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Week3_GenderInequalitySexuality.pptxGender Inequality & Sexuality
Week 3
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Understanding Sex and Gender
Traditional definition of sex: “the anatomical and other biological differences between females and males that are determined at the moment of conception and develop in the womb and throughout childhood and adolescence”
This textbook definition gets some things wrong…
Gender: “the social and cultural differences a society assigns to people based on their (biological) sex”
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Definitions from Social Problems: Continuity & Change (2010)
Understanding Sex and Gender
Femininity: cultural expectations of girls and women
Masculinity: cultural expectations of boys and men
Biology, culture, and gender
Evolutionary psychology; testosterone and aggression; sex difference in children’s behavior
Anthropological evidence against biological determination
Gender roles differ by culture
Gender socialization: “the process whereby individuals learn the culture of their society” usually based on their perceived gender
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Definitions from Social Problems: Continuity & Change (2010)
Feminism and Sexism
Feminism: the idea that women and men should have equal opportunities in all aspects of life life
Intersectional feminism takes it a step further
Sexism: belief in gender roles that match traditional stereotypes and belief that there is an inherent inequality between sexes
Patriarchy: male domination which is one of the root causes of women’s oppression
Decline in sexism?
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Source: Kiser, Angelina I.T. 2015. “Workplace and leadership perceptions between men and women.” Gender in Management, 30(8):598 – 612.
Wave 3: 1994 – 1999, Wave 4: 1999 – 2004, Wave 5: 2005 – 2008, Wave 6: 2010 – 2012
Definitions from Social Problems: Continuity & Change (2010)
Dimensions of Gender Inequality
Gender inequality in income and the workplace
Increasing numbers of women in the labor force
Income/wage gap
Sexual harassment: non-consensual sexual advances, demands for sexual favors, or using physical sexual body language and behavior for the promise/denial of employment or promotion, or that interferes with an individual’s life at work/school, creating an environment that is intimidating or hostile
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Definitions from Social Problems: Continuity & Change (2010)
Violence Against Women
Rape and sexual assault
Extent
UCR: 139,815 reported rapes in 2019
NCVS: 459,310 rapes and sexual assaults in 2019
Barkan study (2012): 1/3 of US women will experience a rape or sexual assault at least once in their lives
Randall and Haskell study (1995): 2/3 of women experienced at least one rape or sexual assault; “it is more common than not for a woman to have an experience of sexual assault during their lifetime.”
13% of all students (grad and undergrad) experience rape or sexual assault (RAINN 2020)
26.4% of females and 6.8% of males, among undergraduates
Causes
Cultural explanations: (1) myth that women enjoy being raped; (2) belief that women are asking for it or deserve in because of how they dress or behave; (3) men who have a lot of sex are admired, and women are seen as a prize to be conquered – rape culture
Structural explanations: power differences – in places where women are more unequal, rape rates are higher
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Masculinity
Toxic masculinity hurts people of all sexes and genders
Examples?
Traditional standards of masculinity can lead to emotional problems, learning disabilities, and attention deficit disorders
Suicide among young men can often be linked to the impossible standards of masculinity
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Reducing Gender Inequality
Policies and programs
Reduce socialization into traditional gender roles
End stereotypes in the media
Increase public consciousness surrounding the reasons for, extent of, and consequences of rape and sexual assault
Increase enforcement of gender-based discrimination in the workplace
Increase funding for rape-crisis centers and other services
Increase govt. funding for childcare that enables parents (especially mothers) to work outside the home
Develop mentorship programs to increase women’s participation in traditionally male occupations and in political positions
Reducing & ending rape and sexual assault
Reorganize society, change beliefs, and empower women
Better funded rape-crisis centers, especially for women of color
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Understanding Sexual Orientation
Sexual orientation: partner preference in sexual relationships
Gender identity: “the personal conception of oneself as female, male, both, or neither”
LGBTQIA+ population
History of sexual orientation: homosexuality has existed since ancient times and in many societies was/is common and/or accepted as normal
Reasons for sexual orientation
Biological factors: (1) genetic and biological roots; (2) brain anatomy; (3) hormonal balance in the womb
Social and cultural factors: positive and negative messages
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Definitions from Social Problems: Continuity & Change (2010)
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Public Attitudes
Heterosexism: “negative views about, and discriminatory practices toward, LGBT individuals and their sexual behavior”
Public opinion
Drastic changes
Still divided
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Definitions from Social Problems: Continuity & Change (2010)
Inequality Based on Sexual Orientation
Bullying: LGBT teens are often targets of taunting, bullying, physical assault, and other abuse
32% of LGBTQ students report being bullied at school and 26.6% report being cyberbullied
17.1% of straight students report being bullied; 14.1% experienced cyberbullying.
LGBTQ students are more likely to skip school (13.5% vs 7.5%), receive poor grades, drop out of school, experience mental health problems, engage in risky behavior, and disciplined for similar misconduct that straight students are not disciplined for
Same-sex marriage: marriage allows for several rights between spouses that non-married partners do not have
E.g., visitation rights in a hospital, health insurance coverage, inheritance without estate taxes, etc.
