Why do boys and girls still choose different careers? New research points to childhood friendships

Why do boys and girls still choose different careers? New research points to childhood friendships

Despite decades of progress toward gender equality, boys and girls across the developed world continue to choose very different educational paths. Women remain underrepresented in high-paying fields like science and engineering, while men are less likely to enter care-related professions.

Paradoxically, this phenomenon tends to be stronger in countries that are richer and more gender equal - a pattern known as the gender equality paradox.

A new study Gender Segregation in Childhood Friendships and the Gender Equality Paradox by Manuel Bagues and Natalia Zinovyeva finds that gender segregation has its roots in childhood. Children who lack opposite sex friends in childhood are more likely to go on to choose gender typical careers. Segregation in childhood friendship is stronger in richer countries and among children from wealthier backgrounds.

By analysing the data from 500,000 children in 37 Western countries and from 10,000 British families over a 20-year period, the researchers found a link between the friendship patterns of children at age seven and their future educational and career choices. Those with fewer friends of the opposite sex are significantly more likely to choose gender typical subjects a decade later.

Analysis of the data revealed that economic prosperity inadvertently causes greater gender gaps in childhood with affluent families placing a high value on children's self-expression while enrolling them in predominantly gender segregated activities. The findings show:

• Girls make up 80% of after school dance classes with 66% taking part in music lessons. Sports clubs which are more common among higher-income families, also tend to be organised along gender lines.
• Children from less affluent families spend more unsupervised time with relatives and neighbourhood peers, creating more opportunities for spontaneous cross-gender interactions.
• There is a direct correlation between children from higher-income families - who typically are better able to emotionally regulate, have stronger cooperation skills and fewer behavioural difficulties - with fewer opposite-sex friendships.

This indicates that the very advantages that affluent families provide their children - structured activities, emotional stability, and strong family relationships - might unintentionally contribute to the persistence of educational gender segregation.

Manuel Bagues, Professor of Economics at Warwick University and CAGE Research Associate said:

“Our observations strongly suggest that gender segregation in higher education and labour markets has important roots in childhood social dynamics. We show how childhood friendship patterns, shaped by family income and parenting styles, set children on gender-typed trajectories long before they make educational choices.

“While eliminating formal barriers and promoting gender-equal values are important steps, they may not be enough to reduce educational gender segregation.

“The goal is to ensure children's social worlds don't inadvertently limit their academic and career horizons.”

As policymakers and educators look for ways to close gender gaps in education and the workplace, this research highlights the importance of early social experiences—and suggests that encouraging more mixed-gender play might be a small but meaningful step forward.

• Read the full research paper: Gender Segregation in Childhood Friendships and the Gender Equality Paradox

• Read the article in VoxEU: Childhood friendships and the gender equality paradox in education