When I was a child, I could get hours of entertainment from asking my parents one simple question: "Why?" My insatiable curiosity drove me to ask, and ask, and ask. Curiosity matters. As Eleanor Roosevelt put it, "Life must be lived and curiosity kept alive." One Harvard Business Review article claims that curiosity is as important as intelligence. It means you have a hungry mind, you are inquisitive, and you are open to new experiences.
The Curiosity Gap Starts Early
Stemmewear has exposed me to many topics in gender issues and the psychology of children. When doing some initial reading of a report by Statistics Canada titled Women in Canada: A Gender-based Statistical Report, I saw that one study found that 5-year-old boys ranked higher than girls with respect to curiosity. To put it more specifically: the study found that 67% of boys often showed curiosity, versus 48% of girls, as rated by their parents.
Several months later, an article from Science Magazine was sent to me stating that women ask disproportionately fewer questions than men at conference talks, even when women make up the majority of the audience. This phenomenon of the female population asking fewer questions and being less curious seems to carry through to adult life.
What Is Driving This?
Is it that girls are inherently less curious? I do not believe so. Research suggests that the gap has more to do with how we socialize children than with any biological difference. Girls are often praised for being quiet, polite, and agreeable. Boys are encouraged to explore, take risks, and ask questions. Over time, these patterns become habits that follow us into adulthood.
Think about it: when a boy takes apart a toy to see how it works, we call him curious. When a girl does the same thing, she might be told to be more careful. These small moments add up and shape how children see themselves and their place in the world.
Why Representation Matters
This is exactly why Stemmewear exists. When a toddler wears pyjamas printed with DNA helixes and learns that Jennifer Doudna won the Nobel Prize, or sleeps in a onesie covered in planets and discovers that Roberta Bondar flew to space, we are sending a message: your curiosity is valuable. Your questions matter. You belong in science.
Clothing is one of the first forms of identity that children encounter. Long before they can read or choose their own outfits, the messages on their clothes shape how the world sees them and how they see themselves.
Shop the Collection
Explore our baby onesies and toddler pyjamas, each inspired by a trailblazing woman in STEM. Let us encourage girls to keep asking questions and keep their curiosity alive.