Beyond the Toy Box: How Australian Adults Prescribe Toys Based on Child Gender Expression and Assigned Sex

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Abstract
Children's gender socialisation begins before birth, as parents form gendered expectations and prepare environments that anticipate a child's gender, and gender‐typed toys are a prominent tool in this process. Adults consistently demonstrate gendered patterns in how they prescribe toys to children, but it remains unclear whether these are driven more by the child's assigned sex or their gender expression. In this study, 1200 Australian adults (562 parents, 638 non‐parents; 603 women, 597 men) prescribed toys to child protagonists depicted as either female or male and as feminine or masculine in their gender expression. Significant differences emerged: adults were more likely to prescribe feminine toys to girls and feminine‐presenting children, and masculine toys to boys and masculine‐presenting children. While both factors influenced responses, the child's assigned sex had a stronger effect than gender expression. These patterns also varied by the gender of the adult participant. Our findings offer novel insights into how adults contribute to children's gender socialisation through toy prescriptions.

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