Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137

DOI 10.1007/s11199-009-9703-8

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Coloring Within the Lines: Gender Stereotypes

in Contemporary Coloring Books
Maureen J. Fitzpatrick & Barbara J. McPherson

Published online: 11 October 2009

# Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009

Abstract Extensive research on print media for children 1979; Thompson and Zerbinos 1997), toys (e.g., Blakemore
such as storybooks reveals that gender stereotypes are and Centers 2005; Rheingold and Cook 1975), textbooks
prevalent; however, no systematic analysis of coloring (e.g., Purcell and Stewart 1990; Women on Words and
books has been conducted since 1974. We analyzed 889 Images 1972), and children’s story and picture books (e.g.,
characters in 56 contemporary coloring books published in McDonald 1989; Oskamp et al. 1996; Turner-Bowker 1996;
the United States and selected through stratified random Weitzman et al. 1972) all have been extensively investigated,
sampling from one region of California, coding for both in the past and more recently. However, coloring books
prevalence of each gender, stereotypic gender roles, activity have not undergone any recent analyses. The last systematic
level, type, and age of character. As hypothesized, males content analysis of coloring books was conducted over
were more active; gender stereotypes were common. thirty-five years ago by Rachlin and Vogt (1974), using a
Gender neutral behaviors were more likely to be done by convenience sample, who found gender stereotypes in that
males. Females were more likely to be depicted as children medium as well. Thus, the purpose of this study was to
and humans; whereas males were mostly depicted as determine if the images in contemporary coloring books
animals, adults, and superheroes. Results are discussed in available in one area of the United States would display
terms of gender schema theory. more egalitarian roles for males and females than what has
been found in other print media directed at children and in
Keywords Gender stereotypes . Content analysis . the previous systematic content analysis of coloring books.
Coloring books
Why Analyze Coloring Books?

Introduction Coloring has been part of the American scene for over
100 years, beginning with the use of paints and continuing
Numerous studies investigating gender stereotyping have with crayons. Kate Greenaway is credited with developing
been performed and have revealed that mass media in the one of the first coloring books intended for children to paint
United States aimed at children frequently depict fairly rigid in 1884, A Painting Book (Spielmann and Layard 1967),
and traditional gender roles (Huesmann and Taylor 2006). later published as The Little Folks’ Paint Book (Weatherly
Children’s television programs and advertising (e.g., Browne and Greenaway 1879).
1998; Nolan et al. 1977; Ruble et al. 1981; Wright et al. Today it would be rare for a young child not to be
1995), cartoons (e.g., Baker and Raney 2007; Davidson et al. exposed to a coloring book. Twelve percent of children’s
books sold nationwide are coloring and activity books,
accounting for over 104 million units sold representing
M. J. Fitzpatrick (*) : B. J. McPherson more than $230 million in annual revenue (Raugust 2003).
Department of Psychology,
In 1996, Crayola reported manufacturing their 100 billionth
California State University San Marcos,
San Marcos, CA 92096, USA crayon (Crayola 2009). Therefore, it appears parents and
e-mail: mjfitzpa@csusm.edu others in charge of children are purchasing coloring books
128 Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137

