Gender stereotypes
‘Pink for girls, blue for boys’
MEL Saga’itu-Atalifo’s feature article ‘Women breaking down barriers’ is a motivating lesson for humanity to break social taboos and stereotypes. The article highlighted the major shift in Fiji as more women make remarkable strides in the traditionally male-dominated field of sports commentary. This leading example recalls the hesitation in my first university lecture to teach gender history in a girl’s undergraduate college, where men are looked at as aliens in the lost world.
Teaching gender history is a tricky task, especially when girls are practising the traditional gender stereotypes, stigmas, and taboos constructed around women. This challenge was accomplished by focusing on social impact concepts of gender and excluding the biological implications.
Gradually, the lecture hall became jam-packed with undergraduate girls expressed their thoughts in a dialogue-based teaching pedagogy. This provided them with the opportunity to understand gender relations for the first time and comprehend the reasons for imposed stereotypical gender norms. Thus, the op-ed discusses a review topic and research around the issue of sexism of colours, why pink for girls and blue for boys?
Challenging gender norms entails questioning the cultural expectations and assumptions that prescribe appropriate behaviour for people depending on their gender. Below are a few strategies for women to defy gender conventions and confront societal constructs. The leading example is sexism in colours; pink relates to girls, while blue, associated with boys, is a social norm that has been socially constructed over time.
There are no biological traits to associate with colour fondness. However, in the 1960s, during the women’s liberation movement, women questioned and rejected this societal expectation, disregarding gender-specific colours. It is puzzling that stereotyping persists, even in prominent campaigns promoting egalitarian values. This has become a social problem that continues in public life, but more implicitly. Historically, this colour tone has been commonly associated with sexes that have been prevalent for centuries.
Sexism of colours
Assigning only two colours to babies reinforce societal expectations for their future development and conformity. Being a girl is often associated with an expectation to have an affinity for the colour pink, which is often seen as a characteristic of femininity. The male is expected to like blue, which is associated with masculinity. If you are a female who likes the colour blue, you may be labelled as a tomboy, and unfortunately, society may see you as lacking in strength and not conforming to traditional feminine norms (Michael, 2018).
Colour symbolism helps to be influenced by marketing and consumer culture, which assists in maintaining gender-specific associations with colours. Examine how items, clothes, and marketing efforts often uphold conventional gender standards by using specific colours, and how this might perpetuate sexism and gender inequity. Many studies have examined the impact of gendered colour stereotypes on children’s attitudes, behaviours, and self-perceptions, and analysed the possible repercussions of these standards on children’s development.
One has noticed instances of resistance to gendered colour standards, and initiatives to defy established preconceptions will be highlighted, focusing on the challenges faced. Some parents have moved towards gender-neutral parenting, unisex fashion, and inclusive marketing initiatives to challenge conventional gender stereotypes and foster more diversity and inclusivity.
Cunningham and Macrae (2011) research stated although there have been efforts to remove gender stereotypes from society via legislation, the persistent tendency to judge individuals based on their gender continues to be a harmful societal issue.
It investigated the influence of culturally transmitted color-gender associations (e.g., pink for girls, blue for boys) on the automatic activation and expression of gender stereotypes. The research stated these “beliefs commonly take is that of an association between a particular object (e.g., truck, doll), role (e.g., homemaker, financial provider), or behaviour (e.g., preparing food, repairing the car) and the concepts of masculinity and femininity” Cunningham and Macrae (2011). Their research conducted six experiments:
❏ (1) consumer choice for children’s goods is dominated by gender-stereotyped colours (Experiment 1);
❏ (2) colour-based stereotypic associations guide young children’s behaviour (Experiment 2);
❏ (3) colour–gender associations automatically activate associated stereotypes in adulthood (Experiments 3–5); and
❏ (4) colour-based stereotypic associations bias impressions of male and female targets (Experiment 6).
The findings indicated that even when there are rules against stereotyping, apparently harmless cultural customs may nonetheless perpetuate this way of thinking.
Conclusion
In essence, defying gender norms entails questioning and undermining the societal frameworks that restrict women’s prospects, options, and sense of self due to their gender.
Through questioning and defying these established standards, women can create fair and unbiased societies, allowing people to freely express their true selves and follow their ambitions without being limited by preconceived notions of gender.
The sexism of colour is an ongoing problem that has social and by promoting gender-neutrality, one could lessen the cultural implications but this may be objected by some people.
■ DR SAKUL KUNDRA is an Associate Dean (Research) and Associate Professor at the College of Humanities and Education at Fiji National University. The views expressed are his own and not of this newspaper or his employer. Email: dr.sakulkundra@ gmail.com