Final answer:
Eisenberg et al.'s research suggests that children can exhibit gender-typical behavior before the development of gender schemas, indicating a significant influence of biological factors, societal norms, and parental modeling on gender-specific choices rather than solely cognitive development.
Step-by-step explanation:
Eisenberg et al.'s findings do indeed present a challenge to gender schema theory, suggesting that gender-typical behavior in children might manifest prior to the development of gender schemas, indicating that factors other than cognitive development might be influential. This contradicts the idea that children need to understand gender expectations before they can act in gender-typical ways. Instead, biological factors, societal norms, and parental modeling may play a crucial role in this early gender-specific behavior.
For instance, societal norms dictate certain behaviors and roles based on one's gender, as evident by the expectations society places on boys and girls from a very young age. Similarly, parental modeling provides children with cues on how to act according to their gender, as parents often encourage gender normative behaviors and provide gender-typical toys that further reinforce societal norms and expectations. Therefore, if gender-typical choices occur before the development of gender schemas, they are likely influenced by biological factors, societal norms, and parental modeling rather than cognitive development, aligning with options a, b, and d.