Observers rated identically dressed boys with feminine behavior, conventionally masculine boys, and conventionally feminine girls as to apparent sex, on a five-point scale. The sample to which the child belonged was the most important determinant of ratings: feminine boys were judged to be neither distinctly feminine nor distinctly masculine.…

Analysis of children's letters to Santa Claus indicated that: (1) girls requested more toys than boys; (2) children requested neutral toys more often than sex-typed toys; (3) girls were more likely to ask for neutral toys, while boys often asked for neutral or masculine toys; and (4) children preferred sex appropriate to sex inappropriate toys.…

Preschool children exhibited less curiosity about and less frequent recall of unfamiliar objects when the objects were labeled for the opposite sex than when they were labeled either for their own or for both sexes. (Author/MJL)

Of four stories, preschool girls liked one with a female character and feminine activity best, and one with a male character and masculine activity least. The reverse was true for boys. Measures taken a day later showed that children recalled more about stories they had liked least the day before. (Author/MJL)