Sociology Assignment
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Intro_Module9.pptxSex and Gender
Introduction to Sociology: Module 9
Gender roles are socially constructed
Gender roles are created by humans to meet the needs of their societies
Life chances in the stratification system depend upon the combination of age and sex
Sociology Says
Variations around the world demonstrate that roles and identities are not biological but rather socially constructed
Certain tasks must be carried out by individuals and organizations in each society for members to survive – one’s sex and age are often used to determine who holds various positions and who carries out what tasks – each society develops its own way to meet these needs
Sex and Gender Stratification
Sex- usually thought of as a biological term referring to ascribed genetic, anatomical, and hormonal differences between males and females, but it is actually determined by socially accepted biological criteria
Intersex- persons with ambiguous genitalia (about 1.7% of babies are born with unusual sex chromosomes, internal procreative organs, and external genitalia)
Heteronormativity – defines the cultural expectations held in most societies that a “normal” girl or boy will be sexually attracted to and eventually have sex with someone of the other sex
Sex
Gender – learned and created, refers to socially constructed notions of masculinity and femininity
Gender identity- how individuals construct their gender identity using these categories and negotiating the constraints they entail
Gender roles- rigidly and/or commonly assigned tasks or expected behaviors of individuals because of their sex category
Transgender - the identity of someone who is challenging or changing the gender they were assigned at birth
Gender
Sexuality - how cultures shape the meanings of sexuality and sexual acts and how we experience our own bodies and our bodies in relation to others
Like sex and gender, sexuality is socially constructed
Sexuality
Agents of socialization teach us from birth how to display proper gendered behaviors
Failure to comply often results in sanctions; therefore we generally learn to conform, at least in our public behavior
In adulthood men traditionally have more networks and statuses, as well as greater access to resources outside of the home
Some argue that language is powerful in shaping the behavior and perceptions of people; women often end sentences with tag questions which may give impression of insecurity or uncertainty
Different adverbs or adjectives used relative men or women carry different meanings (i.e., “He’s easy” v. “She’s easy”)
Agents of Socialization
Adults’ roles and responsibilities in social institutions differ by age and sex
Rites of passage (rituals and formal processes that acknowledge a change of status) differ by age and sex
Women’s reduced power in micro-level settings is often related to a lack of power in meso-level organizations and institutions
Rites of Passage
Gender socialization is the process by which people learn the cultural norms, attitudes, and behaviors appropriate to their gender through sanctions
Micro-level agents and learning in gender socialization:
In infancy and childhood parents and family play major role
In early childhood, children become aware of their own gender identity
At school age they learn their sex is permanent
Meso-level agents include:
Corporations
Mass media
Educational systems
Religious beliefs
Gender Socialization
Inequality at the global/national level is independent of personal prejudices
Institutionalized privilege or disprivilege - patterns of social action that are imbedded in the entire social system may influence women and men, providing unrecognized privileges or disadvantages
Institutionalized Stratification
Glass ceiling- social forces that keep women from reaching the highest levels of corporate and public responsibility
Sticky floor- social forces that keep the vast majority of the world’s women stuck in low-paid jobs
Glass escalator- even if men do not seek to climb in the organizational hierarchy, occupational social forces push them up the job ladder into higher echelons, especially in female-dominated occupations
The workplace itself is gendered
Institutional Disprivilege
Institutional discrimination: woven into the social structure and taken for granted
De jure discrimination: deliberate discrimination, often justified by beliefs about women’s inability to carry out certain tasks
De facto discrimination: unequal treatment that is unintended
Side effect discrimination: rests on links between practices in different institutions
Past-in-present discrimination: practices from the past that may no longer be allowed still affect people
Institutionalized Gender Discrimination
Symbolic interactionist perspective - gender is socially constructed; physical, biological differences come to be regarded as symbols that differentiate rights and rewards in society
Gender is not intrinsically related to sex
Humans have agency to influence the society around them
Doing gender (we perform our genders based on stereotypes)
Symbolic Interactionism
Structural-functionalist theory - each sex has a role to play in the interdependent groups and institutions of society
As societies change, so do roles & relationships
Society: from mechanical to organic solidarity
Gender: from similar to differentiated roles
Different but complementary roles:
Expressive (private sphere) – female
Instrumental (public sphere) – male
Structural Functionalism
Conflict Theory- by keeping women in subordinate roles, men ensure that they control the means of production and protect their privileges
Sees males as “haves” (power, wealth), women as “have nots”
Male dominance justified by traditional ideologies
Men will not voluntarily give up their current beneficial positions of power
Conflict Theory
Feminist Theory- patriarchy is the cause of women’s oppression
Patriarchy - a few men dominate and hold authority over all others, including women, children, and less powerful men
Class, race, and gender intersect in a way that privileges some women over others, though most women are still subordinate to most men
Despite intersections, women are a “minority group” subject to stereotypes, prejudice, discrimination
Feminism actively advocates change to the social order to eliminate patriarchy
Feminism
Intersectionality – the feminist technique of examining multiples areas of stratification on an individual
Looks at the variety of ways that many common citizens are controlled by those who have a monopoly on power and privilege
Even privileged women have less power than their husbands or other men in their lives
Income for men and women varies significantly depending on ethnicity within the US, and this means that minority women are even more disprivileged; when ethnicity is constant women are paid less
Gender affects one’s prestige and privilege within that class or ethnic group
Intersectionality
Women are a minority group because:
Often experience double standards or less attention in some areas.
Distinguished by physical, cultural, or social characteristics
Share of desired goods is limited by the dominant group
Ideological or other justifications are used to deny them equal treatment
They have a collective identity used to help insulate them from unequal treatment
Minority group status is generally determined by rules of descent, with members born into a status they cannot change
Minority Status
Sexuality exhibits a broad range of combinations; societal expectations impose categories
The government and dominant religious groups determine how gay men, lesbians, and other sexual minorities are treated in society
Lesbians seen as threatening because they are not reliant on men
Gay men seen as inferior because they are perceived to be more feminine
Non-heterosexuals may be viewed as deviant
Sexual Stratification
Gay men, lesbians, and non-heterosexuals are often minority groups subject to prejudice and discrimination
Homophobia- intense fear and hatred of homosexuality and homosexuals
Highly correlated with a belief in traditional gender roles
Homosexual slurs are used to reinforce gender conformity
Heterosexism- society reinforces heterosexuality and marginalizes anyone who does not conform to this norm
Sexual Minorities
Psychological & Social consequences
Rigid gender stereotypes are constraining
For women: superwoman image and beauty myth can lead to depression and health problems
For men: image of “perfect” male body & unemotional male role can lead to guilt, anxiety, neuroses, early death
An alternative: androgyny
Costs of Gender Stratification
Gender stratification has consequences for all social institutions
Men are able to “take gender privilege with them”
Women take disprivilege, which lowers their positions and wages
Stratification can lead to:
Poor educational achievement of female children
Loss of human talents and resources of half of the population
Lack of health care coverage for women, which impacts both those women and their children
Social divisiveness leading to alienation, if not hostility.
Consequences of Gender Stratification
Practices used by other groups may be effective
Non-violent protests, sit-down strikes, boycotts, and walkouts
Support groups
Using the internet to carry the message to others
Boycotts
Building on traditions of community and church activism
Difficult to end women’s subjugation because most women agree on the goal, but not the means for achieving the goal
Changing Social Policy
