Why does society reject bright girls?

Girls with superior intelligence who receive machismo and marginalization. What are we doing wrong?

At a time when machismo seems to be on the wane in a good number of countries, a paradoxical fact is taking place: girls show the same capacity as boys when it comes to learning, but they are treated with condescension more often and, when they stand out for their abilities, they are often met with rejection from people around them.

And no, it's not a matter of envy. So... what's wrong?

A problem linked to self-esteem

Researcher Heidi Grant Halvorston wrote a while back that part of the reason girls tend not to be as opinionated and assertive is the way they view themselves, i.e., their self-concept. The idea is that boys and girls perceive their abilities differently, but not because of genetic differences, but because of the way they have been taught to think about themselves. Specifically, he believes that bright or gifted girls tend to believe that they are born with a set of abilities that they cannot change, while boys, regardless of their genetic differences, tend to believe that they are born with a set of abilities that they cannot change.while boys, regardless of their abilities, believe more in the possibility of improving by learning.

When children encounter difficulties, because there is something they do not understand or have not yet learned to do, the people around them encourage them to continue and often remind them of the importance of the culture of effort.

In the case of girls, however, condescension limits their learning. When they do something well, they are rewarded with kind words about how smart they are, or how good they are at their studies. This, which in principle is a good thing, has a double edge: girls internalize a type of discourse that constantly reminds them that if they are successful at a task it is because "they are like that".because it is part of their identity, and not part of the repertoire of behaviors they have learned.

Creating a culture of stigma

Thus, when they notice that there is something they do not know how to do, they believe it is because they are simply not cut out for those tasks. In the same way, they will look askance when other girls go to great lengths to master something they didn't know how to do in the first place, and can sometimes be stigmatized.and can sometimes be stigmatized. In this way, a culture is created in which an idea is internalized that kills the developmental possibilities of many talented young women.

Bright girls thus have to deal with a double obstacle: the difficulty of learning the necessary skills to prepare them for adult life and, at the same time, the difficulty of managing the negative reactions that their abilities produce. But, of course, this rejection comes not only from other girls, but from many other people, due to the inheritance of machismo.

The imprint of machismo on intelligent girls

There are now many studies that point to a curious phenomenon: compared to men, women are more likely to receive negative reactions when they adopt a role of authority. when they take on a role of authority. In other words, women who behave assertively encounter more problems than men when it comes to asserting themselves, whether it be asking for a raise, negotiating the distribution of tasks or proposing initiatives and strategies.

This disparity between men and women may well have its origins during the childhood years, in the way boys and girls interact with each other in playtime, group activities. The role of women has traditionally been linked to household chores and child rearing, in a context characterized by stability and stability in the home.The role of women has traditionally been linked to household chores and child rearing, a context characterized by stability and in which they cannot stand out above other people. Competitiveness in an unstable and changing context was the task of men, who leave home to earn money by differentiating themselves from the competition.

This makes the male role more related to individualism and differentiation through effort, while women adhered to much more discreet roles. The existence of bright, talented girls struggling to hone their skills and not bothering to adopt a low, discreet profile clashes with this conception of men's and women's tasks.

Concluding

If girls with special talents receive feedback If girls with special talents receive negative feedback from other people, it is basically because wherever the education of these minors is carried out there is also a cultural context with the presence of machismo to a greater or lesser degree.

Presumably, addressing this social and collective problem will also improve something as individual as the way in which each of these young women experience their potential without being stigmatized for it.