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ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

Gender and Cognitive Skills throughout Childhood

Gibbs, Benjamin Guild
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1249496662

Abstract Details

2009, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Sociology.
When do gender gaps in math and reading skills emerge and why? I examine gender gaps in math and reading from 9 months to 4 years of age with the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Birth Cohort and from kindergarten to 5th grade with the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten Cohort. With standardized assessments of cognitive skills, I find that girls excel in early math and reading skills in early childhood, before kindergarten begins. Although girls’ advantages in reading continue, math advantages appear to reverse upon school entry. I show with item-level assessments that this “reversal of fortunes” pattern is misleading. Girls maintain math advantages in counting, identifying numbers, and shape recognition across childhood. Boys’ advantages emerge with the onset of multiplication, division, place values, rate and measurement, and fractions. I find that gender gaps in reading can be largely explained by gender differences in classroom citizenship. For math, gender differences in parental expectations and investments are largely the result of feedback effects rather than parents’ gender-stereotypic behavior.
Douglas Downey (Committee Chair)
Rachel Dwyer (Committee Member)
Vincent Roscigno (Committee Member)
135 p.
Behaviorial Sciences; Developmental Psychology; Economics; Education; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Mathematics; Mathematics Education; Psychology; Social Psychology; Social Research; Social Studies Education; Social Work; Sociology
gender differences; cognitive skills; math; reading; early childhood

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Gibbs, B. G. (2009). Gender and Cognitive Skills throughout Childhood [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1249496662

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gibbs, Benjamin. Gender and Cognitive Skills throughout Childhood. 2009. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1249496662.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gibbs, Benjamin. "Gender and Cognitive Skills throughout Childhood." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2009. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1249496662

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1249496662
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© 2009, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.