Preschoolers' Anatomical Knowledge of Salient and Non-Salient Sexual and Non-Sexual Body Parts

Abstract

Anatomical knowledge was examined in 99 selected 4-year-old children enrolled in licensed child care centers. Subjects included 50 females and 49 males. Sixty-two subjects were Caucasian, 33 African American, three Asian, and one Hispanic. Based upon parental socioeconomic status (SES), there were 41 low, 30 middle, and 28 high socioeconomic status children. Children were asked to name body parts on a same-sex, anatomically correct doll as an index of knowledge. Preschoolers demonstrated greater anatomical knowledge of salient than non-salient body parts, and girls had a higher level of knowledge than boys. Most boys and girls used slang terms to label sexual body parts or declared they did not know the names. No differences in anatomical knowledge were found for ethnicity or socioeconomic status. Implications for the educational, medical, and legal communities are drawn.