Parenting in a Gendered Way: Main Idea of Gender and Parenting

Abstract

This paper explores the idea of gender-neutral parenting, exactly what it is, why it’s ineffective, and why it’s better to raise children in the traditional gendered way. Over the years, there has been an increasing amount of gender-neutral parenting and parents trying to bring up their children in an unbiased home. One perspective discussion about ungendered child rearing is that they can be brought up freely without misleadingly made inconveniences society puts around sex. Sexual orientation standards can make children feel they have to constrain themselves to be something they are not, which can very well likely deter their satisfaction and wellbeing. Another viewpoint is that it can negatively impact a child by causing them to constantly feel lost and never truly having clarity as to who they are as a person. This paper will argue that gendered parenting is advantageous for the child.

Introduction

For generations, many parents in plenty of different societies and cultures have parented their children in a very particular way. The “traditional” idea of parenting is pretty strict when it comes to gender stereotypes and roles, that is, how male children are raised differently from female children. Many accept that the gender identity a child is raised with isn't imperative to their childhood or to their development and improvement. Gender is described with a few interesting definitions, for example, the conduct, social or mental attributes commonly linked with the biological sex. And sex is basically described by the genitalia that they are born with. The question that is being raised in our modern-day society is whether or not parents should raise their children in a gender-neutral style.

Parenting Styles

What is gender-neutral parenting? First, one has to understand what exactly “gender-neutral” parenting is. Gender-neutral is exactly what the name implies: there isn’t any distinction in gender. It is the middle ground for gender in that it doesn’t concern any specific gender, such as male or female. It simply has to do with being anything but. Gender-neutral parenting is about letting their children be free in their gender identity. They can pick their own clothes, wear whatever color they like, play with any toys, be free to play or hang out with any gender they chose, etc. This allows the person not to be placed into the corner and mature according to the traditional sex rules. For instance, parents could call this child just “baby.” This could also mean boys wearing pink, or girls wearing blue; making room decor and the kind of toys their children go with neutral and at large prevent any form of gender stereotyping. Some parents may even go beyond the point by hiding the real sexuality of their child from other family members. The idea behind it is that it lets children grow up independently and choose what identity they like themselves. But is it actually beneficial or helpful to how the child grows up at all?

The concept of raising a child in a truly gender-neutral environment is actually almost impossible, especially if the child goes to playschool or childcare. On the off chance that they don’t get in social circumstances with other kids and they’re at home with the parent more often than not, would be when the idea could actually be possible. The explanation is that an unbiased kid's dress sense or playing style may gain unwanted attention from the other children and the parents of those children, which will likely cause problems for that child and the parent. It may even bring about harassing or prodding from different children. Giving kids an excess of opportunity to act and dress anyway they wish won't profit them in the long haul. In spite of the fact that these things might be acknowledged and commended when the kid is at home, when they grow up and go out into the present society, there will be individuals who are against them. Not every person will have the option to process this thought, so by bringing up a kid along these lines, they will encounter disdain, and this can influence their psychological wellness. Gender-neutral parenting isn’t very conventional and there aren’t even many benefits to it, either. In fact, raising a child neutrally may cause confusion about identity and where they fit in.

Gendered Parenting. In contrast, parenting in a gendered way allows children to learn early on how social roles work and how society is posed. A child can still have the freedom to choose who they are while being raised this way. It should be more important to raise a child in a way that makes them confident in all genders. For example, a little girl can be taught there is more to the idea of being a woman than just being interested in dolls and dress-up. According to Dasgupta and Asgari’s (2004) scientific research, they actually found that the more women were exposed to female leaders, the less gender bias they have. Good representation and good role models starting at a young age can go a long way in positively affect a child’s adolescence.

On the other hand, this kind of parenting can also go very negatively. For example, an abundant number of male children are raised on the idea that they shouldn’t show emotion or do anything that resembles remote femininity, and girls are raised to be a picture-perfect woman. According to the research of Frederickson (1998), young women are likely to feel the effects of self-objectification, body shame, and restrictive eating. These are the effects of society and forced stereotypes. This doesn’t exactly come from parenting, but as a consequence of living in a culture where these particular aspects are seen as important. But, as seen from Dasgupta and Asgari’s research, plain exposure can be very effective when used positively.

Conclusions

A simple solution can be posed when it comes to raising children, and that is simply just raising them normally comparative to the society they live in and teaching them how to be good people. Teaching traditionally doesn’t have to be a bad thing as long as the parent themselves are bringing them up correctly. In essence, gendered parenting allows young children to know who they are growing up and gives them a place in society. Why do they need such lost freedom when they don’t know anything just yet? A parent should just be mindful in how they raise their children and what values and morals to teach them. Children are creative all on their own and they will eventually decide who they want to be as a person.

References

1. Dasgupta, N., & Asgari, S. (2004). Seeing is believing: Exposure to counterstereotypic women leaders and its effect on the malleability of automatic gender stereotyping. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, (5), 642. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsbl&AN=RN153689324&site=eds-live&scope=site
2. Fredrickson, B. L., Roberts, T.-A., Noll, S. M., Quinn, D. M., & Twenge, J. M. (1998). That Swimsuit Becomes You: Sex Differences In Self-Objectification, Restrained Eating,and Math Performance. JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, (1), 269. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsbl&AN=RN047405968&site=eds-live&scope=site