A cross-sectional study on gender traits, task preferences, and career aspirations among children and adolescents
Abstract
Sustainable Development Goal 5 of the United Nations strongly advocates gender equality and women’s empowerment. This goal aims to ensure equal access to education, healthcare, and economic opportunities. Using a cross-sectional design, this research examines the children’s and adolescents' perceptions of gender traits, task preferences, and career aspirations. The chi-square test was employed to examine the difference, while a multinomial logistic regression analyzed the association between gender perceptions and demographics. Findings reveal significant developmental differences; adolescents demonstrated more gender-neutral views in their perceptions of gender roles. In terms of their specific task preferences, both groups acknowledged that many tasks are appropriate for both genders. Now, traditionally feminine tasks are widely accepted as gender-neutral, but there remains a highly masculine task, practical and DIY tasks. Significantly, adolescents expressed more inclusive attitudes toward career aspirations, challenging traditional gender norms, especially in fields like agriculture, machine trades, and structural work, which children still associate with males. Demographic analysis shows that females tend to hold more exclusive perspectives than males. In associating age with gender views, the peak of exclusivity is between 13-16, then declines at 17-20. This implies a progression of gender maturity and inclusiveness associated with age. Furthermore, more inclusive gender views emphasize the importance of family environments that are linked to parents' educational attainment and exposure to occupations. Given these findings, this study prescribes a multi-sector approach that families, communities, schools, and policymakers use to foster sustainable gender equality from early development through adolescence.
Keywords: Careers, equality, inclusivity, stereotypes, tasks, traits
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