Gender differences in emotion expression in children: a meta-analytic review.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Meta-analysis of observational studies (level by design analogy).
PubMed 23231534 · doi:10.1037/a0030737
What was done
Meta-analytic review analyzing 555 effect sizes from 166 studies with 21,709 participants to evaluate gender differences and moderators (age, interpersonal context, and task valence) in children's facial, vocal, and behavioral emotion expression from infancy through adolescence.
What was found
Overall gender differences were statistically significant but very small: girls displayed more positive emotions (g = -.08) and internalizing emotions (e.g., sadness, anxiety, sympathy; g = -.10) than boys, while boys showed more externalizing emotions (e.g., anger; g = .09) than girls. Moderation analyses showed that gender differences in positive emotions grew with age (middle childhood g = -.20, adolescence g = -.28). Boys showed more externalizing emotions than girls in toddler/preschool years (g = .17) and middle childhood (g = .13), but girls showed more in adolescence (g = -.27). Differences were less pronounced with parents, more pronounced with unfamiliar adults for positive emotions, and more pronounced with peers or when alone for externalizing emotions.
Why it matters
This meta-analysis demonstrates that while baseline gender differences in children's emotion expression are minimal, they are meaningfully moderated by developmental stage and social context.
Limits
The abstract does not report confidence intervals, tests for publication bias, or measures of between-study heterogeneity. Details regarding cultural, demographic, and socioeconomic characteristics or specific measurement modalities are omitted.
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