and boxes of crayons in great numbers. Most young years, children begin learning about gender-related charac-
children are introduced to crayons and coloring books teristics. Empirical studies have found that children develop
before starting school (Mayesky 2009), thus exposing the awareness for gender role appropriateness as early as
children to an early educational experience, an early art their second birthday (e.g., Serbin et al. 2002). In the
experience, or both. Coloring books are relatively inexpen- second phase, 4- to 5-year-olds are rapidly learning to
sive (Raugust 2006) and many people can afford to distinguish, value, and internalize the gender cues for
purchase several and bring them into their homes. maleness and femaleness. Between the ages of 5 and 7
According to Gruber and McNinch (1994), children children have developed firmly ingrained gender schema
enjoy coloring and report that their favorite thing to do with that results in a form of either-or thinking (Martin and
crayons is to color in coloring books. They view coloring as Ruble 2004). Developmentally, across all three stages, this
a positive personal experience and, when asked, they generate is also the time when children’s initial scribbling evolves
a far greater number of positive (95%: e.g., happy, good, fun) into the recognizable symbols of their culture (Gardner
than negative (5%; e.g., bad, sad) labels for coloring (Gruber 1980) and when most children enjoy working with crayons
and McNinch 1994). Children spend time coloring; they play and coloring books (Gruber and McNinch 1994). Thus it is
as they master their artistic thoughts and fine-motor skills. important to determine if contemporary coloring books
On the surface, coloring books appears to have many carry stereotyped images of males and females that children
benefits for young growing children (Mayesky 2009). Using may be motivated to internalize and imitate.
crayons facilitates hand-eye coordination, which is an
important precursor of future writing (Gruber and Gender Representation in Children’s Print Media
McNinch 1994); many expose children to a variety of
print for reading; offer children extended periods of Past and more recent examinations of print media aimed at
focused attention; and appear to foster children’s imagi- children reveal both unequal gender representation and
nation as they participate in the coloring process. When common gender stereotypes. Differences have been found
children experiment with crayons and coloring they learn in prevalence, stereotypic behaviors, activity level, and type
that using writing tools is a pleasurable and rewarding of characters based on gender. Age of character may also be
activity (McGee and Richgels 2008). However, coloring different based on gender.
books have been criticized for engendering a lack of
creativity as children are encouraged to color within the Prevalence of Males
lines (Lowenfeld 1957). On a deeper level, when purchas-
ing a coloring book parents and caregivers must be aware In their seminal study examining males and females in
that the content of coloring books is strongly tied to the children’s books, Weitzman et al. (1972) found males
licensing of mass product merchandizing (e.g., cartoon, appeared in the illustrations more than twice as often as
television, comic book, and movie characters; Raugust females. Similar findings were reported several years later
2003); hence, it is important to determine if they carry the by LaDow (1976) and St. Peter (1979). Over 30 years ago,
same stereotypes as other media aimed at children. St. Peter (1979) speculated that as time passes publishers
may react to the women’s movement and children’s books
Learning Gender Stereotypes may begin to reflect change. However, this generally does
not appear to be the case. There are mixed results. Some
Through observations, children develop systematic schemas studies have found improvement in gender representation,
about the workings of the world and how society defines whereas others have not. In an update of the early studies
what it means to be male or female (Bem 1981; Bussey and examining gender, Kortenhaus and Demarest (1993) re-
Bandura 1999; Martin and Ruble 2004; Martin et al. 2002). examined the female to male ratio in children’s books.
Children learn what behaviors are acceptable for them, their These new findings revealed that males were still repre-
peers, and for the adults around them. According to gender sented more often than females and that male animals were
schema theory (Bem 1981), once children decide if an represented twice as often as female animals in both
object, activity, or behavior belongs with their gender, they Caldecott and non-award winning books. In addition,
use the information to make decisions about whether or not images that depict animals being used or cared for usually
to learn more about it. Exposure to stereotyped information show the male in control. The picture book Horses on the
can have lasting effects as children actively search for Farm (Schuh 2002) is an example. This book has 13 pages
gender cues that motivate their behavior and thinking (Bem displaying actual photos of horses and people. Of the
1981; Martin and Ruble 2004). Martin and Ruble (2004) pictures that show humans, eleven men are shown groom-
list three stages in the development of gender related ing, riding, and working with horses, whereas only one
cognitive schema. First, during the toddler and preschool picture shows a woman, and she is riding “for fun.” On the
Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137 129

other hand, some researchers have found an improvement 2006). Just as males are more likely to be pictured, and
in the amount of representation of female characters. stereotypic behaviors of both genders is common, males are
Oskamp et al. (1996) examined 22 Caldecott winners more likely to be depicted in active roles.
published from 1986 to 1991. Two books could not be
rated and of the remaining 20, females appeared in all but Activity Level
one. Hamilton et al. (2006) found a ratio of 1.5 to 1 males
to females in book illustrations. These findings are in Rachlin and Vogt (1974) found that males in coloring books
contrast to the 1960s and 1970s when extreme gender were depicted outdoors, in active play, or in competitive
inequality was present. When these finding were compared games by ratios ranging from 2:1 up to 5:1 compared to
to two earlier time periods, differences among the four females. On the other hand, females were depicted with
times were significant, displaying a trend from gender limited activity (e.g., tending to their appearance) more than
inequality to equality. However, Kortenhaus and Demarest males by a ratio of 30:1. Similarly, Weitzman et al.’s (1972)
(1993), based on their study of 150 picture books, made a examination of picture books revealed boys being active,
clear statement that even if the prevalence of genders is while girls sat and watched; boys being outdoors while girls
becoming more similar, characters are still being portrayed looked out the window; and boys leading and rescuing
in sexist and biased roles. while girls did things to please others (e.g., cook and serve).
Although there has been evidence of change in the male Although females have recently been seen in more
to female ratio in children’s picture and storybooks, this instrumental roles, they are still seen in the majority of
may or may not be the case with coloring books. In their passive, dependent activities compared to males by a ratio
1974 study, Rachlin and Vogt found equal representation of of approximately 5:1 (Kortenhaus and Demarest 1993). In a
males and females; 52% males and 48% females. It is more recent study, Hamilton et al. (2006) found that male
important to note, however, that those researchers looked main characters were depicted outdoors rather than indoors;
only at human characters and not at personified animals or however, about an equal percentage of male (86%) and
personified objects as some recent researchers have done female (79%) main characters were portrayed as active.
with other print media directed at children. In children’s Interestingly, they found male and female characters were
books, when animals are included in the assessment of equally likely to perform rescue behaviors, a highly active
males and females, there is a preponderance of male pursuit. Thus there are mixed findings on gender differ-
animals over female animals as reported by Weitzman et ences in activity level; however, it is clear that in most
al. (1972) and more recently by Gooden and Gooden studies males display more activity.
(2001). There is no information on coloring book characters
that includes both male and female characters other than Type of Character
humans; thus, it is important to assess this.
Characters in children’s print media often represent
Stereotypic Behaviors humans, but may also be animals, superheroes, person-
ified objects (e.g., cars with faces), among other things.
Beginning with Weitzman et al.’s (1972) classic study of Several studies have examined the gender of animals in
picture books and Rachlin and Vogt’s (1974) analysis of print media and all have found that male animals
coloring books up until the present time, it is clear that predominate. Weitzman et al. (1972) reported a ratio of
gender stereotypes remain prevalent in children’s print 95:1; Kortenhaus and Demarest (1993) reported 298 male
media. For example, in early studies of both coloring books and 94 female animals (a ratio of 3:1); Oskamp et al.
and picture books, females were depicted in service (1996) found only 16% female animals in their study; and
positions (mother, teacher, nurse) or in appearance- Gooden and Gooden (2001) reported 116 male to 78
focused representations (preening in front of a mirror, female animals (1.5:1) in their study of notable children’s
princess, Barbie); whereas males were depicted in more books. As mentioned above, in the early systematic
dominant, powerful, and adventurous roles (doctor, fire- analysis of coloring books, only human characters were
fighter, rescuer of females and young children). Similarly, coded (Rachlin and Vogt 1974); thus there are no data
St. Peter (1979) found that male characters were overrep- regarding types of characters in coloring books.
resented in instrumental pursuits and underrepresented in
expressive activities. Several studies conducted around the Age of Characters
end of the millennium showed that even though the
prevalence of stereotypes decreased slightly, the stereo- Although many researchers report that they code for age of
typed images of males and females were still substantial in character, we could find no study that reported on the
number (e.g., Gooden and Gooden 2001; Hamilton et al. possible relationship between age and gender. For example,
130 Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137

