Kimball (1986): Social Cognitive Theory & Gender Roles

Memorization Deck

What theory does the study support?

Social Cognitive Theory

What does social cognitive theory argue about enculturation?

 It occurs through observing the behavior of others.

What are the two mechanisms of learning in social cognitive theory?

 Modeling and direct tuition.

What is modeling?

 Learning behavior by observing others.

What type of models do children learn best from?

Same-gender models

What is direct tuition?

Encouraging and rewarding gender-appropriate behaviours and discouraging inappropriate ones.

What type of study was Kimball’s research?

Natural Experiment.

What was the aim of Kimball’s study?

To investigate if television exposure increased gender stereotyping in children.

How many children participated in the study?

536 children.

What was the name of the community without television?

Notel

What measurement scale was used to asses gender stereotyping?

Sex Role Differentiation (SRD) Scale

At what grade levels were the children tested?

Grade 6 and 9

How long after the introduction of television were the children tested again?

Two years

What was the finding about Notel children before television was introduced?

They held more egalitarian (all humans should have equal rights) gender attitudes

What was the key change in Notel children after two years of television exposure?

Gender stereotyping significantly incr4eased

What subscale showed a significant increase in Notel boys?

Stereotypes regarding gender and jobs

What was the control group in the study?

Children from Vancouver

Why does the study have high ecological validity?

It was conducted in a natural setting

Why does the study have low internal validity?

The independant variable was not manipulated and there was no control for extraneous variables.

What type of study design was used (longitudinal or cross-sectional)?

Cross sectional.