Parents and educators have raised and echoed their concerns for the roles of toys and toy stores in determining and designing gender roles for kids. Most of these parents have shown support for toy stores in which toys are arranged based on themes and not gender. Although several toy traditional toy stores have failed and died out due to the introduction of traditional toys, large toy stores like Toys’ R US have adapted the new trends to survive the flexible demands of the market. A visit to the Toys’ R US stores revealed that, today, they sell a range of toys from toys like actions figures and dolls to toys that relate to the technological evolutions such as toys about video games like Grand Theft Toys.
However, while the toys have faced evolution, my visit to the toy store revealed that the buyer behaviors have remained the same, especially sex related buyer attitudes. Today, most of the arrangements in the aisles reveal that boys and girls have different gender specific toys, which affect their roles and career choices as they grow up. Nevertheless, I also observed that, several masculine toys have become gender neutral as girls are starting to buy toys that were traditionally bought and used by boys. This also conforms to the move by girls to pursue careers that were previously meant for boys. For instance, girls have started pursing engineering courses that were traditionally meant for the boys.
During my trip to the store, I realized that the store divided the aisles into several sections such as the girls, boys, gender neutral, and electronic games. The first thing that I noticed at the store was the arrangement of the toys. The boys’ toys were near the entrance while the girls’ toys were arranged at the back of the store. When I inquired from one of the store attendants, she told me that recent trends have proved that girls are attracted to boys’ toys while boys are not attracted to the girls’ toys. This is consistent with research findings that have revealed that the gender roles today are inclining to the traditional masculine gender roles (Freeman, 2007). Girls in their bid to fight for gender equality have inclined their interests in masculine gender roles, which have been translated in the toys that they purchase as well as the arrangements in the toy stores. The gender neutral section also shared the same location with the boy’s section.
However, I believe that these toy stores have taken the gender neutral issue too far and favored the girls in their coloring schemes. In the section for the unisex, I noticed that the colors were friendly to girls than they were to the boys. The kitchen toys are all in pink and ruffles. Hand held games and instruments screamed with cotton candy pink and rugged camouflage. The car toys are multicolored to favor the girls than they do to the boys. During my visit to the store, I was amazed to see young girl requesting her father to buy her a grand theft toy. She told her father that she would love to play with her little brother with the toy. He did not seem to object the idea. I stopped staring at them to avoid curiosity, but I believe he bought her the toy. The toy was colorful. Every other young girl would love to play with it as it was all smiles. Even without the idea of the grand theft video game, she would still love it.
The best part of this experience was the fact that I went to the toy store with my two little cousins, a boy and a girl (Jeff and Mercy). While at the store, Jeff teased Mercy for stopping by to look at a box labeled “Star Wars.” Mercy was almost in tears when Jeff told her that she is acting like a boy, and that “Star Wars” is meant for boys. This gave me the notion that, when stores separate the aisles based on the gender differences, it would be surprising to see a boy going into the girls’ aisle or vice versa. Any person who deviates from their designated shelves would definitely be ridiculed. Jeff even refused to go to the girls’ aisle and opted to remain in the boys’ aisle by himself admiring the Star Wars toy. Mercy, however, promised that if Jeff bought the Star Wars, then they will both play with the toy. However, Jeff was not much interested in Mercy’s choice of toys. Toys not only lead to differences in perceptions in children, but also bring about social stratifications based on gender. Boys and girls identify with different toys and consequently different gender roles. This brings the divisions in the society. Studies reveal that children who play mostly with gender specific toys are likely to join single gender schools as opposed to mixed gender schools attended by children who play with gender neutral toys (Giddings, & Halverson, 1981).
The visit at the store confirmed my hypothesis that, Girls’ toys should be pretty (and pink!) while boys’ should be rough, dark, and rugged. This helps in determining the gender roles such that girls are taught to be pretty, soft, tender, and attractive (as pink) while boys should be tough. This also affects the choice of careers. In most cases, girls are found in industries such as hospitality, fashion, and segments of business such as marketing, human resources management, and the media filming industries (Etaugh & Liss, 1992). On the other hand, boys mostly pursue engineering courses such as mechanical, electrical, and civil engineering among several others. Additionally, toys affect the social developments of children. Playing violent toys such as guns have resulted in violent behaviors such as violent crimes (Keaton, 2010). On the other hand, girls have always been the weaker sex that cannot not stand up for itself without the support of the men.
After my trip to the Toys’ R US store, and reading different literatures, I realized that the toys that our children love to play with them determine their choices for careers. Additionally, I found out that in the arrangements of the aisles, toy stores have given boys higher priorities. The boys’ toys have larger coverage of the aisles followed by the gender neutral toys. However, girls’ toys are given a relatively smaller section in the store. My research from the published literature and from the store attendant revealed that gender roles are changing and inclining to the male gender roles. Career choices have been influenced by the toys that children play with them. Socially, toys promote the weakness in girls and boldness in boys.
References:
Freeman, N. (2007). Preschoolers’ Perceptions of Gender Appropriate Toys and their Parents’ Beliefs About Genderized Behaviors: Miscommunication, Mixed Messages, or Hidden Truths?. Early Childhood Education Journal, 34(5), 357-366.
Keaton, A. F. (2010). Backyard Desperadoes: American Attitudes Concerning Toy Guns in the Early Cold War Era. Journal Of American Culture, 33(3), 183-196. doi:10.1111/j.1542-734X.2010.00750.x
Giddings, M., & Halverson, C. (1981). Young Children's Use of Toys in Home Environments. Family Relations, 30(1), 69.
Etaugh, C., & Liss, M. B. (1992). Home, school, and playroom: training grounds for adult gender roles. Sex Roles, 26129-147. doi:10.1007/BF00289754
