Please Mind the Gap : 1

“The results showed boys and girls aged five both viewed their own gender positively, but girls aged six and seven were markedly less likely than boys to associate brilliance with their own gender.” 

The article has conveyed a worrying concern over the results of girls as young as six who were already affected by stereotypes. In an experiment, the children heard a story about a person who was “really, really smart” and were asked to guess who it was about from a selection of male and female characters. Boys and girls aged five both viewed their own gender positively, but girls aged six and seven were less likely than boys to associate brilliance with their own gender. This results came after a researcher from the University of Illinois, Lin Bian, noted a growing trend of women in society who push away jobs that are perceived to require brilliance. 

I am interested in investigating how girls age seven and above, view themselves in this world. Do they believe that they have the power to change? That they are brilliant in every way? Do they fuel and surround themselves with positivity? Do they boldly say, “I can”? What is their voice, their story? What is their Brilliance? 

It is a problem because we exist. We exist in every home, every house, every office, every nation, every country. Our aspirations and dream careers should not be diluted just because of a stereotype we have somehow bought into.