Factors Influencing Children as They Consider Role Models

2) Gender

A commonly held view in Western society is that children choose same sex role models and emulate their behaviours. Bandura (1977) (cited in Gibson & Cordova, 1999) found;

… boys tend to emulate the behaviour of male models to a substantially greater extent than they emulate female models and are much less inclined to adopt behaviour regarded as gender inappropriate, regardless of the gender of the models displaying it (123).

Similarly, Anderson and Cavallaro (2002) found, across four cultures, boys “consistently chose a same gender person as someone they look up to and admire” (165). Does this gender difference translate to adults? Gibson and Cordova’s (1999) study of organizations, (law firms) found male participants identified more with male role models. In contrast, the researchers found the women participants identified with both male and female role models (131). This finding is echoed by Anderson and Cavallaro’s (2002) and Bromnick and Swallow’s (1999), articles, which found girls chose both male and female role models. Anita Allen (1994), an African-American woman, poignantly reflected on her experiences of having a lack of professional female role models. She looked to her non-African American male professors as models to emulate and imitate to achieve academic success. Allen (1994) articulated why so many girls and women choose both male and female role models, because there are more men in leadership positions.

Recent research suggests boys and men identify with male role models associated with positions of power and are likely to choose female role models only when women are viewed in power positions (Gibson & Cordova, 1999; Anderson & Cavallaro, 2002). However, we must question how society, the media, and institutions (schools and governments) shape role model positions for men and women. To recognize and understand the influences of how cultures and media interact on the socialization of males and females represent a cognitive shift in changing our perspectives of what we view is normal and acceptable.