Target Gender Socialization

Gender roles are categories that characterize what it means to be feminine and masculine in society, on how people think about gender as they relate to one another (Adams et al., 2013). For example, women are expected to be accommodating and emotional, while men are usually expected to be self-confident and aggressive, this shows how men and women are to behave in society. However, these sayings were taught to individuals based on norms, or standards created by a society which is called Gender Socialization (p. 318). Growing up as a child, we were taught as girls to play with dollhouses, pretend kitchen sets, cleaning supplies and play dress up. Whereas boys are taught to play with cars, sports equipment’s, action figures, and weapons. However, if a boy was playing with dollhouses, or playing dress up, he would be considered gay, or not masculine and looked down upon by society, and families. The same goes for girls who play with boy toys, or dresses as a tomboy, this is what we are taught to play with at a young age. Our families tell us how to behave, our schools tell us what

The first thing a person notices upon walking into a store is all the different categories separated by different aisles and giant signs hanging from the ceiling. The categories are then separated into smaller, more specific sections. Like in the bathroom accessory aisles, there are different sections in it that include the towels, curtains, and soap dispensers. Kid’s clothes and toys are no different, they are both separated into two different major categories which are boys and girls. This separation between boys and girls does carry on throughout a person’s life, and influences many gender roles and biases.

In the world of toy marketing, choices are made with direction put in place for both genders (girl and boy). For example, as I walked down each toy aisle, I felt the gender conformity among the parents as they were with their children. With multiple aisles and two dominant colors (pink and purple) designated for girls, the message (in my perspective) marketed on the toy package yelled: “Your ambition is to be stylish, while a nurturing mother who partakes in domestic works!” In addition to the toy packages being in pink, the words (on the toy) were predominately frivolous and amusing. On the contrary, the boys’ aisle contained wide varieties of colors, although the color blue caught my eye the most. The boys’ toys entailed sports, building sets, as well as action figures. Conversely, the message in my perspective, marketed on the toy package screamed: “You have the power to do whatever you want; however, it is imperative that you build yourself physically, as well as train yourself in order to properly excel.” This type of act, referred to as the social role theory—“a gender difference that mainly results from the contrasting roles of females and males” (p.165),—gives a great cause of difference in gender regarding power, nurture, and

According to cook and Cusack (2010), Gender stereotypes are concerned with social and cultural construction of man and women, due to their physical, biological, sexual and social functions, structured set of beliefs about the personal attributes of man and women. Childhood is a fundamental and significant period in forming an impression of an individual boy or girl, and man or women finally. Subsequent researchers Ania and Cameron(2011) hold an accordant opinion with Cook and Cusack(2010) that gender stereotyping is problematic only when it operates to ignore personal characteristics, abilities, needs, wishes, and circumstances (Cook & Cusack, 2010). In fact, during children’s learning process of gender stereotypes, most of them are under gigantic pressure of the society they belong to and formed a problematic view through normally ignored. One obvious phenomenon is about the toys. Toys are designed and retailed separately for boys and girls with different colours, styles and functions by toy manufacturers. When acquiring a toy, gender will normally be the first issue to consider instead of children’s inherent preferences. It will highly possible to limit children’s personal experiences and future development for both gender groups (Martin, Eisenbud & Rose, 1995). This article will analyse the role of toy manufacturers in gender development in order to decide whether they are responsible to

1. I did my research on toys at Target. What I discovered was that mostly all gender-neutral toys have to do with educational toys and toys for children whose mindset does not see that’s a girl or boy toy. All the gender-neutral toys were colorful, but mostly used green, blue, yellow, and red colors, thus making targeting boys and girls. What I found in the masculine toy section was that mostly all the toys were blue, black, or dark colors. Lots of toys promoted violence like the Nerf guns and Power Ranger toys with their swords and killing the bad guys. They also promoted sports balls and cars only in the boy section when girls can play with these as well. What I found interesting is that they had Jake and the Neverland Pirates toys and

When you enter any store that has a children’s toy aisle, you automatically figure out which side is for boys and which side is for girls. On the girls’ side, you generally see lots of pink and purple, and glitter too. Blues and greens, as well as many other dark colors, fill the boy’s side of the aisle. The division of this aisle and the colors associated with male or female toys is known as the idea of gender-stereotyped toys.

In our society, there are norms of what is considered to be feminine and what is to be considered masculine, but how are these norms constructed? Through the use of toys, books, and clothing, children are socialized into their “appropriate” gender. These objects provide influence over behavior and appearance, showing boys and girls what is appropriate for each gender. After some investigation it was found that the toys, books, and clothing that children use not only foster the norms of gender behavior and appearance, but also construct gender roles in their young minds.