Heterosexual privilege
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Improving the Lives of the LGBTQIA+ Community
How might you help to reduce inequality based on sexual orientation and gender identity at your school or in your community?
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Sexual Behavior
An Overview of Heterosexuality
The sexual revolution
Women became freer to have sex without the fear of pregnancy because of new birth control methods
1960s counterculture – sex before marriage more popular & less demonized
Overall, despite setbacks (such as HIV and AIDS), more people now have sex before marriage & views about different types of sexual behaviors are less conservative
Current views on sexual behavior?
Photo Source: Still from Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
Trends in Sexual Behaviors
Source: Ueda, Peter, Catherine H. Mercer, Cyrus Ghaznavi, and Debby Herbenick. 2020. “Trends in Frequency of Sexual Activity and Number of Sexual Partners Among Adults Aged 18 to 44 Years in the US, 2000-2018.” JAMA Network Open 3(6).
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Trends in Sexual Behaviors
Source: Ueda, Peter, Catherine H. Mercer, Cyrus Ghaznavi, and Debby Herbenick. 2020. “Trends in Frequency of Sexual Activity and Number of Sexual Partners Among Adults Aged 18 to 44 Years in the US, 2000-2018.” JAMA Network Open 3(6).
Trends in Sexual Behaviors
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Source: Ueda, Peter, Catherine H. Mercer, Cyrus Ghaznavi, and Debby Herbenick. 2020. “Trends in Frequency of Sexual Activity and Number of Sexual Partners Among Adults Aged 18 to 44 Years in the US, 2000-2018.” JAMA Network Open 3(6).
Trends in Sexual Behaviors
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Source: Ueda, Peter, Catherine H. Mercer, Cyrus Ghaznavi, and Debby Herbenick. 2020. “Trends in Frequency of Sexual Activity and Number of Sexual Partners Among Adults Aged 18 to 44 Years in the US, 2000-2018.” JAMA Network Open 3(6).
Discussion
Does it surprise you to learn that women and men are equally sexually active today? Why or why not?
Why has the frequency of sexual activity declined in more recent years?
Teenage Sex and Pregnancy
Stats on teens
In 2019, approx. 38.4% of high schoolers reported having ever had sex
This is lower than 1988, the year with the highest rate of teen sex (between 50 & 60%)
Teen birthrate has declined since 1990s
Problems associated with teen pregnancy and birth
Most teen pregnancies are unplanned; about 18% of teen girls become mothers
Many pregnant teens drop out of school
Physical and emotional stressors
Burden of childcare
Healthcare expenses are higher than incurred by older women; children of teen mothers are at risk for many behavioral and developmental problems
Reducing teen pregnancy and helping teen mothers
Abstinence only sex education is proven not to work
Harm reduction sex education is more successful, according to research
Better support systems and healthcare for teen mothers would lower risks of poverty, emotional issues, etc.
Discussion
How would you restructure sex education in the US, especially considering that while teen pregnancy has declined, it is still an issue?
Abortion
History of abortion
Abortion has been widely practiced since the beginning of recorded history
The US, along with many other countries banned abortion in the 19th century, “to protect pregnant women from unskilled abortionists” – but this backfired
The US legalized abortion across all states in 1973 (Roe v. Wade)
Access to abortion is still limited
Regional differences in abortion rates
Rate of Legal Abortions per 1,000 Women Aged 15-44 Years by State of Occurrence, 2018
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Views on abortion in the US
The majority of the public generally agrees that abortion should be legal
However, some types of abortion garner much disagreement
Religion & Abortion
Why are some religions or religious sects in favor of abortion, while others are strictly against it?
Why do religious followers sometimes go against their religion’s teachings and instead, support abortion (e.g., see the stats for Catholics in this graph)?
Sex Work
The history of sex work in the US
Common since ancient times, globally
Poor women entered sex work to receive income
Many US cities had legal brothels into the early 1900s, until mainly religious groups spoke out against them
Because sex work is illegal in the US, the government does not compile statistics on sex workers, thus we don’t know how many sex workers exist
Experiences of streetwalkers
Many sex workers who work the streets are exploited, abused, used for access to drugs, are raped, and robbed, among much else. Some sex workers willingly enter the profession, while others are trafficked or forced into the industry
Sex Work
How would feminist theory and intersectionality contribute to the understanding of sex work?
Critical race theory?
Think – Pair – Share
Should sex work become legal and regulated? Why or why not?
Pornography
Difficult to define
Popularity
Revenues about $13 billion annually as of 2010
About 40% of Americans visit pornographic websites at least monthly
Violence against women
Some types of pornography promote rape and violence; however, rape rates have not risen in states that have made their laws more lenient
Not all people who work in the porn industry do so willingly
Discussion
Should all types of pornography (except child pornography) be legal for people 18 and older? Why or why not?