Weitzman et al. (1972) and more recently Hamilton et al. H4. Animal characters will more likely be depicted as
(2006) coded for age to separate activities of children and males than as females
adults, but focused on gender differences in adult occupa-
Due to a lack of previous data on print media regarding age
tions. Similarly, Turner-Bowker (1996) reported coding for
of characters by gender, we posed one research question:
age (girls, women; boys, men) but later combined the
categories into “females” and “males” when examining RQ: Will there be any relation between gender and age
characters in books. This lack of findings prompted us to of character?
consider whether the ages of males and females are
depicted in coloring books in a similar way or, for example,
are males more likely than females to be depicted as adults.
This examination is relevant to gender development because Method
of the prevalence, or possible lack of, adult role models for
boys and girls to see as they actively color the images. Boys Sample Selection
and girls learn gender-appropriate behaviors from significant
members of their society (Ruble and Martin 1998). According To obtain a representative sample of coloring books, we
to social learning theory (Bandura 1977), they also pay more performed stratified random sampling. That is, at each level
attention to models who have prestige, such as adults in of selection (zip code, store, display, and book pages) we
comparison to children. If children see adult members of employed a random selection process. To ensure that
their own gender portrayed more (or less) often, this could we sampled across socioeconomic areas we used zip codes.
affect gender development. From census data for the county of San Diego, CA, we
selected zip codes based on median income of lowest
The Present Study (<$26,000), moderately low, moderately high, and highest
(>$100,000) socioeconomic areas. Using these zip codes,
In sum, children’s picture and storybooks are rife with gender we obtained from the internet and telephone directories the
stereotypes, including more active males than females; this names and addresses of five types of retail outlets in which
was also found in the one previous study of coloring books. In coloring books are commonly found: discount stores, dollar
most studies of print media for children there is a predomi- stores, pharmacies, grocery stores, and toy stores. We
nance of males. The previous coloring book study did find a discovered that in the highest and lowest socioeconomic
similar number of males and females; however, only human zip codes, there were no such retail stores. The lowest
characters were examined in that study. Research analyzing represented mostly industrial areas and the highest very
characters in children’s story and picture books reveals that expensive homes with few retail outlets. Thus we collected
when animals are depicted, the male to female ratio is very coloring books only from four zip codes in the moderately
high. When we consider that the majority of coloring books low ($30,238–36,557) and moderately high ($54,042–
sold today are part of the merchandizing associated with the 76,863) socioeconomic areas.
release of major movie and television cartoon series, it Once we obtained a list of stores in each area, we
becomes important to investigate this medium in addition to randomly selected which to use. Next we went to each
children’s picture books and storybooks. After randomly selected store and randomly selected up to ten coloring
selecting coloring books, we coded for prevalence of each books from the display and purchased them for later
gender, stereotypic behaviors, activity level of characters, type coding. In an effort to have proportionate representation
of character (i.e., human, animal, fantasy, superhero, person- from each display, we chose 50% of the books through this
ified man-made objects), and age of characters. process. We counted the books from the top left to the
bottom right of the display and randomly drew numbers
from a box in order to choose each book. In selecting the
Hypotheses and Question
books, several criteria were used. Books had to cost less
than $5.00, be no larger than a standard 8.5×11 in. piece of
Based on research examining children’s picture and story-
paper, and no thicker than 1 in. No coloring books with
books and a 35-year-old study on coloring books, we tested
additional items attached such as crayons or paints were
four hypotheses regarding contemporary coloring books:
included; activity books (e.g., mazes, crossword puzzles)
H1. Males will appear more often than females were also excluded. If, in the random procedure, a book did
H2. Both males and females will be depicted in gender- not meet the criteria, the next book was selected. An
stereotypical roles updated list was maintained to avoid purchasing duplicate
H3. Males will be depicted in more active states than books. In addition, using the same random procedure of
females. selecting books from the display, we purchased 16 coloring
Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137 131

