Gender attitudes and gender discrimination among ethnically and geographically diverse young children

Abstract

Despite increasing advocacy for gender equality, gender prejudice and discrimination persist. The origins of these biases develop in early childhood, but it is less clear whether (1) children's gender attitudes predict discrimination and (2) gender attitudes and discrimination vary by ethnicity and US region. We examine these questions with an ethnically (Asian, Black, Latinx and White) and geographically (Northeast, Pacific Northwest, West, Southeast and Hawaii) diverse sample of 4- to 6-year-old children (N = 605) who completed measures of gender attitudes and discrimination in a preregistered study. Children, across groups, demonstrated more positive attitudes towards their gender ingroup. Children who showed more pro-ingroup attitudes also showed more pro-ingroup behavioural discrimination. Girls showed stronger ingroup favouritism than boys, but ethnic and regional groups generally did not vary in levels of bias. These findings contribute to our understanding of how gender intergroup biases develop and highlight the generalizability of these processes.