Relationships January 19, 2017
Children have more room for growth and freedom of expression when they get to choose toys without biases relating to gender, according to experts.
“They learn about themselves and the world around them through exploration and play,” counsellor Joanne Bagshaw, PhD, tells ENTITY.
“When children are only exposed to gender stereotyped toys ( like trucks for boys, dolls for girls) stereotypes are reinforced which limits their self-exploration and their understanding of who they are and their role in society,” she explains.
Many major stores, such as Target, have caught on to this and have been rebranding toy sections so as not to include gender-specific labels or coloring.
Target’s pivot came after a tweet from mother-of-three and blogger Abi Bechtel complaining about the unnecessary signage gained traction. She shared a shot of a toy section labeled “Building Sets” and “Girls’ Building Sets” and commented, “Don’t do this, @Target.”
The retail giant responded by issuing a press release back in August 2015 announcing plans to reorganize and get rid of gender-based signage.
Don’t do this, @Target pic.twitter.com/cfh3cp5Nqa
— Abi Bechtel (@abianne) June 1, 2015
“But we know that shopping preferences and needs change and, as guests have pointed out, in some departments like Toys, Home or Entertainment, suggesting products by gender is unnecessary,” Target’s press release read.
Amazon has also followed suit, removing the gender search option from its website.
One of the leaders in such changes has been British organization “Toys Will Be Toys” which reaches out to UK and Ireland toy retailers, asking them to market toys in an inclusive way.
They have a list on their website of the stores who have and have not made progress, as well as “tips for complaining.”
Bagshaw, whose Maryland therapy practice focuses on personal development, cites a study from The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), which found that toys that are created and marketed by gender stereotypes may steer children to develop skills and beliefs that don’t serve them.
“For instance it’s not necessarily in the best interest of boys to only highlight aggression, and for girls to focus only on beauty,” she explains.
It can be hard un-learning such deeply ingrained gender constructs and stereotypes. For evidence of that, go back and watch a memorable season three episode of beloved TV sitcom, “Friends.” In “The One with the Metaphorical Tunnel,” Ross (David Schwimmer) freaks out after spotting his son with a Barbie doll. He spends the rest of the episode trying to entice him to swap it out for a G.I. Joe, as his sister, ex-wife, and her partner all crack jokes at his expense.
Luckily, people have begun to catch on a bit more since then, moving toward a more inclusive way of thinking. One example is with one of Campbell’s latest soup commercial, which features a little girl playing in a Spider-Man costume.
She can be seen jumping around the house pretending to be the superhero, before finally pulling off the mask to eat her soup, revealing it had been a girl in the suit all along.
And a father gained praise on Facebook after sharing a comical photo of his young son dressed as Elsa from “Frozen” for Halloween. “Keep your masculine bulls—t and slutty kids costumes, Halloween is about children pretending to be their favorite characters. Just so happens, this week his is a princess,” wrote Paul Henson.
This father’s method of parenting goes right along with Bagshaw’s advice, which is to “encourage children to choose by category rather than by limiting gender biases.” She says, “This way children can play with toys based on their interests and self-expression.”
And Maureen Healy, author of “Growing Happy Kids,” agrees, noting that “in truth, we’re both made of masculine and feminine qualities – and some boys are very ‘girl-like’ while we have a word for some girls being ‘tomboys.’”
READ MORE: Carrie Fisher Raised Her Daughter Gender-Neutral; Why You Should, Too
“Allowing children to grow up playing with whatever appeals to them is a healthy form of child development,” advises California-based Healy, who gives speeches on such topics.
So it’s time to forget buying those gendered, pink play sets for your daughters and Tonka Trucks for your sons. Give them a chance to develop and grow, and let them choose their own toys.