books from one national discount store which had stores in walking, eating, and sleeping. In the analysis we matched
both socioeconomic areas under investigation. This was up the characters’ gender with roles to determine if males
done to avoid having to go to this same national discount were depicted doing stereotypically male activities and
store in several areas, as the books this chain carried were females depicted doing stereotypically female activities.
the same in each of the zip codes. This stratified random
sampling resulted in 56 coloring books. Through this Level of Activity
random procedure we obtained 21 books (38%) directed
at girls, 19 (34%) directed at boys, and 16 (29%) Research on other forms of media reveals that there are
appropriate for both genders. All but one book ranged gender differences in activity level, with males being more
from 40 to140 pages in length (one was 20 pages) and cost active. We wanted to look more carefully at activity level
from $.69 to $4.99. Ten pages from each of the books were and not simply at a dichotomy between active or passive.
randomly selected, and the characters were coded. This Hence, we divided activity into three levels: static, busy,
resulted in a final sample of 889 characters from which to and active. Activity coded as static included being still,
code the characteristics of interest. such as sitting or standing; activity coded as busy included
doing something with fine motor skills such as drawing a
Measures and Procedure picture, eating, sewing, brushing teeth, but no gross motor
movement. Characters coded as active were using gross
Many, but certainly not all, coloring books have words on motor movements such as running, walking, or climbing.
the pages. Researchers coding storybooks have often
reported that they use the words as aids in coding. For Age of Character
example, if a character’s gender is not clear but the words
refer to the character as “her,” or more specifically by a Characters were coded as either children, ranging from
female name, the character is coded as female. This makes infants to adolescents, or adults. Category was based on
sense in stories that are read to children because they appearance and behavior in the picture. For example,
associate the noun or pronoun with the character. We chose infants were often held, fed, or seen in cribs or strollers.
not to do this because coloring books are often used by Adults had more adult-like facial structure (leaner faces,
children who cannot read. In addition, adults do not usually shorter foreheads); whereas children had larger eyes and
read the words on a coloring book page. Hence we coded rounder faces. In addition clothing was often used as a cue.
only traits and behaviors that a child would see without the Adults wore more professional-looking clothing (e.g.,
cues from words. suits), and children wore clothes like jumpers or clothing
decorated with trucks, flowers, or hearts. Their relative size
Gender of Character in the picture was also taken into account. There were some
characters whose age was difficult to assess. For example,
Characters were coded as male, female, or gender unclear several books contained characters who could be either
based on clothing, hairstyle, presence or absence of facial older adolescents or young adults. If we were unable to use
hair, physical stature, and other distinguishing character- clear contextual cues (e.g., a teacher in a classroom looked
istics. For example, females tended to be shown with long very young, but we assumed she was an adult), we coded
eyelashes, clothing with frills or flowers, or hair accessories the character’s age as unclear.
and jewelry; whereas males tended to have short or no
eyelashes, short cropped hair, male attire such as long pants Character Type
and plain shirt, and were generally larger in stature when
compared to female characters. Characters without a clear Character type was coded as human, animal, fantasy,
gender were coded gender unclear. superhero, or man-made. Animal characters were only coded
if they were personified (i.e., had human characteristics such
Gender Roles as wearing clothes, talking, or doing an activity such as
cooking). If an animal did not have any human characteristics,
For this category, the gender of the character performing the it was omitted from analysis. Fantasy characters included
task did not matter, only the stereotypical role was coded. wizards, witches, and fairies; superheroes had special powers
Female roles included such tasks as cooking, sewing, caring like flying or extreme strength (e.g., Power Rangers,
for an infant, grocery shopping, being a teacher, and being a Spiderman). Man-made characters included robots, cars,
nurse. Male roles included racing, wrestling, rescuing, trucks, and other mechanical devices. Some of these were
being a doctor, and driving heavy equipment (e.g., tractors). personified (e.g., trucks with faces) and others were not. In
Gender-neutral behaviors included such things reading, either case, they were simply coded as man-made.
132 Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137

Training and Reliability Table 1 Frequencies and percents (%) of characteristics based on
gender.

