Syed Yousaf ShahBSN (BMU), MSN (DUHS)Instructor Institute of NursingDow University of Health SciencesJuly11, 2013

Social Perceptions Towards Gender

At the end of Today’s Session Students will able to:

1) Describe gender as a sociological construct.2) Analyze personal and cultural perceptions

towards gender.3) Discuss social perceptions and status regarding

men and women.4) Discuss the role and status of women in

Pakistani society.5) Evaluate societal attitudes towards factors

enhancing women’s status.

Objectives

What do we mean by "sex" and "gender"?

"Sex"

Refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women.

"Gender"

Refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women.

Putting it another way:

Sex= “male" and "female“ Gender = "masculine" and "feminine”

Some examples of sex characteristics

Women menstruate while men do not Men have testicles while women do not Women have developed breasts that are usually

capable of lactating, while men have not Men generally have more massive bones than women

Some examples of gender characteristics

In the United States (and most other countries), women earn significantly less money than men for similar work .

In Viet Nam, many more men than women smoke, as female smoking has not traditionally been considered appropriate .

In Saudi Arabia men are allowed to drive cars while women are not.

In most of the world, women do more housework than men .

The term gender role is used to signify all those things that a person says or does to disclose himself/herself as having the status of boy or man, girl or woman, respectively.

Gender Role

Culture impacts gender differences in the expression of emotions. This may be partly explained by the different social roles men and women have in different cultures, and by the status and power men and women hold in different societies, as well as the different cultural values various societies hold.

Emotions

Overall, women claim to be far happier than men with their lives, and reported more often that they had made personal progress.

Women show greater concern about family and home life issues, while men express more concern about political issues. Men are happier with their family life and more optimistic about their personal future and that of their children.

Happiness

women are more likely than men to consider factors other than pay when looking for work, are less willing to travel or relocate, and work fewer hours per week.

This difference is due to women not taking jobs due to marriage or pregnancy.

Working Preferences

Women account for more than half of all workers in the following industries: Women are more likely than men to be social workers, legal assistants, teachers, nurses, speech pathologists, dental hygienists, maids and housekeeping cleaners, and childcare workers.

More men than women work in the following industries: construction, transportation and utilities, farming, computer and mathematical occupations, engineering, and architecture.

Men are more likely than women to be firefighters, police and patrol officers, electricians, dentists, and surgeons.

Worldwide, men are more likely to be literate, with 100 men considered literate for every 88 women. In some countries the difference is even greater; for example, in Bangladesh only 62 women are literate for every 100 men.

Education

Males are much more likely to die by suicide than females (usually by a factor of 3–4:1); 69 out of 74 non-western countries found an excess male mortality from suicide.

While there are more completed male suicides than female, females are more likely to attempt suicide. One possible explanation is that males tend to use more immediately lethal methods than females, who use less violent methods while attempting suicide. Another theory is that females are more likely to use self-harm as a cry for help or attention while males are more likely to genuinely want to end their lives.

Suicide

Males are more likely than females to commit murder. Men are also far more likely than women to be the victims of violent crime.

Crime

Men log on more often, spend more time online, and for recreation such as downloading music and videos.

Internet Use

Marriage and sexuality Dating and marriage customs are dependent

on culture and differ greatly across countries and even in subcultures within the same country.

For example, many marriages in India/Pakistan are arranged, whereas in the Western World most people choose their own partners

Clothing In most cultures, different sorts of clothing are considered

In Western societies, skirts and dresses and high-heeled shoes are usually seen as women's clothing, while neckties are generally worn by men. Trousers were once seen as exclusively male clothing, but are nowadays worn by both sexes. Male clothes are often more practical (that is, they can function well under a wide variety of situations), but a wider range of clothing styles is available for females appropriate for men and women.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person.  Men and women of full age without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry or to have a family.  They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage and its dissolution.  Marriage shall be entered in to only with the free and full consent of the attending spouses.  The family is the natural and fundamental group, unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and state."

(Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 3 & 16)

Role and status of women in Pakistani society

All these beautifully constructed sentences take a180 degrees turn while considering the status of specifically 'women' in Pakistan.  Our women still seem to be living in the dark ages. 

WHO (2012). Gender, women and health. Accessed from http://www.who.int/gender/whatisgender/en

. Hartigan,P.(2001). The importance of gender

in defining the quality of care: some conceptual issues, Health Policy and Planning, 16 (Suppl.1), 7-12.

Reference