- 4 x relevant areas of contextual research/information that will inform your design strategy.
- at least one area must be related to your chosen cop theme.
"LEGOs were 'Universal Building Sets' and that's exactly what they were...for boys and girls. Toys are supposed to foster creativity. But nowadays, it seems that a lot more toys already have messages built into them before a child even opens the pink or blue package. In 1981, LEGOs were simple and gender-neutral, and the creativity of the child produced the message. In 2014, it's the reverse: the toy delivers a message to the child, and this message is weirdly about gender".
- the introduction of toys aimed specifically at boys or girls, e.g. LEGO Friends sets. LEGO was founded in 1932 and produced as a 'universal building set' however the recent introduction of gender specific LEGO sets limits children in what they can build and focuses on what they think girls are more interested in, such as makeup and fashion, and boys, construction.
- links to society - research shows that by primary age children have a clear idea about the jobs that are seen as suitable for boys and girls due to stereotypes seen in children's toys and marketing.
https://www.bustle.com/articles/15378-little-girl-from-1981-gender-neutral-lego-ad-tells-the-story-in-her-own-words
"The children's toys section in the basement categories products by gender and displays signs saying 'girls toys' and 'boys toys' above the shelves. This perpetuates gender stereotypes and subtly but powerfully shapes the thinking of children (and their parents), constraining their minds and stifling their full potential. It discourages boys from playing with dolls, and girls from playing with LEGO".
- links to consumer society - what may be driving profit margins is limiting childrens' choice and experiences.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/chi-onwurah/let-toys-be-toys-gender-marketing_b_4728423.html
"The impact of sex-specific toy choice has implications for children's learning and attitudes far beyond the playground. Play with masculine toys is associated with large motor development and spatial skills and play with feminine toys is associated with fine motor development, language development and social skills".
- negative impacts associated with gender-specific toys - limits development in social, fine motor, spacial and perseverance skills - "children may then extend this perspective from toys and clothes into future roles, occupations and characteristics" - it was found in 2008 by a team of researchers that children with gender-stereotyped decorations in their bedrooms also held more stereotypical attitudes towards boys and girls.
- organising merchandise by gender acts as a barrier that prevents children from exploring a wide array of toys and activities available to them - "because gender segmenting toys interferes with a child's own creative expression".
http://nytlive.nytimes.com/womenintheworld/2015/08/12/how-gender-specific-toys-can-negatively-impact-a-childs-development/
"How toys are labelled and displayed affects consumers' buying habits. Many people feel uncomfortable buying a boy a pink toy, or a girl a toy labelled as 'for boys'".
- links to consumer society - companies use this idea to drive profit - means consumers are almost pressured into buying two different sets of toys for a boy and a girl as they feel uncomfortable buying a product labelled for a specific gender, e.g. seen as not acceptable to hand down a pink bike to a boy.
"The stereotypes we see in toy marketing connect with the inequalities we see in adult life. By late primary age, research shows that children already have very clear ideas about the jobs that are suitable for boys and girls".
- links to society and gender - stereotyped attitudes towards children's toys and marketing can be harmful, e.g. themes of beauty directed at young girls puts an emphasis on their appearance/themes of action and violence feeds low expectations in more sensitive and creative boys, which could potentially undermine their performance at school.
- links to Jansson-Boyd, Consumer Psychology - "many studies have found that both women and men do not believe that their current body form is attractive. Research has repeatedly found that physically attractive individuals are perceived by most to be socially more desirable then those that are perceived as being unattractive, something that is likely to have been reinforced by consumer societies" - reinforced at a young age due to stereotyped children's toys.
http://lettoysbetoys.org.uk/why-it-matters/
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