Because of the prevalence of boys’ and men’s perspectives, girls learn early to put themselves in boys’ and men’s shoes. A girl’s imagination would be a barren place if she didn’t. Boys, however, are far less likely to do this and are, in some cases, shamed for doing this. Boys generally don’t look up to women as role models, and they don’t have to cross-gender empathize when they consume media. The centrality and visibility that exist, particularly, in the United States, for young, white boys is a source of confidence, invisible capital that becomes evident in self-esteem.
