ROLE PLAYING IN CHILDREN'S MUSEUMS AND OBJECT GENDER STEREOTYPING
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Authors
Schapiro, M. Taylor
Issue Date
1990
Type
Capstone
Language
en
Keywords
1. Theses (Museum Studies) 2. Children's museums. 3. Sex role in children. 4. Role playing in children
Alternative Title
Abstract
The purpose of this research was to determine whether children, ages 4-6, in a children's museum would role play more effectively in an exhibit with objects and environments that were identifiable with their own sex rather than with objects and environments identifiable with the opposite sex.
Three different research environments were installed during three separate weeks at the Bay Area Discovery Museum located h Corte Madera, California. The exhibits included a control environment of a supermarket designed to be of equal interest to both boys and girls, a female gender oriented house, and a male gender oriented garage. Children were observed as they role played in the three exhibits and were interviewed about their experiences in the exhibits to determine what factors influenced them to play (or not play) in the environments.
The results indicated that children did play more effectively in environments identifiable with their own sex. Throughout the study, girls generally role played more intensely and for longer periods of time than boys. Girls usually preferred to interact and play in the environments. Boys, on the other hand, were more interested in what they were supposed to do at the exhibit and how the objects worked. All the children role played more effectively when they had someone else to interact with and when they felt comfortable and familiar in the environment.