Abstract
Children's propensity for interacting with peersof their own gender is a robust phenomenon, evidentacross many contexts. This study investigated howchildren's gender-based peer preferences varied as a function of a contextual variable —type of children's game. Using naturalisticobservations, 242 first- to third-graders (identicalnumbers of boys and girls, mostly White andmiddle-class) were observed playing two games that varied in theirphysicality and competitiveness; games were structuredto have equal numbers of boys and girls available asplaymates. As predicted, boys and girls interactedsignificantly more with same-sex than other-sex peers. Ourprediction of a game-type effect was partiallysupported: in the more competitive and physical game,boys chose same-sex playmates significantly more oftenthan in the less competitive/physical game, butgirls' same-sex peer preference did not vary across thegames. The findings provide further support for thenecessity of investigating social context as aninfluence on children's own-sex favoritism.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Buhrmester, D., & Furman, W. (1987). The development of companionship and intimacy. Child Development, 58, 1101-1113.
Charlesworth, W. R., & Dzur, C. (1987). Gender comparisons of preschoolers' behavior and resource utilization in group problem-solving. Child Development, 58, 191-200.
Colley, A., Griffiths, D., Hugh, M., Landers, K., & Lagli, N. (1996). Childhood play and adolescent leisure preferences: Associations with gender typing and the pre sence of siblings. Sex Roles, 35, 233-245.
DiPietro, J. A. (1981). Rough and tumble play: A function of gender. Developmental Psychology, 17, 50-58.
Etaugh, C., & Liss, M. B. (1992). Home, school, and playroom: Training grounds for adult gender roles. Sex Roles, 26, 129-147.
Fabes, R. A. (1994). Physiological, emotional, and behavioral correlates of gender segregation. In C. Leaper (Ed.), The development of gender and relationships. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Fabes, R. A., Shepard, S. A., Guthrie, I. K. & Martin, C. L. (1997). Roles of temperame ntal arousal and gender-se gregated play in young children's social adjustment. Developmental Psychology, 33, 693-702.
Feiring, C., & Lewis, M. (1991). The deve lopment of social networks from early to middle childhood: Gender differences and the relation to school competence. Sex Roles, 25, 237-253.
Fishbein, H. D., & Imai, S. (1993). Preschoolers sele ct playmates on the basis of gender and race. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 14, 303-316.
Funk, J. B., & Buchman, D. D. (1996). Children's perceptions of gender differences in social approval for playing electronic games. Sex Roles, 35, 219-231.
Hartup, W. W., French, D. C., Laursen, B., Johnston, M. K., & Ogawa, J. R. (1993). Conflict and friendship relations in middle childhood: Behavior in a close-field situation. Child Development, 64, 445-454.
Hayden-Thomson, L., Rubin, K. H., & Hymel, S. (1987). Sex preference s in sociometric choices. Developmental Psychology, 23, 558-562.
Hoffmann, M. L., & Powlishta, K. K. (1997, April). The social con text of gender segregation. Poster presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Washington, DC.
Howes, C. (1988). Same-and cross-sex friends: Implications for interaction and social skills. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 3, 21-37.
Jacklin, C. N., & Maccoby, E. E. (1978). Social behavior at 33 months in same-sex and mixedsex dyads. Child Development, 49, 557-569.
King, W. C., Jr., Miles, E. W., & Kniska, J. (1991). Boys will be boys (and girls will be girls): The attribution of gender role stereotypes in a gaming situation. Sex Roles, 25, 607-623.
LaFreniere, P., Strayer, F. F., & Gauthier, R. (1984). The emergence of same-sex preferences among preschool peers. Child Development, 55, 1958-1966.
Leaper C. (Ed.) (1994a). Childhood gender segregation: Causes and consequences. New directions for child development, no. 65. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Leaper, C. (1994b). Exploring the consequences of gender segregation on social relationships. In C. Leaper (Ed.), Childhood gender segregation: Causes and consequences. New directions for child development, no. 65. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Lever, J. (1976). Sex differences in the games children play. Social Problems, 23, 478-487.
Maccoby, E. E. (1988). Gender as a social category. Developmental Psychology, 24, 755-765.
Maccoby, E. E., & Jacklin, C. N. (1987). Gender segre gation in childhood. In E. H. Reese (Ed.), Advances in child development and behavior (Vol. 20). New York: Academic Press.
Maltz, D. N., & Borker, R. A. (1983). A cultural approach to male-female miscommunication. In J. A. Gumperz (Ed.), Language and social identity. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Miller, P. M., Danaher, D. L., & Forbes, D. (1986). Sex-related strategies for coping with interpersonal conflict in children aged five to seven. Developmental Psychology, 22, 543-548.
Neppl, T. K., & Murray, A. D. (1997). Social dominance and play patterns among preschoolers: Gender comparisons. Sex Roles, 36, 381-393.
Pellegrini, A. D. (1989). Elementary school children's rough-and-tumble play. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 4, 245-260.
Pellegrini, A. D., & Davis, P. D. (1993). Relations between children's playground and classroom behavior. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 63, 88-95.
Poest, C. A., Williams, J. R., Witt, D. D., & Atwood, M. E. (1989). Physical activity patterns of pre school children. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 4, 367-376.
Powlishta, K. K. (1995). Intergroup processes in childhood: Social categorization and sex role development. Developmental Psychology, 31, 781-788.
Powlishta, K. K., Serbin, L. A., & Moller, L. C. (1993). The stability of individual differences in gender-typing: Implications for understanding gender segregation. Sex Roles, 29, 723-737.
Rotenberg, K. J. (1984). Sex differences in children's trust in peers. Sex Roles, 11, 953-957.
Serbin, L. A., Powlishta, K. K., & Gulko, J. (1993). The development of sex typing in middle childhood. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 58(2, Serial 232). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Serbin, L. A., & Sprafkin, C. (1986). The salience of gender and the process of sex-typing in three-to seven-year-old children. Child Development, 57, 1188-1199.
Sheldon, A. (1990). Pickle fights: Gendered talk in preschool disputes. Discourse Processes, 13, 5-31.
Thorne, B. (1986). Girls and boys together, but mostly apart. In W. W. Hartup & Z. Rubin (Eds.), Relationships and development. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Thorne, B. (1993). Gender play: Girls and boys in school. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.
Tricerri, M. F., & Benenson, J. F. (1997, April). Group versus dyadic interaction in boys and girls. Poster presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Washington, DC.
Unger, R., & Crawford, M. (1992). Women an d gender: A feminist psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Waldrop, M. F., & Halverson, F., Jr. (1975). Intensive and extensive peer behavior: Longitudinal and cross-sectional analysis. Child Development, 46, 19-26.
Whiting, B. B., & Edwards, C. P. (1988). Children of different worlds. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Zarbatany, L., Hartmann, D. P., & Rankin, D. B. (1990). The psychological functions of preadolescent peer activities. Child Development, 61, 1067-1080.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Boyatzis, C.J., Mallis, M. & Leon, I. Effects of Game Type on Children's Gender-Based Peer Preferences: A Naturalistic Observational Study. Sex Roles 40, 93–105 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018882417926
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018882417926