Representations of Material Culture and Gender in Award-Winning Children's Books: A 20-Year Follow-Up

This study tested the hypothesis that children's books accurately reflect the gender-based division of labor in the culture and historical period in which they were published. A content analysis was performed on illustrations in books that won the Caldecott Medal or Honor between 1990 and 2009. The final sample included 490 illustrations in 68 of the 85 books. Character gender and type of material cultural artifact used (household, production) were coded. Larger proportions of female characters in the books used household artifacts, whereas larger proportions of male characters used production artifacts outside the home. The authors discuss the relationship of these representations to the real world of gender, tools, and work, as well as implications for the socialization of children.