suggests parents often provide different toys and give different encouragement for play based on gender stereotypes and expectations:
- Parents are more likely to provide boys with toys like cars, trucks, and action figures that promote physical and object play.
- Girls are more often given toys like dolls and kitchen sets by parents which promote pretend play.
- Fathers are more likely to engage in rough-and-tumble play with sons than daughters.
- Mothers encourage daughters to engage in pretend play like playing house more than sons.
These findings indicate that parents likely influence the amount of pretend and physical play their daughters and sons engage in from a young age. This may contribute to apparent gender differences in play.
Do boys and girls prefer different toys?
Research on children’s own toy preferences suggests that girls are more drawn to toys that allow for pretend play like dolls and stuffed animals, while boys prefer cars, trucks, and toys that can be manipulated and combined like blocks and Legos:
- In one study, girls expressed stronger preferences for dolls over cars, while boys preferred cars.
- Another experiment found that when given a choice, more girls chose dolls and more boys chose trucks.
- When asked about toy preferences, boys mentioned liking vehicles, building toys, and toys for physical play more than girls.
These toy preferences influence the types of play boys and girls engage in from a young age. Girls spend more time playing with dolls which facilitates pretend play, while boys play more with vehicles and building blocks which allow physical and construction play.
How do social expectations influence play?
Children also pick up on social expectations and norms surrounding gender appropriate play and toys:
- Research shows children are aware of gender stereotypes about toys even as young as age 2.
- Studies find that many young girls feel social pressure to play with dolls and boys feel pressure to avoid dolls in order to conform to gender expectations.
- Young children also limit their own toy choices in order to remain consistent with gender norms, such as girls avoiding toys labeled for boys.
This indicates that socially programmed gender norms likely reinforce differences in play by discouraging girls from engaging in more physical and object play and boys from engaging in pretend play.
How do playmates influence play style?
The playmates and peers children play with influence how they play. Studies suggest that:
- Boys engage in more rough physical play in all boy groups than in mixed gender play.
- Girls are more likely to engage in pretend play when playing with female playmates than male playmates.
- Having opposite gender friends predicts more gender-stereotyped play behavior.
- Same-gender friends strengthen preferences for gender-typical toys and play styles in children.
So the gender of children’s playmates impacts the type of play they engage in. More pretend play in girls and more physical play in boys occur in same-gender groups.
How does play change with age?
The type of play children engage in changes dramatically across childhood. Some key age trends are:
- Younger preschool children engage in more pretend and object play, with boys showing more object play.
- Gender differences in play increase around ages 4-5 as children segregate more into same-gender play.
- From ages 6-12, children spend more time in games with rules and physical play, which boys prefer.
- Pretend play peaks around age 5 and declines through childhood, but girls engage in it more frequently at all ages.
So while girls seem to participate in more pretend play at all ages, gender differences are amplified in the preschool years and again when more formal games emerge in later childhood.
Conclusion
In conclusion, research on gender differences in children’s play has been mixed.
Observational studies of preschool classrooms have found inconsistent differences in play between boys and girls. However, surveys, interviews, and diaries consistently suggest that girls spend more time in pretend play and play cooperatively than boys.
Parental influence, toy preferences, social expectations, and same-gender playmates seem to promote differences in play along traditional gender lines from a very young age. Girls spend more time playing house and dolls which facilitates pretend play, while boys engage more in active physical play and play with vehicles and blocks.
As children grow up, the amount of pretend play declines and differences in physical play increase, particularly when children play in same-gender peer groups. Though girls appear to engage in pretend play more frequently than boys at all ages.
While gender differences in play certainly exist, individual differences between children are enormous. Not all girls play one way and boys another. Providing children with a variety of toys and play opportunities allows them to develop a range of skills and interests needed for the future.