Chapter 2Gender

Chapter 2: GenderIntroduction

• Quote: “Newsflash: You’re the boy. I’m the girl. You text me first or we don’t talk today.”– Unknown, University Newspaper

• Discussion:– How does the quote above exemplify

traditional gender roles in our society? Can you discuss a situation in your own life where you have either witnessed or been a subject of traditional gender role ideals?

Chapter 2: GenderChapter Outline

• Terminology of Gender Roles• Theories of Gender Role Development• Agents of Socialization• Gender Roles in Other Societies• Consequences of Traditional Gender Role

Socialization• Changing Gender Roles• The Future of Gender Roles

Chapter 2: GenderIntroduction

• Food for thought…

– Caster Semenya won gold in the women’s 800-m race at the World Athletics Championship in 2009, but colleagues questioned if the 18 year old South African was, in fact, a woman.

– Based on her picture and athletic ability, why would her colleagues think this?

Terminology of Gender Roles:Sex

• The biological distinction between females and males.

• Intersexed Individuals: Those with mixed or ambiguous genitals

• Factors used to determine biological sex:

– Chromosomes: XX for female; XY for male– Gonads: Ovaries for female; testes for male– Hormones– Internal sex organs– External genitals

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

• Gender– The social construct that refers to the social and

psychological characteristics associated with being female or male.

– Feminine vs. masculine– Gender differences are a consequence of biological

and social factors. • Gender Identity

– The psychological state of viewing oneself as a girl or a boy, and later as a man or woman.

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

• Transgender– A generic term for a person of one biological sex who

displays characteristics of the other sex– Cross-Dresser– Transsexual

• Gender Roles– Social norms that specify the socially appropriate

behavior for females and males in society• Sex Roles

– Roles defined by biological constraints; can be enacted by members of one biological sex only

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

Category Biological SexSexual

Orientation

Cross-dresser Either Either

Transvestite Male Gay

Transsexual Either Either

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

• Gender Role Ideology– The proper role relationships between women

and men in a society• Gender Differences in Viewing Romantic

Relationships

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

• Food for thought…– What would happen if your healthy baby boy’s

genitals were damaged right after birth? Watch the Youtube video below about David Reimer.

– David Reimer: Raised as a Girl (Run Time 10:24) http://youtu.be/QeSvkE9ZtHk

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

• Discussion– Using the picture to the

right, address the following terms with what you believe best defines this person’s:

• Sex• Gender• Gender identity• Gender Roles• Gender role ideology

Terminology of Gender Roles:Gender

• The picture in the previous slide was a male in female attire and makeup.

• Does this change your answers to the terms that we just discussed? If so, how?

• Terms on the previous slide:– Sex– Gender– Gender identity– Gender Roles– Gender role

ideology

Theories of Gender Development:Biosocial

• Sociobiology (Biosocial) – Emphasizes that social behavior and gender

roles have a biological basis in terms of being functional in human evolution

Theories of Gender Development:Social Learning

• Social Learning– Derived from the school of behavioral

psychology– Emphasizes the roles of reward and

punishment in explaining how a child learns gender role behavior

Theories of Gender Development:Identification

• Identification – Children acquire the characteristics and

behaviors of their same-sex parent through a process of identification

Theories of Gender Development:Cognitive-Developmental

• Cognitive-Developmental Theory – Reflects a blend of biological and social

learning views– The biological readiness, in terms of cognitive

development, of the child influences how the child responds to gender cues in the environment.

Agents of Socialization

• Sources influencing gender socialization:– Family– Race/Ethnicity– Peers– Religion– Education– Economy– Mass Media

Gender Roles in Other Societies:Latino/Hispanic Families

• Although traditional family models in Spain call for men as providers and women as homemakers and mothers, a new feminine culture and a social reality is moving steadily toward gender equality and complementariness between genders.

Gender Roles in Other Societies:Afghanistan Under the Taliban

• Afghan women go uneducated, become child brides, produce children, and rarely expect their daughters’ lives to be different.

Gender Roles in Other Societies:Caribbean Families

• Family patterns are often characterized by women and their children as the primary family unit—the fathers of these children rarely live in the home.– Men may have children with different women

and be psychologically and physically absent from their children’s lives.

Gender Roles in Other Societies:East and South Africa

• Africa is very diverse with Islamic and Arab cultures in the north and industrial and European influences in the south.

