«I JUST READ EVERYTHING»

That's another perfect example of how it's both nature and nurture. In the first year of life, you don't really see a strong difference. Both boy and girl infants like dolls, but at the first birthday you start to see boys gravitate away from the dolls and toward the trucks and balls. Three-year-old girls show a strong preference for dolls over toy trucks. By 5, they have an equal interest in trucks and dolls. What you see is that, at least in our modern society where girls see a broader range of role models or behaviors that are considered feminine, they open up and allow themselves to play with the trains, trucks and Legos.

When it comes to toy preference, you see some of the biggest differences in the ways parents respond when their kid picks up the "wrong" toy -- especially when a boy picks up a girl toy. Children internalize that. They know darn well what mom and dad think about the toy they're playing with. There is an initial biological bias toward these different toys, but then it's very strongly reinforced socially. Studies show peers have a shaping influence. Certainly by age 3, children will pick the socially appropriate toy.

Salon
Sept 26 2009