Pink vs. Blue: Boys, Girls and the Toys They Love
By Stacey Garfinkle |  January 12, 2009; 7:00 AM ET

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/parenting/2009/01/pink_v_blue.html

Which came first: girls' love of everything pink or pink-packaged toys aimed at girls?

That chicken-and-egg question is at the center of a small-scale study out of Britain that looks at how toys impact learning by gender.

"People might think that toys are more androgynous these days, but go into any toy shop and you will find separate aisles, and even separate floors, for girls and boys," Becky Francis, professor of education at Roehampton University, told The Guardian last month. "The packaging is geared towards either boys or girls by colour, wording and the images portrayed on them. This creates the impression that certain toys are just for boys and others just for girls, and so some toys are completely out of bounds."

In her look at toys and DVDs geared toward children ages 3 to 5, Francis first sought out favorites from preschoolers, as told by their parents in a questionnaire. In most cases, boys' favorite toys were "characterized stereotypically by action, construction and machinery." Girls' favorites, meanwhile, were those catering to stereotypical feminine interests such as nurturing and appearance.

It is interesting that before the 50's, I think it was, pink was for boys and blue for girls.  I happen to like both.

Packaging is geared to the parents and not the child.  Children catch on quickly.  And will gravitate to whatever they have been taught.  If a girl is taught and shown boy toys that is what she will go for, even if she likes the girl toys.  Nuture v. Nature in this case.

Janet