HONG KONG, Oct 6 — A groundbreaking seven-year study from the Chinese University of Hong Kong has found that giving girls toys traditionally marketed to boys—such as model cars and building kits—can significantly enhance their spatial reasoning skills, a key predictor of success in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields.

SCMP reported that in the study led by Professor Ivy Wong Wang, director of the university’s gender studies programme, the research tracked 644 children aged five to six beginning in 2014, with a follow-up on 210 of them as teenagers between 2021 and 2023. 

The study revealed that children who engaged more frequently with boy-typical toys demonstrated stronger mental transformation abilities, a spatial skill involving the visualisation of objects as they rotate or move.

“Both girls and boys need spatial skills,” Wong emphasized. “If girls have better spatial skills, they can perform better in mathematics and can choose a STEM career if they want”.

The findings challenge long-standing gender norms in toy marketing. Wong advocates for parents and educators to encourage girls to play with puzzles, building blocks, and model kits, and to use spatial language—like size, direction, and relationships—during play. 

She also calls on toy manufacturers to design products that foster spatial development for all children and to reduce gendered messaging in advertising.

Importantly, the study controlled for socioeconomic factors by selecting participants from diverse income districts. I

t confirmed that the benefits of boy-typical play on spatial skills applied across gender and income levels, offering a compelling case for rethinking how toys are categorised and marketed.

This research adds to a growing body of evidence that early childhood play can shape cognitive development and future career paths—especially for girls in traditionally male-dominated fields.