Four coders were trained extensively on the coding system, Males Females df X2
using pages from coloring books that were not in the final
sample. Training continued until agreement was reached. Number of Characters 436 (59) 306 (41) 1 22.78***
Cohen’s kappa was used to assess agreement because it is Behaviors of Characters
more conservative than simple percent agreement (i.e., it Male stereotypic 192 (44) 19 (6) 2 310.00***
accounts for chance agreement). Analysis on 38 characters Female stereotypic 14 (3) 177 (58)
resulted in high reliability: gender (mean k=.82), age (mean Gender neutral 230 (53) 110 (36)
k=.91), type of character (mean k=.94), level of activity Activity of Characters
(mean k=.82), gender role (mean k=.94). Static 120 (28) 143 (47) 2 47.16***
Once reliability was achieved, the four coders were Fine motor 140 (32) 107 (35)
randomly assigned ten pages from approximately 15 Gross motor 176 (40) 56 (18)
coloring books each. When half the books had been coded, Age of Charactersa
an agreement check was performed on another sample of Child 130 (33) 177 (71) 1 86.07***
characters not included in the final sample. This second Adult 263 (67) 74 (29)
reliability also was excellent among the four coders (N=28; Type of Character
kappas ranged from .85 to .96 across all categories). Human 75 (17) 178 (58) 4 182.30***
Animalb 187 (43) 42 (14)
Fantasyc 85 (20) 77 (25)
Results Superhero 63 (14) 7 (2)
Man-maded 26 (6) 2 (1)
This content analysis was undertaken to test several
hypotheses and address one question regarding the depic- N=742
a
tion of males and females in coloring books. Of the 889 the age of 98 characters could not be determined; thus they were
dropped from analysis, resulting in 644 for this category
randomly selected characters, the gender of 116 (13%) was b
Animal characters included only personified cartoon-like characters
unclear (i.e., it was impossible to tell if the character was
(e.g., mice cooking)
male or female) and 31 (3%) showed no gender (e.g., a c
Fantasy characters included wizards, witches, fairies
building with a face, but no other cues). Thus these d
Man-made characters (e.g., cars with faces) were only included if
characters were dropped from the gender analyses, resulting they were personified and showed a clear gender
in 742 clearly male or female characters. A summary of the ***p<.001; **p<.01; *p<.05
frequencies and percents of each of the coding categories
based on gender is presented in Table 1. stereotypic, cross-gender, and gender-neutral behaviors, a
chi-square test of independence was conducted and revealed
Hypothesis 1: Prevalence of Males that, as hypothesized, there was a significant relationship
between gender and type of behavior. As expected, both males
Hypothesis 1, that males would be more prevalent was and females engaged in gender-stereotypic behaviors. Of the
supported. For this analysis, all characters whose gender 436 males, 44% engaged in stereotypic behaviors and only
could be distinguished were included. Of the 742 characters 3% in cross-gender behaviors. Interestingly, 53% of the males
whose gender could clearly be distinguished, 436 (59%) engaged in gender-neutral behaviors. Thus, males were more
were male and 306 (41%) were female. Chi-square likely to engage in gender neutral behaviors than male
goodness of fit analysis revealed that this was a significant stereotypic ones, partially refuting our second hypothesis in
difference: χ2 (1, N=742)=22.78, p<.001. Of note, only which we expected both genders to be depicted predominately
34% of the characters were human, and of the 253 human in gender-stereotypic behaviors. Of the 306 females, 58%
characters, 178 (70%) were female and only 75 (30%) were engaged in female-stereotypic behaviors and 6% in cross-
male. This difference was also significant: χ2 (1, N=253)= gender behaviors. In comparison to the 53% of males
41.93, p<.001. engaging in gender-neutral behaviors, only 32% of females
did. Thus, females were more likely to engage in female-
Hypothesis 2: Gender Stereotypes stereotypic behavior than either of the other types of behavior.
This overall pattern of differences in depictions of gender
Hypothesis 2, that both males and females would be depicted stereotypes was significant; χ2 (2, N=742)=310.04, p<.001.
in stereotypical behaviors was partially supported. To deter- This effect was large (Cramer’s V=.65, p<.001). To examine
mine the behaviors of males and females in gender- this finding in more detail, we conducted another chi-square
Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137 133

