Fathers’ sexism may curb daughters’ work ambitions, research suggests from Stephanie Pappas in Huff Post Science.
The researchers aren’t sure why boys didn’t respond in the same way as girls to their fathers’ attitudes. It’s possible that boys just don’t see enough variation in stereotypically masculine behavior, or that their own behavior doesn’t waver from stereotypes enough to register statistically, Schmader said.
Nor is it entirely clear why dads seem to hold so much sway over their daughters’ gendered behaviors and aspirations while moms aren’t as influential. The reason could be that dads still are seen as having a higher status in the household, so girls weigh their opinions more heavily, Schmader told LiveScience. It’s also possible that girls see dad as a sort of role model for the type of partner they may end up with one day.
Note the sampling limitations with this study, but interesting none the less and it reminds me of this interview with Lily King I talked about here, and this idea that the way our fathers treat us, as daughters, is the way we expect the world to treat us.
You always come up with great articles! Have forwarded this one to my husband…
Reblogged this on Simply Walking on this Earth and commented:
Blue Milk is one of my idols in terms of feminist parenting and so I am reposting her recent entry on a study about the ways in which girls seems to internalize and respond to their father’s treatment of women. I think our daughter sees us as fairly equal in the benevolent dictatorship that is our current family structure; nonetheless, I am thankful that her father embraces equality for women and men in his everyday actions.
here is very good site
Yes, I wrote about that study too. My husband asked me more about the study, and since we have a son, he asked me what he should be doing to help our son develop positive gender role attitudes, and I basically said that the correlations were only significant for girls. But I wonder… My toddler son already imitates my husband more than he does me, and — since my husband does more housework — one of his favorite things to do is “pretend” vacuuming and dusting the house. So interesting.
http://jessicasmock.com/2013/01/20/the-secrets-to-raising-a-successful-daughter-hint-dad-is-the-key/
…”this idea that the way our fathers treat us, as daughters, is the way we expect the world to treat us.”
I think this is such a better way of putting it than how it is usually explained. It may be true in some households that men are seen as having more status, etc. It may be that we put that much emotional weight in what our fathers say, no matter our relationship with them, especially when we are young.
I suspect, however, that quite often it’s simply that girls are not ignorant of the power that men have in the world, compared to women. And so when even our own fathers express certain attitudes, that has a tremendous impact on how we not only see ourselves but also on how we think others will treat us; on how we perceive the risks versus rewards of certain choices and behaviors.