March 5 2009

LEGO® UK have revealed fresh research which sheds light on how children’s future career paths can be elicited in formative years through play preferences - with architects having preferred construction toys, nurses most likely to have chosen dolls, accountants opting for puzzles and board games, marketing and advertising professionals getting creative with painting kits and Play-Doh and of course IT workers who (unsurprisingly) plumped for computer games.  

Of these professionals architects were the most likely to be influenced at an early stage through their preferred toys - construction sets. The analytical boffins at LEGO showed that a whopping 99% of current architects were found to have dallied with the primary coloured plastic and 54% of architects had decided on their future vocation before the age of 16, compared to the British average of 15% - highlighting that toys such as LEGO bricks can be used to build a rewarding career.  

Dr Nicola Pitchford, a Developmental Psychologist at the University of Nottingham says, “The toys that children gravitate towards help promote the skills they may draw on in their future careers. Architects use a very clear set of logical skills which can be linked to the cognitive skills children learn and develop when playing with construction or building toys such as LEGO bricks. These sorts of toys also encourage the creativity that is key to the profession as the number of constructions children can build is endless.”

Rory McCoy, an architect with the award winning firm, Gareth Hoskins Architects, says “I loved playing with construction sets and other building toys when growing up.  I can still remember my excitement at the sudden realisation that I could make buildings structurally sound with my LEGO bricks – I couldn’t wait to find my next big architectural discovery!”

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