Question

Katrina, age 5, and Sharon, age 4, love to play together while their mothers chat. Katrina has a toy iron and washing machine. She and Sharon spend hours "washing" and "ironing" her baby doll's clothes, just like they see their mothers do. Which of George Herbert Mead's stages of development are Katrina and Sharon exemplifying?a. The preparatory stage.b. The play stage.c. The game stage.d. The "generalized other" stage.

Answer 1

Answer: Katrina and Sharon are exemplifying B. the play stage.

Explanation: According to George Herbert Mead, during the play stage, children imitate their parents' actions. In the case of little girls, they tend to pretend to carry out the household chores that, in general, their mothers perform. This is what Katrina and her friend Sharon exemplify because they pretend to wash and iron as their mothers do it at home. Mead also describes this stage as the one in which children do not follow the rules of the games they are playing.