The development of the gender identity culminates in adolescence. One of its important aspects is the image of one’s own future: as a woman or a man, what is my life going to (or should) be like? The adolescents construct such ideas in confrontation with the requirements of gender roles they are often unaware of. Also, on the contrary, they consider their ideas about the future to be entirely a question of their own choice. This strengthens the influence of gender stereotypes on adolescent girls and boys. The article discusses similarities and differences between girls’ and boys’ ideas about their adult life. It is based on an analysis of 98 descriptions of everyday routines in adulthood as written by adolescent pupils. Each description consisted of two parts: the idea of one’s own future and the idea of the future if you were of the opposite sex. The descriptions show how differently girls and boys think about their prospects and how their ideas are influenced by their identification with gender categories. This corresponds with numerous psychological theories of gender identity development and the theories of gender order.
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