INVESTIGATING KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN’S PERCEPTIONS OF GENDER REPRESENTATIONS AND GENDER STEREOTYPES VIA PLAY-BASED ACTIVITIES

Athina Tryfonopoulou, Eugenia Arvanitis, Vasiliki Fotopoulou

Abstract


Gender representations, as well as gender stereotypes which are often involved in them, can impact how children perceive gender [roles] in their social setting. The present paper proposes play-based activities tailored for kindergarten children seeking to investigate if and how gender representations and gender stereotypes can be identified, as well as to record how these perceptions are conveyed by children. An action research plan was designed and carried out during the school year 2025-2026 in a public kindergarten in Athens, Greece, involving a sample of 12 kindergarten children. The findings reveal how game activities provide the means through which children have an opportunity to express how they perceive gender representations and stereotypes. It was found that although children hold gender-related representations and stereotypes, they can easily change their convictions. There were cases, however, when children's views on gender stereotypes and representations were characterized by one-sidedness and refusal to change. This research seeks to underscore the importance of appropriate interventions relating to gender-related issues through the use of game activities aiming to promote gender equality from young age groups in the school context.

Keywords


gender-related representations; gender stereotypes; kindergarten; play-based activities

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejsss.v12i5.2323

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