This article advances a self-socialization perspective demonstrating that children's understanding of "both" gender categories represents an intergroup cognition that is foundational to the development of gender-stereotyped play. Children's (N = 212) gender category knowledge was assessed at 24 months and play was observed at…

Parents' socialization goals are important for cultural transmission across generations, but whether such goals vary by ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds and change over children's first years of life remains unexamined. In Study 1, African-American, Dominican immigrant, and Mexican immigrant mothers (N = 300) reported on the qualities deemed…

Many young children pass through a stage of gender appearance rigidity; girls insist on wearing dresses, often pink and frilly, whereas boys refuse to wear anything with a hint of femininity. In 2 studies, we investigated the prevalence of this apparent hallmark of early gender development and its relation to children's growing identification with…

Mothers' spontaneous teaching of their 4-year-olds was observed during block play in 230 dyads from low-income African American, Mexican, Dominican, and Chinese backgrounds. Blocks contained graphics that could be used to teach concepts in literacy, math, construction, or body/color. Coders noted how often mothers taught each of the concepts,…