3. Methodology

Sample:

The target population was preschoolers of mixed gender from different cultures in an International school in Asia. The sample consisted of roughly 15 children, aged 3-5 and culturally diverse, from Ms. Randee’s preschool class in International School Manila.

Method:

Due to the complexity of the topic of gender development, qualitative research was used. This is because qualitative research yields rich, organic data. In terms of method, triangulation was employed, as both observations and an interview was used.

1). Observations

Both overt participant (researcher interacts with participant, who is aware of observation) and overt non-participant (researcher does not interact with participant, who is aware of observation) observations were used. These were carried out in the setting of the classroom. Data was collected using field notes.

Ethical considerations:

Positives

→ Informed consent was given by the school, the teacher, and the parents of the children prior to the observations

→ The researchers were cognizant of the fact that young children were the participants, and thus showed patience and care when interacting with them – avoiding potential psychological harm

→ No names were taken down, and no photographs or voice recordings were taken. This ensured the confidentiality and anonymity of the participants

Negatives

→ The kids themselves did not give informed consent

→ Still, because it was a new situation for the kids (being observed), they may have experienced a certain degree of psychological stress

→ Participant observation may have been invasive

2). Semi-structured interview

A semi-structured interview was conducted on the teacher (Ms. Randee). Questions such as “would you say that the kids tend to copy models of the same gender?” were asked. Data was transcribed through verbatim transcription.

Data analysis:

Inductive content analysis was used in order to generate themes. Extracts with themes pertaining specifically to cognitive gender development were used.

Reflexivity:

Reflexivity refers to a “strategy used by qualitative researchers to explain how [their] subjectivity contributes to the findings” (Hannibal, 2012, p.150). Thus, it is the researcher’s responsibility to take note of any biases, beliefs, or experiences that may impact the research. The researcher is a male senior taking the full IB program at an international school. The researcher is from the Philippines but was born in the USA and follows American culture. Because of this, the researcher is somewhat Western in his beliefs. The researcher is taking Psychology class, and is tasked to study gender development. The potential biases that may have arisen from this were dealt with through credibility checks with the other researchers (from different cultural backgrounds but all international school students taking Psychology class).