test using only gender and male and female stereotypes. This again was found; χ2 (4, N=742)=182.33, p<.001. This
2×2 analysis revealed a highly significant difference in the effect size was large (Cramer’s V=.50, p<.001). Females
depiction of stereotypic roles by males and females; χ2 (2, N= were most often portrayed as human (58%) followed by
742)=280.90, p<.001. This effect size was very large fantasy (25%), animal (14%), superhero (2%), and were
(Cramer’s V=.84, p<.001) unlikely to be portrayed as man-made objects (e.g., cars
We conducted secondary analyses on gender stereotypes with faces) (<1%). Males, on the other hand, were most
based on the type of coloring book (those directed at boys likely to be portrayed as animals (43%) followed by fantasy
(n=19), girls (n=21), and gender-neutral (n=16)) and characters (20%), humans (17%), superheroes (14%), and
calculated the mean number of stereotypes for each book. man-made (6%). When examining the results across type,
Examination of all gender stereotypes within books 70% of the humans were female, 30% male. In contrast,
revealed a significant finding; F(2,53)=3.20, p<.05. Girls’ 82% of the animals were male compared to 18% being
coloring books (M=7.86, SD=4.28) had significantly more female. Another strong pattern showed in the superhero
stereotypes than gender-neutral books (M=4.69, SD=3.07). category with 90% male and only 10% female.
However, boys’ books (M=6.00, SD=3.89) did not differ
significantly from either the girls’ or gender-neutral books Research Question: Age of Characters
in mean number of stereotyped images. Thus, although
girls’ books had the most gender stereotypes followed by As no previous studies have reported the relationship
boys’ books, and gender neutral had the fewest, there was between gender and age, we examined this question and
no significant difference in overall gender stereotypes found a significant difference in the depiction of the ages of
between coloring books directed at boys and at girls. the characters based on gender. Of the 742 characters
Next we examined the means of specific gender stereo- whose gender could be determined, the age of 98 (13%)
types based on type of book to determine if female characters was unclear; of those, 44% were male and 56%
stereotypes in girls’ books would be more abundant than were female, not a significant difference. Thus these were
male stereotypes in boys’ books. Results revealed a dropped from the analysis. The ages of 393 males and 251
significant difference; t(38)=2.10, p< .05. There were females were clear. Characters depicted as children were
significantly more female stereotypes in girls’ coloring significantly more likely to be female (58%) than male
books (M=6.57, SD=4.40) than there were male stereo- (42%); in contrast, characters depicted as adults were
types in boys’ coloring books (M=5.21, SD=3.54). significantly more likely to be male (78%) than female
(22%); χ2 (1, N=644)=86.07, p<.001. This effect size was
Hypothesis 3: Activity Level of Characters moderate to large (Cramer’s V=.37, p<.001).

Hypothesis 3, that males would be shown in more active

states was supported. To test the third hypothesis, a chi- Discussion
square test of independence was used. Overall, there was a
significant relationship between gender and type of move- We examined contemporary coloring books to determine if
ment. Of the 436 males, 29% were depicted in static poses, the stereotypes found in them were similar to those found in
32% were shown using fine motor movements, and 39% other print media for children, including in the one
used gross motor movements. Of the 306 females, 47% systematic content analysis of coloring books that was
were shown in static positions, 35% were using fine motor undertaken over 35 years ago by Rachlin and Vogt (1974).
movements, and only 18% were using gross motor move- In the following sections, we discuss each of our findings.
ments. Thus, males were most likely to be shown using
gross motor movements, whereas females were most likely Males are More Prevalent
shown in static positions. This pattern was significant; χ2
(2, N=742)=40.06, p<.001. This effect size was small to As hypothesized, males were depicted more often than were
moderate (Cramer’s V=.23, p<.001). females. We made this hypothesis before collecting our
sample, and once we had our sample and found that more
Hypothesis 4: Type of Characters of the books were directed at females, we were somewhat
surprised to find that this hypothesis was still supported.
Based on research on storybooks, we hypothesized that Thus, even with an uneven distribution of boy-directed and
males would be more likely depicted as animals than would girl-directed coloring books, males were still more preva-
females. Thus we tested whether there was a relationship lent. This result has been found in many types of media
between gender and type of character (i.e., human, animal, including children’s story and picture books (e.g., Gooden
man-made, fantasy, or superhero). A significant pattern and Gooden 2001; Hamilton et al. 2006; Kortenhaus and
134 Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137

