Gender roles socialization theory is believed to be based on Social learning theory, Gender socialization is the process by which people learn to behave in a certain way, as dictated by societal beliefs, values, attitudes and examples.The concept of boy code and masculine mystique , Influence of family,“normative male alexithymia”, display of aggression, Gender in advertisement, Women were more likely to be sexualized than men.

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Gender roles socialization theory is believed to be based on Social learning theory.
In social learning theory, Albert Bandura agrees with the behaviorist learning theories of classical
conditioning and operant conditioning. However, he adds two important ideas:
1. Mediating processes occur between stimuli & responses.
2. Behavior is learned from the environment through the process of observational learning.
Gender socialization is the process by which people learn to behave in a certain way, as dictated
by societal beliefs, values, attitudes and examples.
Gender-roles Socialization is the tendency for boys and girls to be socialized differently. Boys are
raised to conform to the male gender role, and girls are raised to conform to the female gender
role. A Gender Role is a set of behaviors, attitudes, and personality characteristics expected and
encouraged of a person based on his or her sex.
The most intense period of socialization is during childhood, when adults who are members of
a particular cultural group instruct young children on how to behave in order to comply with social
norms.
Example:
The concept of boy code and masculine mystique where boys are pressurized to stay strong, be
dominant and maintain a distance from emotional expression. As a result boys turn out to be more
aggressive and less empathetic compared to girls who are expected to stay calm, understanding,
and caring.

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Individuals are taught how to socially behave in accordance with their assigned gender, which is
assigned at birth based on their biological. Gender socialization is thus the process of educating
and instructing males and females as to the norms, behaviors, values, and beliefs of group
membership.
Preparations for gender socialization begin even before the birth of the child. One of the first
questions people ask of expectant parents is the sex of the child. This is the beginning of a social
categorization process that continues throughout life. Preparations for the birth often take the
infant’s sex into consideration (e.g., painting the room blue if the child is a boy, pink for a girl).
Influence of family:
Gender role socialization may also explain the different types of behaviours that males and female
exhibit in a different relationships.
Every culture has different guidelines about what is appropriate for males and females, and family
members may socialize babies in gendered ways unconsciously.
Explanation:
Even as tiny babies, boys and girls are dressed differently, according to what is considered
“appropriate” for their respective sexes.
The toys and games parents select for children are often unconsciously intended to socialize them
into the appropriate gender roles. Girls receive dolls in an attempt to socialize them into future
roles as mothers. Since women are expected to be more nurturing than men, giving a girl a doll

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teaches her to care for it and fosters the value of caring for others. When boys receive dolls, they
are likely to be action figures designed to bring out the alleged aggressive tendencies in boys.
When it comes to emotions, boys are expected to keep a distance from emotions because it might
make them seem weak and sympathetic. This types of socialization by parents and society has led
to the term “normative male alexithymia” which means that boys are unaware of their emotions.
We see in our daily life that mothers usually tend to encourage their children to be more expressive
and even are rewarded when they tend to share their emotions while at the same time fathers are
more likely to ignore and dismiss the emotional display. This attitude causes the kids especially
males at the house to take their father as role model.
So in this way, even parents who strive to achieve a less “gendered” parenting style unconsciously
reinforce gender roles.
When it comes to the display of aggression, females are expected to be less aggressive, so they
usually tend to avoid getting aggressive with their family or other relations and usually tend to
keep it all in, but at the same time they are expected to be more empathetic and caring so they tend
to be more loving and feel no hesitation to even share their own sadness with others because they
think that sharing such experiences will tend to increase the closeness in relationship.

