AsianScientist (Dec. 19, 2013) – If you are playing Santa for a baby boy this Christmas, move away from the car section of the toyshop and head towards the dolls.
Researchers have found that infants of both sexes are most interested in objects with faces, contrary to common belief that boys prefer more “macho” vehicle and construction toys.
In the study, published in the Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, researchers tested multiple pictures of humans (men and women), dolls, stoves and cars on 48 four and five-month-old infants (24 girls and 24 boys) and 48 young adults (24 women and 24 men). Each trial contained a relevant pair of faces and objects.
The infant results showed no sex-related preferences, but they preferred faces of men and women regardless of whether they were real or doll faces over objects. Similarly, adults preferred faces to objects, but unlike infants they preferred faces of the opposite sex.
The finding adds an interesting dimension to the nature versus nurture debate around gender construction, dispelling the theory that boys prefer male-associated toys from birth.
The article can be found at: Escudero P et al. (2013) Sex-related preferences for real and doll faces versus real and toy objects in young infants and adults.
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Copyright: Asian Scientist Magazine; Photo: normanack/Flickr/CC.
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