Target announced that they will be removing some of the gender specific categories and replacing them with displays and signs that are gender neutral. Along with signs and displays, they will be also be removing specific colors such as pink, blue, yellow and green that suggest a specific gender. The reason for this change is due to the various complaints of shoppers that “raised important questions” (Derespina, 2015). Target is working to find out which parts of the store can undergo a change that will lead to an improved balance. So far, Target has decided to make the bedding and toys sections for kids, rather than for boys or girls. The way that they are shelved will now make no references to gender. Target has formerly had sections titled “building sets” and

The toy manufactory industry has implanted the idea that toys that children play with should correspond with their gender. Manufacturers differentiate whom the toy is for by the color of the toy and type of toy. The toys that I observed at Target, were categorized based on the stereotypes of gender roles, and age groups. For children ages two and under, the types of toys included in their aisles were musical “instruments” that are geared to help them learn.

The way society looks upon children’s toys is changing. In 2015 Target announced they were going to stop gendering their toy aisles (Hanes, 2015); this decision was met with a great deal of trepidation from thousands of people both in the United States and internationally. However, while some major corporations such as Target have chosen not to gender their toy sections several companies still categorize toys by either “boys only” or “girls only”, such as Amazon. In their 2012 study Auster and Mansbach analyzed how Disney gendered their toys though color palette and if the toy fit into gender stereotypes. As a part of their study they hypothesized that “the color palette of toys will reflect gender stereotypes” (Auster & Mansbach, 2012, p.

Gender socialization often begins early once parents are shown the sex of their child; from then on, baby showers are planned according to gender “appropriate” colors, which are often pink for girls and blue for boys. Even differences in how children are spoke to can be picked up easily in Western cultures. Girls are called pretty and sweet, whereas boys are handsome and strong. Ultimately, the way children learn to identify with their gender culture is in part due to not only family and friends, media, schools, and religion, but also from the toys that may inexplicitly advertise gender expectations. Gender-typed toys may be bought for children as a way for parents to encourage and reinforce gender-appropriate behaviors. However, recent debates have engulfed toy manufacturers and major retailers, which has brought about changes in toy design and marketing in an effort to make reflect more realistic and gender neutral options.

I found the findings presented by Carol J. Auster and Claire S. Mansbach in their article titled The Gender Marketing of Toys: An Analysis of Color and Type of Toy on the Disney Store Website, interested, but not surprising. There is an apparent difference in available toys between boy and girls. What is interesting about their finding is how color of the toy is associated with gendered behaviors. Boys only toy typically are bold in color which relates to extraversion, loudness, and visibility among others. On the other hand, the girls only toys are mainly pastel in color which represent introversion, quietness, and delicate. The color of the toy does not just place girls and boys in a different category, it also encourages a type of behavior

There are a multitude of toys that kids can choose to play with, but how much do we really know about them? There are various messages that are being expressed by toys, shows, and various other activities that are being internalized by children. Many kids have access to and wide variety of shows, toys, and books, and many parents naively let their kids watch or play with them without really knowing what messages and values come along with them. Also, there are certain children’s activities that have an intended audience, so some activities or toys may not necessarily be age appropriate for all kids. Shopkins are one of the most popular girl toys on the market right now. Shopkins are small plastic figures that may look harmless, but there could

As we can see in the first set of advertisements above, there are toys that are specifically intended to capture the interest in boys and girls separately. Here we can see how certain features in the advertisements help aid in the socialization of children in regards to gender. Over the last couple decades, it’s been custom to shower little girls with pink and little boys with blue while they are young, before they learn to choose their own favorite colors. These colors of pink and blue then become a part of gender identification for the child and this is the reason why, in the top article, that the left article is mostly pink to capture the attention of girls and blue on the right to peek the interest of little boys. There also is a big difference in the toys when it comes to nurturing. On the left advertisement at the top the girls have toys that require more nurturing and gentle treatment. For example the baby dolls need to be nurtured and gently played with as well as the Barbie dolls needs are made for their hair to be brushed and different outfits to be changed. Also one will notice that the toys for the girls are toys which are more acceptable for playing indoors. On the other hand, the boys have toys that are not expected to be gently handled, for instance, the Star wars sword and helicopter are meant to be bashed and banged around. These toys for little boys are also made to be played with more outside because toys like this can break things in a household. This

In the news this August a Fox News reporter, Cody Derespina, described the causation and consumer reaction to “Target Going Gender Neutral in Some Sections”. After receiving some complaints from customers the retailer felt the need to address the amount of gendered language in the children sections and the colors being used to categorize certain toys. For example, one mother sent a tweet to Target with a picture of a sign saying “Building Sets” and below it reading “Girls’ Building Sets”. She stated that Target should not be being doing this and her tweet went viral with around 3,000 retweets. Target responded saying that “We’ve made sure to share this with the right teams for further review”. The article stressed there is another side to this argument where some consumers believed that Target should not being changing these gendered practices because this is how consumers have always been accustomed to shopping. “Leading up to that moment there’s been a broader conversation about gender and signs and using gender indicators, especially as it relates to kids,” Target spokesperson Molly Snyder told Fox News (Derespina 2015). This debate over gendering toys and other objects at Target brings attention to the cultural scripts used in American culture that aid in the creation of gender segregation and discrimination, and shed light on what many feminists are striving for in new identity politics.