Active Roles Assigned to Male and Female Characters in Children's Writing

Abstract

Abstract This research examined the creative writing of 180 elementary school children for gender and age differences. Stories were analyzed for the assignment of physical actions and the problem solver roles to characters as well as for story theme. Writers were equally divided by gender and into three age groups—grades 1–2, 3–4 and 5–6. Results suggested that for male authors at all grade levels and for female authors at early grade levels, story plots were dominated by male characters who were assigned significantly more physical actions, high-intensity actions, problem solving roles and stereotypic activities. By grade 5–6, female authors made these assignments more frequently to their female characters. Overall, the male authors included in their stories the themes of danger, exploration, and high-risk more often than did female authors. The findings support the conclusion that stereotypic attitudes persist and are evident in the stories of young children. These findings may be attributed to the sex-...