Demarest 1993; Oskamp et al. 1996), children’s television Except for the depiction of female rescuers found by
programs (e.g., Baker and Raney 2007; Frueh and McGhee Hamilton et al., our findings agree with older research on
1975), and commercials aimed at children (e.g., Ruble et al. stereotypes in media aimed at children (e.g., Kortenhaus
1981). On the other hand, in their coloring book analysis of and Demarest 1993; Rachlin and Vogt 1974) as well as with
human characters, Rachlin and Vogt (1974) found an more recent analyses (e.g., Gooden and Gooden 2001).
almost equal representation of males and females. In the In our secondary analyses we examined a possible
present study when only human characters were examined a relationship between the type of coloring book (i.e., those
pattern emerged that was different from any studies of directed at girls, boys, or gender-neutral books) and found
children’s books or Rachlin and Vogt’s (1974) study of significant results. Whether looking at the mean overall
coloring books. Female humans outnumbered male humans gender stereotypes or specific gender stereotypes, we found
by a ratio of 2.4:1. This was an unexpected finding. Thus, that those books directed at girls contained the most
care must be taken about character type when reporting stereotypes. Girls’ coloring books depict many more female
prevalence of either gender. stereotypes than boys’ books depict male stereotypes. Thus
Nevertheless, when children are coloring, they do see a young girls view stereotypes, of both females and males,
predominance of male characters of all types. We echo more often than boys view these stereotypes. This skewed
other researchers’ comments (e.g., Peterson and Lach 1990) view may limit what girls believe they can do or become.
that it may be detrimental for young girls to be seeing As gender schema theory would suggest, these limited
mostly males in media, whatever form they take (e.g., views may be affecting girls’ decisions about what is
animals, superheroes, humans). Quantity often implies possible. What is troubling is that children who use
importance, especially to an impressionable mind. Seeing coloring books tend to be at a developmental stage when
more of the other gender may lead young girls to view gender schemas are forming and solidifying.
themselves as less important or as second-class citizens. As
for boys, seeing themselves represented more often, not Males are More Active
only in coloring books, but in all forms of media, may give
them an inflated sense of importance. With the sexes in the As hypothesized, males were shown in more active states.
population almost equally represented, this inflated pres- As stated in the explanation of our methods, we did not
ence of males in coloring books and other media may skew want to look at only an active versus passive dichotomy.
young children’s schemas about gender and gender roles. We coded three levels of activity—static, busy (static, but
using fine motor movements such as drawing), and active
Stereotypes Predominate, Especially for Females (gross motor movements). We hypothesized that males
would be depicted in more active roles, based on research
As hypothesized, stereotypes were common, especially from other print media for children (e.g., Gooden and
stereotypes in coloring books aimed at girls. Thirty-seven Gooden 2001; Hamilton et al. 2006; Kortenhaus and
years after Scott Foresman and Company published their Demarest 1993; Rachlin and Vogt 1974). However, we
1972 guidelines to reduce stereotypes in textbooks, we are thought that females would more often be depicted using
still seeing females in stereotyped female roles and males in fine motor movements, as research reveals that young girls
stereotyped male roles—in textbooks, storybooks, and are generally better than young boys at this (e.g., Craty
coloring books. Although coloring books are not held to 1986; Robertson 1984). We were surprised to find that in
the same standard as textbooks that must be approved by a the area of fine motor movements males (57%) were more
board of education, we had hoped to find more egalitarian likely to be depicted than females (43%). It was only in the
images than we did. To find that males engaged in only 3% static category (e.g., sitting or standing and not doing
of what would be considered stereotypically-female behav- anything) that females predominated. One reason for this
iors was disheartening. Likewise, we found that only 6% of finding is that females were often depicted looking in a
the female characters engaged in behaviors that would mirror or simply sitting somewhere. If they were also
typically be viewed as male activities. We did not find shown brushing their hair, they were coded as busy, using
female scientists, truck drivers, or doctors for example. fine motor movements; however, many of them were
Unlike Hamilton et al. (2006) who found that males and simply looking. In the area of gross motor movements
females were equally likely to be seen rescuing others, we there was a very large difference. Males were shown
did not find any females in this pursuit. We coded gender- running, climbing, and rescuing others (usually females or
neutral behaviors and found that contrary to a 50–50 chance young characters). Again, these findings mirror what others
of a male or female engaging in these behaviors, males have found in different media. From these images, children
predominated. Sixty-eight percent of gender-neutral behav- are reinforced with the long-held stereotype that boys “do”
iors were carried out by males versus 32% by females. and girls “are” (Key 1971).
Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137 135

