Gender Neutrality in Play of Young Migrant Children - An Emerging Trend or an Outlier?

Oct 15, 2026

Analyzes gender differences in the play of children of migrant farm workers from Mexico, focusing on whether classroom, outdoor free play, and home unstructured play show sex-based patterns. Twenty-one migrant girls and twenty boys are compared across play behavior and related domains. The study finds no gender differences in play behavior, cognitive tasks, social interactions, or use of the preferred language. The authors consider how migration and displacement may alter gender roles and discuss implications for preschool teaching.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages27

Reading Time1 h 8 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

The Early Origins of Gendered Play in Euro-American Society

Findings and Implications for Preschool Teaching

Gender Neutrality in Play of Young Migrant Children An Emerging Trend or an Outlier? s Smita Mathur Gowri Parameswaran The authors explore gender differences in the play of children of migrant farm workers from Mexico. They review the literature that indicates children exhibit gender differences in their play as early as three years old, but the authors claim their ﬁndings do not corroborate the existing research on gender differences in play. The twenty-one migrant girls and twenty boys they studied failed to exhibit gender differences in their play in the classroom, during their free play outdoors, or during their unstructured play at home. The authors also found no gender differences among these children in cognitive tasks, social interactions, and their use of their preferred language. The authors offer several reasons for these results and note that research studies of other cultural groups suggest that gender roles are altered when communities are displaced or undergo migration. The authors speculate on the possible implications of their ﬁndings for preschool teaching. Keywords: gender differences in play; Mexican immigrants; migrant children; play patterns and gender Introduction Given the signiﬁcant role of play in child development, early-childhood educators have begun to tackle some important questions. How does play unfold developmentally? Does biological maturity or socialization guide play? Do children actively construct their play experience by structuring their actions and emotions during play? Is play a result of an interaction between the active child, biology, and social messages transmitted to the child? Do boys and girls play differently? Is children’s play culturally dependent? Can cultural differences explain variation in children’s play? Such questions have occupied researchers, educators, and administrators alike, but few have yielded such strikingly consistent research results as those related to gender differences. Clearly, the research shows, gendered play is ubiquitous among early learners. 174 American Journal of Play, volume 7, number 2 © The Strong [Contact Smita Mathur at mathursx@jmu.edu](Contact Smita Mathur at mathursx@jmu.edu) Children’s play fosters creativity, provides opportunities to practice problem solving, and allows young active learners to explore their environments. During play, children express their individuality while simultaneously acquiring knowledge of the world around them. Play helps children prepare for attending school, mature both socially and emotionally, and learn culturally appropriate adult roles. Early-childhood educators often develop play-based curricula to harness the innate tendency of children to play and to turn play into positive learning experiences (Baines and Slutsky 2009). Offering play-based educational experiences has therefore become a widely recognized method by which early learners develop cognitive, motor, and social-emotional skills (Johnson, Christie, and Wardle 2005) . The Early Origins of Gendered Play in Euro-American Society The theoretical framework that guides studies on gender differences in children’splay comes from diverse areas of study. Theorists from the ﬁelds of psychology, biology, mathematics, anthropology, art, psychiatry, pop culture, and linguistics have been vocal on the development of gender differences in children’s play preferences (Sutton-Smith 1997). The role of biology in guiding early play behaviors is an emerging area of inquiry, which includes the growing belief that children’s gender differentiation does not come solely from social learning but is also a product of biological processes (Auyeung et al. 2009; Ehrhardt and Money 1967; Ehrhardt, Epstein, and Money 1968; Hines et al. 2002). Several studies suggest a relationship between increased levels of testosterone in mothers during gestation and a signiﬁcantly higher incidence of masculine play behaviors in their female offspring (Auyeung et a

FAQs

What does the study examine about migrant children’s play?

It examines whether migrant children of Mexican farm workers show gender differences in play across classroom, outdoor free play, and unstructured home play.

How many girls and boys are included in the study?

The study compares twenty-one migrant girls and twenty boys.

What do the authors conclude about gender differences in this context?

The authors report that the children fail to exhibit gender differences in play and also show no differences in cognitive tasks, social interactions, or preferred language use.

Oct 15, 2026

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