Abstract

This paper investigates children's learning process of age and gender, two of the most apparent social roles. The subjects of the study were 72 Korean preschool children aged between three to five. They were examined to test a developmental sequence and horizontal decalage in understanding of the roles. Two five-step knowledge sequences of age growth and sex constancy were provided utilizing skill theory (Fischer,1980). Each step in a sequence had different stories of age or sex role with increasing cognitive complexity, but the two sequences were equivalent in complexity. The children were tested under two different assessment conditions : high support condition of elicited imitation and low support condition of free play and the best story. The findings are as follow : First, the understanding of age and sex roles develops through the predicted five-step sequences. Second, the understanding of age role seems to develop earlier than that of sex role although the developmental patterns of the two roles are similar. Third, variations in the children's performances, under different conditions, are dramatic, especially for the older children.