Social Role Theory and Gender Identity Development

A collection of flashcards covering key concepts related to Social Role Theory and gender development.

Social Role Theory

A framework for understanding how social identity develops and how behaviors, feelings, and expectations associated with different social roles are learned.

Role-taking

The process through which individuals understand themselves by identifying with, and internalizing, the goals and values of society.

Role involvement scale

An 8-point scale ranging from zero (noninvolvement) to 7 (indistinguishable from the role) that reflects the intensity of a person's engagement with a social role.

Role overload

A situation where an individual has too many role-related demands and expectations to manage effectively.

Role conflict

A situation where the demands of different social roles interfere with each other.

Gender identity

A person's psychological sense of being male, female, both, neither, or somewhere in between.

Gender socialization

The process of learning the widely shared social expectations and attitudes associated with one's sex assigned at birth.

Gender norms

Shared social expectations about appropriate behaviors and roles for males, females, and intersex individuals within a culture.

Cognitive developmental theories

Theories that focus on how children actively develop mental schemes about gender through their interactions with the world.

Assimilation

The process of fitting new information into existing cognitive schemes.

Accommodation

The modification of existing schemes or the creation of new ones to incorporate new information.

Gender-typed toys

Toys that are associated with a particular gender, which children often prefer in their play.

Gender diversity

The recognition and acceptance of a range of gender identities beyond the binary of male and female.

Social norms

Widely shared conventions regarding the appropriate timings for life events, which vary across cultures and historical periods.

Historical Context of

Life Course Theory

To examine development over time, we

need to collect longitudinal data.

• Longitudinal data allows us to see the

multiple life pathways of individuals

and their developmental implications

interdependency

a state of mutual reliance between individuals, groups, or systems, where entities rely on each other for resources or support while maintaining individual autonomy

ex : therapy

Birth Cohort

Individuals who were born at the same historical

time and experienced particular social changes

within a given culture in the same sequence and at

the same age

trajectory

the long-term path of one’s

life experiences within a specific domain

(e.g., family, education, work, health, etc.)

transition

occurs within a trajectory and is

marked by the beginning or close of an

event, social role, relationship, or

developmental stage

Detours

Events that redirect trajectories

Roadblocks

Events that shut down or delay

trajectories

Off- ramps

Ways that individuals exit

trajectories

Parent/Caregiver Tasks in tradectories

• Initiating trajectories

• Supporting development along different

trajectories

• Mediating children’s understanding of their

experiences

• Reacting to child-initiated trajectories

Turning Point

A life event that produces a lasting

shift in a life course trajectory

The life stage principle

the influence of an event depends on the stage of life at which a perosn experiences the event

the princi[;e of interdependent lives

the influences from embedded nature of social networks

the principle of the control cycle

when a person loses control there is usually an attempt to regain control

the principle of the situational imperative

every situation had certain requirements or demand properties : when a situation changes new behaviors are required

the accentuation principle

when under stress or crisis our most prominet personality characteristics and coping strategies will be utilized

Epigenetic Principle

development occurs in a predetermined, sequential, and cumulative manner where each stage emerges from and builds upon the previous on

Psychosoical Stage Theory

reflect orderly sequence of ego development and social relationships from infancy through late adulthood

Core Pathologoies

when chellenges are not met maladaptive coping strategies may devlop

adaptive ego strengths

accomplishments from previous stages provide resources for mastering the new challenges of the next stage of life.

Crises

normal set of stressors rather than an

extraordinary stressor

Radius of Significant Relationships

During infancy, our social network is typically made

up of a small number of significant relationships

(e.g., primary caregivers, close family members).

