From the ArcaMax Publishing, Parents Newsletter:
http://www.arcamax.com/news/parents/s-371666-809092
BOSTON (UPI) -- Girls are as competitive as boys, but use more subtle
tactics, a study of U.S. pre-schoolers suggests.
Researchers found while boys used aggressive tactics to get what they
want, girls rely on the pain of social exclusion, ABC News reported
Friday.
Joyce Benenson at Emmanuel College in Boston and her colleagues
divided 87 4-year-olds into same-sex groups of three. In successive
trials, each trio received one, two or three highly prized animal
puppets, which each of the children wanted.
The study found the boys and girls behaved similarly when there were
two or three puppets to go around. Differences between the sexes
became clear when there was just one puppet for each group.
Boys tended to ask for the puppet, grab at it, or even chase the child
who had it. Girls punished the puppet-holder by excluding her from
their group, whispering behind her back or even hiding from her.