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Keywords
Gender role; stereotype; inequality; textbooks
Abstract
This paper reports on a content analysis of Chinese Language textbooks used in primary schools in Hong Kong, published during the period 1995 to 2000. We examine the extent of gender stereotyping evident from the pictures in these textbooks, in terms of the proportion of male and female characters represented; the settings in which they appear, their portrayal in domestic or non-domestic roles, and the kinds of occupational roles male and female characters were portrayed in. A total of 5,180 pictures in our sample of 108 textbooks have been analyzed and our findings indicate that gender stereotyping in these four areas is still common. However, when compared with the findings of previous studies, we found that the extent of gender stereotyping has reduced to some extent.
Introduction
This paper examines the extent of gender role stereotyping in primary school text books in contemporary Hong Kong. Our study follows a research tradition that begun in the 1960s, when issues regarding sexism and gender inequality started gaining legitimacy as topics of social science research. To understand the nature, reproduction and institutionalization of gender inequalities, much research has been conducted on social processes relating to the development and internalization of gender differences and inequalities. The study of gender socialization of children in schools is one such field of study. Schools are important vehicles for the transmission of socio-cultural beliefs, attitudes and values (Frasher and Walker, 1972). School text books, being an important aspect of formal schooling, comprise an area that has been extensively studied (Saario, et al., 1973; Friebus, 1985; Touba, 1987; Hall, 1988; Abraham, 1989; Purcell and Stewart, 1990; Higgins and Shoar-Ghaffari, 1991; Chepyator-Thomson and Ennis, 1997; Low and Sherrard, 1999; Evans and Davies, 2000; Jackson and Warin, 2000; Nilan, 2000; Gooden and Gooden, 2001). These studies have all found considerable and persistent differences in how gender roles are portrayed. Our paper presents findings based on content analysis of Chinese Language textbooks used in Hong Kong's primary schools and assesses their role in the construction or reproduction of gender stereotypes.
Background and Research Questions
The issue of gender inequality has received increasing academic and public attention in Hong Kong, particularly since the mid-1990s. Anti-discrimination ordinances were passed in 1995...