§ With each developmental period, our radius of

significant relationships expands and becomes more

complex (until late, late adulthood)

§ Significant relationships are the vehicle through

which cultural and community expectations are

communicated (making us sensitive to social

expectations)

Infancy: Trust vs. Mistrust

Central process

• Mutuality with a caregiver

Toddlerhood: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

Central process

• Imitation

• Major developmental crisis (or opportunity)

• Becoming an autonomous, creative person or a

dependent, inhibited and shameful person

filled with self-doubt

Early Childhood: Initiative vs. Guilt

entral process

§ Identification

§ Developmental crisis (or opportunity)

§ Become an active, curious child who has a sense of

initiative and purpose or a child who is paralyzed

with fear or guilt and becomes over-dependent on

adults

Middle Childhood: Industry vs. Inferiority

Central process

• Education

• Major developmental crisis (or opportunity)

• Becoming an industrious child who is learning and

mastering the basic skills needed in society and takes

pride in their work or one who feels inferior or

inadequate

• Prime adaptive ego quality

• Competence – the free exercise of skill and

intelligence in the completion of tasks

Erikson’s Stage of Adolescence: Identity versus Role Confusion

Major developmental crisis (or opportunity)

• Establishing a sense of personal identity and avoiding the

dangers of role diffusion and identity confusion

• For adolescents developing in a rapidly changing culture,

questions of identity can result in a personal crisis in

knowing who one is and what is worthy of one's

commitments

Early Adulthood: Intimacy vs. Isolation

Major developmental crisis (or opportunity)

• Finding intimacy and establishing emotional closeness to other

people as a basis for enduring personal relationships or

becoming isolated and detached from interpersonal

relationships

• The capacity to commit to a partner without fear of “ego-loss”

• Central process: Mutuality among peers

• Prime adaptive ego quality

• Love - the capacity for mutuality that transcends childhood

dependency

Middle Adulthood: Generativity vs. Stagnation

Major developmental crisis (or opportunity

• Developing a sense of generativity through vocational and

professional contributions to society (giving back to the

next generation) or becoming stagnant, egotistical, self-

absorbed and self-indulgent

• Central Process: Person/environment fit and creativity

• The prime adaptive ego quality

• Care - the commitment to be concerned about what has

been generated

Late Adulthood: Ego Integrity vs. Despair

Central Process: Introspection and social support

Major developmental crisis (or opportunity)

• Developing a sense of ego integrity - appreciating

all previous life experiences – or developing a

sense of disgust or despair – becoming bitter and

resentful; feeling that your life was wasted

• The prime adaptive ego quality

• Wisdom - a detached yet active concern with life

itself in the face of death

Elderhood – Late 80s early 90s

A time when old people confront all previous eight

stages again, but this time all stages converge at

the same time.

• Additionally, the negative pole now takes the

dominant role over the positive.

• Despair becomes even more of a possibility this

stage than it was in the eighth.

Cognitive

Social-Historical Theory

studying

the potential of individuals

Cognitive Social Historical Theory

Development is an active, dynamic

process

• Development takes place within an

interpersonal context

• Development is influenced by the

historical zeitgeist of the times

• Development can only be

understood within a social-historical

framework

Psychological Tools

They help children,

• Move from simple to complex thinking

• Self-regulate (control their attention, behavior, and emotions)

• Transform basic mental functions (like memory) into higher mental

functions.

• Examples of psychological tools

• Language (the most important one)

• Numbers and counting systems

• Writing and symbols

• Maps and diagrams

• Memory strategies (like mnemonics)

• Cultural norms and rules

From intermental to intramental

external to internal

Every function in development appears

twice: first, on the social level, and later

on the individual level; first, between

people and then inside the person

Guided participation (guided discovery)

You try some of it by yourself and other people help

by giving occasional advice and instruction when you

get stuck”

microsystem

the most immediate environment in which an individual lives, characterized by direct, face-to-face interactions with people and surroundings

mesosystem

consists of the connections and interrelations between an individual's immediate environments or microsystems

exosystem

environments where an individual is not an active participant but which indirectly affect their development. It includes external settings like a parent’s workplace, community services, or local government policies that impact the individual's immediate microsystem, such as family or school.

macrosystem

represents the overarching cultural context, societal values, laws, and ideologies that shape an individual's development

time

cuts across all systems ineraction

people and system change over time

normative age graded influences

• puberty

• age for maariage

• menapsue

normative hostical influences

war

global warming

pandemic

non-normative individual influences

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