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But at the same time, men tend to get aggressive more easily and avoid emotional discussions
because that’s just how they are expected to behave.
Influence of society:
As children enter the educational system, traditional expectations for boys and girls continue. In
the past, much research focused on how teachers were shortchanging girls in the classroom.
Teachers would focus on boys, calling on them more and challenging them. Because boys were
believed to be more analytical, teachers assumed they would excel in math and science. Teachers
encouraged them to go into careers that require a lot of math and science, such as computer science
or engineering.
Example:
Studies show that boys are more physically active than girls. This difference is greater when
children are in elementary school. Boys may be less able to sit still during a lesson. They are often
sent out of class as disruptive, which puts them behind in the schoolwork and can reinforce their
problems in the classroom.
When it comes to carrier counselling, if cultural expectations dictate that girls are more
compassionate and nurturing than boys, then parents, teachers, and counselors will steer them
toward fields that require patience and concern for other people, such as nursing, social work, or
elementary school teaching. Though a girl who expresses a desire to become a nuclear engineer
would probably no longer be explicitly discouraged, a boy with a similar goal would probably
encounter more encouragement.

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Example:
Women working in traditionally male occupations often hit a glass ceiling, an invisible barrier that
keeps women from reaching executive positions. The fact that a male pursuing a career in nursing
still seems laughable shows how ingrained some gender roles still are.
Girls and women are generally expected to dress in typically feminine ways and be polite,
accommodating, and nurturing. So when it comes to sports, males are given more encouragement
as compared to females. There are many reasons why some women rarely participate in sport and
physical activity:
Discrimination - others/males/media devalue female sport and activity
Low self-esteem - awareness of image, lack of confidence, embarrassment
Lack of role models - few female role models for this age group
Lack of encouragement - from family, schools, peers
Friends/peer inactivity - others do not participate, devalue activity
Lack of opportunity - few activities for women/women only activities
Since men are really encouraged and are being brought up in a masculine manner, they tend to
flourish more when it comes to sports and most females tend to avoid such activities because of
discouragement and social norm.
Gender in advertisement:
Gender advertisement refers to the images in advertising that depict stereotypical gender roles and
displays. Gender displays are used heavily in advertising in order to establish the role of one gender
in relation with the other, and some scholars argue that advertisers are obsessed with gender.
despite many people’s desire to strive toward greater gender equality and smash antiquated
conceptions that “men” and “women” are to serve distinct roles in society, popular media seem
insistent on portraying gender in very “traditional” ways.

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Research:
In one combined analysis of more than 60 studies, researchers looked for reliable patterns of gender
portrayals over many, many advertisements. Overall, they found reliable evidence the women are
portrayed differently than men in ways that conform to traditional gender roles and stereotypes.
Here’s just a sampling of what they found:
1. Women were 4 times more likely than men to not have a speaking role
2. Women were 3 times more likely than men to be presented as a product user rather than an
authority
3. Women were 3.5 times more likely than men to be presented at home or in a domestic
environment (vs. at work)
4. Women were 2 times more likely than men to be associated with domestic products like
body care and home goods.
Overall, it seems like there’s clear evidence that portrayals of men and women in advertising are
not equal but instead conform to common beliefs about appropriate gender roles and gender
stereotypes.
When it comes to gender stereotypes in popular media, psychologists have looked at the
“masculinity” or “femininity” of the cultures themselves.
 “masculine” cultures are those that emphasize achievement, assertiveness, and material
rewards
 “Feminine” cultures are instead those that emphasize cooperation, modesty, and caring for
the weak.
Women were more likely to be sexualized than men; they were more likely to wear seductive
clothing, they were often more attractive than the men in the ads, and they were more likely to be
objectified.

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CONCLUSION:
Even though the gender role socialization has been highlighted either at home, in society or even
in advertisements, but now-a-days people are trying their best to break these stereotypes. Females
are no longer expected to just run a house but focus on their education and career as well. Children
are no longer expected to play with the gender specified toys, girls are also getting involved in
video games, boxing, martial arts most importantly self-defense. There are a lot of female in sports
who are more famous, there are a lot more male chefs than females, and boys are encouraged to
help their mothers and sisters at home. Careers are no longer just gender specific. Males are
portrayed in housing, cleaning and baby product advertising.
Even though in this new era people are trying to break these norms but still there are a lot of people
out there who discourage this change.