Abstract
The present study is a replication of a study reported by Seavy, Katz, and Zalk (1975) in which subjects interacted with a 3-month-old female infant who was either introduced as a boy, a girl, or without any specific gender information. In the present study infants of both genders were used as stimuli, and 60 college undergraduates served as subjects. The results of the present study are similar to the findings of the original investigators. The gender labels provided to the subject resulted in highly sex-stereotyped behavior concerning toy choice.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bronson, W. Exploratory behavior of 15-month-old infants in a novel situation. Paper presented at the meeting for the Society for Research in Child Development, Minneapolis, 1971.
Fling, S., & Manosevitz, M. Sex typing in nursery school children's play interests. Developmental Psychology, 1972, 7, 146–152.
Gagnon, J., & Simon, W. Sexual conduct. Chicago: Aldine, 1973.
Gesell, A., & Ilg. L. Infant and child in the culture of today. New York: Harper & Row, 1942.
Goldberg, S. The inevitability of partriarchy. New York: William Morrow and Co., 1973.
Goldberg, S., & Lewis, R. Play behavior in the year-old infant: Early sex differences. Child Development, 1969, 40, 21–31.
Jacklin, C., Maccoby, E., & Dick, A. Barrier behavior and toy preference: Sex differences (and their absence) in the year-old child. Child Development, 1973, 44, 196–200.
Landy, D. Tropical childhood. New York: Harper & Row, 1965.
Lws, J., & Schwartz, P. Sexual scripts. Hinsdale, Ill.: Dryden Press, 1977.
Lewis, M. State as an infant-environmental interaction: An analysis of mother-infant behavior as a function of sex. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 1972, 18, 95–211.
Liebert, R., & Hanratty, M. Effects of sex-typed information on children's toy preference. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 1971, 119, 113–136.
Lunney, G. S., The social construction of sexual intercourse, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, City University of New York, 1978.
Maccoby, E. E., & Jacklin, C. N. The psychology of sex differences. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1974.
Margolin, G., & Patterson, G. Differential consequences provided by mothers and fathers for their sons and daughters. Developmental Psychology, 1975, 11, 537–538. 11, 537–538.
Minton, C., Kagan, J., & Levine, J. Maternal control and obedience in the two-year-old child. Child Development, 1971, 42, 1873–1894.
Montemayor, R. Children's performance in a game and their attraction to it as a function of sex-typed labels. Child Development, 1974, 45, 152–156.
Moss, H. Sex, age and state as determinants of mother-infant interaction. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 1967, 13, 19–36.
Nash, J. Developmental psychology: A psychological approach. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1970.
Nerlove, S., Munroe, R., & Munroe, R. Effect of environmental experience on spatial ability: A replication. Journal of Social Psychology, 1971, 84, 3–10.
Pederson, F., & Robson, K. Father participation in infancy. American Journal of Psychiatry, 1969, 39, 466–472.
Rheingold, H., & Cook, K. The contents of boys' and girls' rooms as an index of parent behavior. Child Development, 1975, 46, 459–463.
Rubin, T., Provenzano, F., & Luria, Z. The eye of the beholder: Parents' view on sex of newborns. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 1974, 44, 512–519.
Saegert, S., & Hart, R. The development of environmental competence in girls and boys. In P. Burnet (Ed.), Women in society. Chicago: Maaroufa Press, 1976.
Seavey, C., Katz, P., & Zalk, S. Baby X: The effect of gender labels on adult responses to infants. Sex Roles, 1975, 1, 103–109.
Serbin, L., O'Leary, K., Kent, R., & Tonick, I. A comparison of teacher response to the preacademic and problem behavior of boys and girls. Child Development, 1973, 44, 796–804.
Stein, A., Pohly, S., Pohly, R., & Mueller, E. The influence of masculine, feminine, and neutral tasks on children's achievement behavior: Expectancies of success and attainment value. Child Development, 1971, 42, 195–207.
Tasch, R. The role of the father in the family. Journal of Experimental Education, 1952, 20, 319–361.
Williams, J., Bennett, S., & Best, D. Awareness and expression of sex stereotypes in young children. Developmental Psychology, 1975, 11, 635–642.
Yarrow, L., Rubenstein, J., & Pederson, F. Dimensions of early stimulation: Differential effects on infant development. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, 1971.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sidorowicz, L.S., Lunney, G.S. Baby X revisited. Sex Roles 6, 67–73 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00288362
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00288362