Family and Consumer Science
Introduction
Gender labelling of toys means identifying particular types of toys as suitable for a sex of children. Gender labelling thus ensures that children are basically being taught to purchase gender and colour specific toys. Society type casts boys and girls from the point they are born into gender roles and toys have a major role to play in the development of gender roles early among children. Boys are taught that they need to be superheroes and girls are taught that have to become beautiful dolls. Toy stores are divided into sections for boys and girls with different colours and type of toys. This form of gender labelling ensures that children are taught to like a particular toy, only when the toys are labelled for them.
Effect of Gender Labelling Toys
Stereotypical Toy Stores
Most toy stores are divided into two sections, one for boys and the other one for girls. This is the direct impact of gender labelling of toys and division of store space helps children to identify the type of toy made for them. Stereotyping toy stores ensure that children are automatically seeking the approval for their choice as they only look for gender specific toys available in toy section made for their sex. Children are typecasted to only look for toys where they are expected to by the store and parents only take their children to toy sections made for their child’s sex.
Restricts Choice
Gender labelling not only tells children, which toys to choose, but they are also taught how to play with those toys. A toy can be sold to both boys and girls, with the only change that toy companies need to do is make sure they label it likewise. A study has been conducted on toy labelling that revealed that boys and girls can be made to play with the same toy by informing them that the toy is for them. Once they are informed, children have limited trouble in convincing themselves that the toy is made for them.
Enforces Choice
Just like children are taught the way to play with specific toys, they are also taught to select specific toys from the toy stores. A study has been conducted that proves that children can be convinced that a product that is generally their section of the toy store is made for the opposite sex. The phenomenon of children getting convinced and leaving the toy after knowing it was meant for opposite sex has been termed as the hot potato effect. This phenomenon has helped many parents to convince their children that a certain toy is not made for them.
Limits Growth
Several studies have proven that children are being forced and typecast to choose from the other side of the toy aisle. This action has been called gendering and force feeding children from an early age to become what the society expects them to become. This action in unethical on the part of toy store as it limits child’s growth and ensures they are never able to develop important skills that they could have gained by playing by gender neutral toys.
Conclusion
Gender labelling toys is a common phenomenon seen in several toy stores to type caste children and parents into buying toys labelled for a specific gender. This practice starts from an early age as children are taught to like specific toys that are labelled for their gender.
The effect can be seen in children and parents as it restricts and enforces society driven choices on people, stereotypes the way toy stores and the shelves are organized and limits growth of children as they fail to develop skills that are related to the use of gender neutral toys.
Bibliography
Dahl, M. "What the Science Says About Kids and Gender-Labeled Toys." Science of Us. Last modified August 20, 2015. http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2015/08/science-of-kids-and-gender-labeled-toys.html.
Grinberg, E. "The Science Supporting Gender-neutral Marketing .com." CNN. Last modified September 24, 2015. http://edition.cnn.com/2015/09/24/living/gender-neutral-toys-marketing-feat/.
