A study was conducted to investigate whether: (1) children's preferences for activities vary as a function of the cultural stereotypes to which they are exposed; (2) children's perception of appropriate activities for females and males vary as a function of the cultural stereotypes to which they are exposed; and (3) the degree of differences between females and males perceived by children is a function of the cultural stereotypes to which they are exposed. Ss were 12 girls and 12 boys, aged 3-5 years, from a traditional culture, Orthodox Judaism, and 12 girls and 12 boys (same age range) from a nontraditional culture. The parents of the latter group shared the idea that stereotyping of female and male roles harms both sexes. The children were presented individually with pictures of 24 toys, and each child was asked to select her/his eight favorite toys. Next, photos of girls and boys in play situations were shown to the children and stories were read to go with the pictures. Ss were asked to select one child pictured to complete the story. Finally, each subject was asked what he/she thought the differences are between boys and girls. Observational data indicated that the children from the traditional culture played in a very sex-typed manner; at the nontraditional schools, there were no boys' or girls' sides and boys and girls played together. The toy preferences of the traditional boys and girls were significantly different from each other. Non-traditional children were more likely to give non-stereotyped answers to the incomplete story questions. Traditional childred were more likely to differentiate between the sexes, a tendency also related to age. (KM)