Big and small, girls and boys

Intersecting gendered touch practices in early childhood educators’ discourses

Bibliographic Data

ID12232136
AuthorsVirve Keränen (0000-0002-4506-7482, University of Oulu, corresponding author), Outi Ylitapio-Mäntylä (0000-0002-0516-2223, University of Oulu)
Year2023
Volume36
Issue2
Pages135-147
Publication date2023-11-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueGender and Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0954-0253 • E-ISSN: 1360-0516
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09540253.2023.2282985
OpenAlexW4388734325
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited39

In this study, we argue that touch is a way of producing gender in preschool and our aim is to explore different kinds of matters that intersect with gendered touch practices in this context. Our theoretical starting points draw on the performativity of gender and the discursively constructed touch practices of early childhood educators. We analyse these discourses by employing intersectional analysis. The data consist of three group discussions among 27 female early childhood educators. The findings suggest that gendered touch practices intersect across children's age, materiality, time, place, and heteronormative assumptions. Furthermore, cultural conventions affect the ways in which children are touched and the kinds of touch that are considered appropriate in relation to gender

Developmental psychology · Early childhood · Early childhood education · Masculinity · Pedagogy · Sociology · Children's Rights and Participation · Early Childhood Education and Development · Gender Roles and Identity Studies · Gender Studies · Psychology