Gender Differences in Children’s Hero Attributions: Personal Hero Choices and Evaluations of Typical Male and Female Heroes

Abstract

The current study investigated gender differences in the personal hero choices, hero attributions, and characteristics attributed to "typical" male and female heroes of children living in the Midwestern United States (N=103; mean age=10 years). Questionnaires were completed in a school setting. The majority of girls chose heroes personally known to them; boys chose personal and public figures equally often. Most boys chose same gender heroes; girls' nominations were mixed. Gender differences were also seen in the characteristics children attributed to their own heroes and in their conceptions of "typical" male and female heroes. Children rated same-gender "typical" heroes more positively on many attributes, except for stereotypically masculine characteristics. Gender socialization, stereotypes, and in-group favoritism were used to explain these findings.

Gender differences in adolescents’ choice of heroes and admired adults in five countries

“…Galbo (1984) carried out a review of the literature and found that the data indicated a pattern of same-sex preferences, with parents being the adults selected more often. Similarly, Freedman-Doan and Eccles (1996) and Holub, Tisak, and Mullins (2008) also found that girls tended to choose females as known heroes, and boys tended to choose males when choosing within the personal domain.…”

“…According to this, heroes would not only be role models for adolescents (Martorell 2000) but also a reflection of their gender-role ideologies (Block 1983;Gibbons and Stiles 2004). In this regard, several studies have corroborated that heroic characteristics often reflect gender-based social attributes (Holub, Tisak, and Mullins 2008;Gash and Dominguez 2009). However, depending on the study, these dimensions carry different labels: among them, individual masculine (e.g.…”

“…Despite the different terminologies, results present many similarities. In general, boys and girls rated their heroes and heroines and personally known adults similarly on masculine attributes (Holub, Tisak, and Mullins 2008). On the other hand, boys tend to name more traits related to prestige (e.g.…”

“…Regarding the personally known admired adults, parents or parental figures are the most popular choice if teenagers are not constricted to choose from a specific domain (Anderson and Cavallaro 2002;Yancey, Siegel, and McDaniel 2002;Bricheno and Thornton 2007;Holub, Tisak, and Mullins 2008;Hurd, Zimmerman, and Xue 2009). Gender differences follow a different trend when teenagers choose personally known adults.…”

“…helpful, protective, caring, and loving), and traits related to prestige (e.g. rich and famous) (Gash and Bajd 2005;Holub, Tisak, and Mullins 2008;Gash and Dominguez 2009). Despite the different terminologies, results present many similarities.…”