Males are Older, Stronger, and More Powerful world—wild, strong, powerful, adult-like, and heroic;
whereas young girls see females as passive, vulnerable,
Due to a dearth of literature on coloring books, we posed a childlike, and “only human.” Interestingly, many of these
research question about age of characters based on gender. adjectives used to describe the characters in the coloring
There was a significant difference in the depiction of the book images are similar to the words Turner-Bowker
ages of the characters. Males were almost twice as likely to (1996) found in her study of language used in children’s
be shown as adults than as children. The opposite was true literature. Both her study of words and our study of images,
for females—they were more than three times as likely to depict males as fierce, great, terrible, brave, and proud;
be depicted as children than as adults. Thus boys get to whereas females are beautiful, sweet, kind, frightened, and
envision their grown-up selves; whereas girls may infer that scared. Whether developing boys and girls read or hear
they remain young and childlike. If children do look to these words or infer these meanings from images, they are
adult role models to have an understanding of what they are learning what it means to be male and female in our society.
to become, as Ruble and Martin (1998) and Bandura (1977)
suggest, girls may be limited in this understanding if they Strengths and Limitations
see predominately female children as they work with
coloring books. A particular strength of this study is the use of stratified
We categorized type of character as human, animal, random sampling. By randomly selecting at each stage, we
fantasy, superhero, and man-made (e.g., personified cars or were able to get a representative sample from one area of
robots). Females were most likely to be depicted as humans, southern California. Although the coloring books came
followed by fantasy, followed by animals. They were not from one county in California, most stores from which we
likely to be superheroes or personified man-made objects. On gathered books were part of chains that had stores
the other hand, males were most likely to be portrayed as throughout the United States. In addition, most of the
animals (wild, free, strong), fantasy, humans, and superheroes. coloring books contained images of licensed products and
In sum, 70% of the humans were females and 63% of the characters (e.g., Spiderman, characters from movies like
animals were males. The fact that females were mostly Cars and Toy Story, and Disney Princesses). Therefore, we
depicted as humans is of special note. Had our analysis suggest our sample is not only regionally representative but
focused only on human characters, our hypothesis about may also be relatively nationally representative. Thus, we
males being more prevalent would not have been supported. think our findings are likely to be generalizable to many,
Although girls would be exposed to more human females in but certainly not all, of the coloring books parents and
coloring books, it is possible that this preponderance of human caregivers would typically purchase for children in the
female characters limits young girls’ ability in role taking, United States to use. As with any study that analyzes the
especially taken together with the finding that the human content of media, there is always a concern about
females are mostly young girls. For example, unlike boys, subjectivity. We trained our coders extensively and assessed
girls would not be exposed to the variety of characters and agreement both before and midway through data collection.
behaviors to which boys would be exposed in their books. Additionally, if there was doubt, the characters were coded
Thus the richness and dimension of their models would be as unclear and dropped from the gender analyses.
limited. Instead of being active, powerful, and multidimen-
sional, they are two-dimensional—much like the reflection in Conclusions and Future Research
the mirror into which females are often depicted looking. In
addition, the activity level of the females tended to be very low Visual media messages that stereotype groups or individu-
(static poses, such as sitting and watching others); this is likely als reinforce rather than challenge social misconceptions.
in contrast to the real women in their lives who hold jobs, raise Images on a page or screen become part of our common
families, or both. Having young boys see a preponderance of consciousness, and the role models which are presented
male animals is another issue. Many of these images showed provide vicarious experiences that teach and shape our
fierce, wild, or “untamed” animals. Thus young boys may perceptions of the world (Bandura 2001). When images
identify with these male animals. Gender schema theory repeatedly present over-simplified conceptions about social
would suggest that they may incorporate these characteristics and gender roles, occupational pursuits, or other aspects of
into their own schema of what it means to be male. life, their influence on human development becomes a
In the superhero category, 90% were males. This finding cause for concern. Representations of stereotypes in the
about superheroes is similar to that of Baker and Raney media are of importance because of their impact on the
(2007) in their study of TV cartoon characters. Taken socialization process of children. Although older children
together, these findings suggest that as young boys color in often are taught through educational experiences to dis-
coloring books, they see males depicted as forces in their count media images, young children come to visual
136 Sex Roles (2010) 62:127–137

messages without the protection of learned skepticism. For subtle—that they send to children about what it means to be
this reason, media stereotypes often play a powerful role in male or female. They may stifle young girls’ potential for
the social and gender development of young children powerful roles and stifle young boys’ potential for
(Bandura 2001). nurturing roles. But do children learn these lessons from
The findings from this study show that coloring books coloring books? Are coloring books elicitors of behav-
are subject to similar gender stereotyping and messages ior? Can they change attitudes? In a recent study,
about being male and female as children’s storybooks and Simcock and DeLoache (2006) demonstrated that chil-
picture books. Both the prevalence of males and the fact dren as young as toddlers can imitate specific, novel
that they are portrayed in more active roles may suggest to actions depicted in a storybook. Their findings held even
young girls, as they color on the page, that girls are the when the pictures were merely line drawings, as are those
lesser sex and not as important as boys. This inference may in coloring books. Thus it would be important to assess
cause them to think they should not be active, and instead whether coloring a picture in a coloring book could affect
should preen in front of the mirror or tend to babies as their children’s behaviors or change their attitudes. Given the
primary functions. On the other hand, the images may dearth of research on this medium that is ubiquitous in
suggest to young boys that they should have super-human young children’s worlds, we suggest that future research
strength, not be nurturing, and always be on the move. This should address these questions empirically.
means that with the extra time spent and creative processes
used, children are coloring and spending time with
depictions of characters that maintain long-held stereotypes. Acknowledgements Portions of this research were presented at the
annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San
As children spend time with these images, deciding colors Francisco, CA, August 2007. The authors thank Marie Thomas and
and strokes and thinking about the characters with which three anonymous reviewers for comments on earlier versions of this
they are working, gender role stereotypes may form or manuscript and Iliana Grigera, Marlene Armenta, Jennifer Dale, and
become more ingrained in their thinking. Children tend to Tara Miller for coding assistance.
imitate same-sex characters more than opposite-sex charac-
ters (Bandura 1977); thus, media that repeatedly give higher
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