• In eastern African cultures, gender roles can be very different from what Americans are used to.

• In South Africa, the family has traditional gender role relationships and patriarchy is the norm.

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:

Female Roles

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:

Feminization of Poverty

• Disproportionate percentage of poverty experienced by women living alone or with their children.

• Poverty contributes to teen pregnancy, since teens have limited supervision and few alternatives to parenthood.

• Early childbearing interferes with education and restricts earning capacity.

• Offspring are born into poverty, and the cycle repeats.

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:Female Genital Alteration

• Surgical procedures involving partial or total removal of the external genitalia or other injuries to the female genitalia for cultural or other non-therapeutic reasons.

• Parents believe female circumcision makes their daughters marketable for marriage.

• Many daughters view it as a rite of passage.

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:Relationship Choices for Women

• A woman who is not socialized to pursue an education may feel pressure to stay in an unhappy relationship.

• Women who are socialized to not initiate relationships are limiting interactions that could develop into valued relationships.

• Women who are socialized to accept that they are less valuable than men are less likely to achieve egalitarian relationships.

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:Relationship Choices for Women

• Women who view their worth in terms of age and appearance are likely to feel bad about themselves as they age.

• Women who are socialized to accept that they are solely responsible for taking care of their parents, children, and husband are likely to experience role overload.

• Women who are socialized to emphasize the importance of relationships will seek relationships that are emotionally satisfying.

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:

Male Roles

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:Relationship Choices for Men

• Men who are socialized to define themselves in terms of their income leave their self-esteem vulnerable should they become unemployed.

• Men who are socialized to restrict their expression of emotions are denied the opportunity for interpersonal sharing.

• Men who are socialized to believe it is not their role to participate in domestic activities will not be competent in these life skills.

Consequences of Traditional Gender Role Socialization:Relationship Choices for Men

• Heterosexual men who focus on cultural definitions of female beauty overlook potential partners.

• Men who are socialized to view women who initiate relationships negatively are restricted in their relationship opportunities.

• Men who are socialized to be in control of relationship encounters may alienate their partners, who may desire equal influence in relationships.

Changing Gender Roles:Androgyny

• A blend of traits stereotypically associated with masculinity and femininity– Physiological androgyny refers to intersexed

individuals.– Behavioral androgyny refers to the blending

or reversal of traditional male and female behavior, so a biological male may be gentle and nurturing, and a biological female may be assertive and selfish.

Changing Gender Roles:Positive Androgyny

• Devoid of the negative traits of masculinity:– Aggression, hard-heartedness, indifference,

selfishness, showing off, vindictiveness

• Devoid of the negative traits of femininity:– Passivity, submissive, temperamental, fragile

Changing Gender Roles

• Gender Role Transcendence– Involves abandoning our gender schema so

that personality traits, social or occupational roles, and other aspects of our lives become divorced from gender categories

• Gender Postmodernism– View that abandons the notion that genders

are natural and focuses on the social construction of the individual in a gender-fluid society

The Future of Gender Roles

• Ideas about characteristics that are traditionally associated with men (aggressiveness, independence, strength) and women (nurturance, passivity, emotions) are changing.

• Both sexes are considered equal, and women and men may pursue the same occupational, political, and domestic roles.

The Future of Gender Roles

• Food for thought…– Imagine a society in which women and men

each develop characteristics, lifestyles, and values that are independent of gender role stereotypes.

– Is such a society possible? Discuss.

Quick Quiz

1. Which of the following refers to the biological distinction between females and males?

A. role characterization

B. sex

C. gender

D. sexology

Quick Quiz

2. Which term refers to a blend of traits that is associated with both masculinity and femininity?

A. gender orientation

B. hermaphroditism

C. transgendered

D. androgyny

Quick Quiz

3. Which theory emphasizes the role of reward and punishment in explaining how a child learns gender role behavior?

A. gender role transcendence

B. identification

C. cognitive-developmental theory

D. social learning theory

Quick Quiz

4. The social norms that dictate what is socially regarded as appropriate female and male behaviors make up one's:

A. gender role

B. gender identity

C. sex role

D. socialization

Quick Quiz

5. Which of the following is not a negative consequence of traditional female role socialization?

a. Less income

b. Feminization of poverty

c. Longer life

d. Negative body image