Transcript Gender and Families - fcstmsu342-2

Gender and Families
Family Sociology
FCST 342
Gender & Families
Individuals
and families are influenced
by larger social forces that we may not
always notice
Today we focus on three critical
dimensions of families
Gender
Race/ethnicity
Gender & Families
The
distinction between male and female,
masculine and feminine is basic to the
study of families
All societies exhibit a sharp distinction
between what women and men do in
families
 All cultures have a family division of
labor based on gender
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Gender Theory
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Gender theory argues that differences
between men and women are socially
constructed.
Emphasizes culture, rather than biology.
In other words being feminine or
masculine is learned and created through
our social interactions
Sex & Gender
Sociologists distinguish between sex and
gender
Sex: refers to the biological attributes that
distinguish females from males such as:
chromosomes, hormones, and anatomical
apparatus
Gender: refers to the cultural and social
meanings, experiences, and characteristics that
are defined as appropriate for females and males
i.e. different clothing, expectations of who can
cry
Gender Theory
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Because gender is a SOCIAL construction
it is fluid or always changing
Then….
Gender Theory

Because gender is a SOCIAL construction
it is fluid or always changing
Now…
Sex & Gender
Sex is a biological creation
 Gender is a social creation
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Sociologists argue that gender is
“socially constructed” or created
 In other words men and women learn
many masculine and feminine behaviors
though socialization
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Social Construction of Gender
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Why do sociologists argue that gender is
socially constructed?
1) Expectations of each gender vary from
society to another
Example: In Pakistan it is common for male friends to hold
hands but this is not common among American men.
2) Gender behaviors vary within one culture at
different points in time
Example: Men’s fashions in 17th century America were much
more “feminine” compared to men’s fashions today.
Social Construction of Gender
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Why do sociologists argue that gender is socially
constructed?
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3) The meanings of masculinity and femininity change
over the course of a person’s life.
Example: The meaning of femininity changes as women
age – compare pre-pubescent girls to women who are of
childbearing age or who are postmenopausal
4) Meaning of gender varies among different groups
within a particular culture at a given point in time.
Example: Gender behaviors may be structured by class,
race, ethnicity, age, region of the country etc.
Sociological Perspectives on
Gender
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How are gender roles acquired & how is
gender constructed?
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Gender role approach focuses on the how
parents, and other social institutions transmit
gendered expectations about appropriate
behavior through socialization
Socialization is the process by which
individuals acquire society’s norms and values
Socialization is a life long process
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Sociological Perspectives on
Gender
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West and Zimmerman ‘Doing Gender’
Argue that we need to be continually
“resocialized” into gender roles or reminded
how to act like a man or act like a woman
Gender is produced through interaction
For example: in families – doing housework is
“doing gender”
Men and women reinforce gender roles by
doing gender appropriate household work
Sociological Perspectives on
Gender
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West and Zimmerman ‘Doing Gender’
They argue that gender is a “routine
accomplishment” embedded in every day
interaction
In other words, we are continually acting
out being a man or being a woman in social
situations
Gender emerges from an interaction or a
social situation
Sociological Perspectives on
Gender
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West and Zimmerman ‘Doing Gender’
Can you think of an example when you
were doing gender:
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I was doing gender when:
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Doing Gender in Families
http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_21434.aspx
Doing Gender?
Doing Gender?
Paid Work, Gender & Families
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After rising for several decades, the labor
force participation rate for women has
shown no growth in recent years
The participation rate for adult men has
drifted down over time.
Mothers with older children have highest
labor force participation rate
The latest figures on unemployment
2008
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According to the most recent figures: the
unemployment rate:
for men: 27% up from 20% in 1970
for women 40.5% decreased from 57% in 1970
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment and earnings online January
Retreived from http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/labor_force_employment_earnings/labor_force_status.html,
September 24, 2010
Male dominance in government
has declined only recently
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Before 1992, there had never been more than
2 women among our 100 U.S. senators.
As of 2007,
 16 women in the Senate (out of 100)
 71 women in House of Representatives
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(out of 435)
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http://womenincongress.house.gov/profiles/index.html
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The former Speaker of the House, Nancy
Pelosi, is a woman! Now she has been
replaced by a man
Only 16 percent of the U.S. Congress are
women
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Male dominance in government
has declined only recently
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A recent set of polls conducted BEFORE
the presidential election found:
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67 - 71 percent believe the U.S. is ready to
elect a woman president
Over 74 percent believe the U.S, is ready
to elect an African/American/black
candidate
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Source:
http://www.pollingreport.com/politics.htm://www.cawp.rutgers.edu/Facts/Elections/pre
s08_polls/Gallup_6in10.pdf
Sociological Perspectives on
Gender
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Another prominent ways that patriarchy or male
dominance is reinforced is through linguistic
sexism.
Examples:
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Men are referred to as Mr.
This title reveals nothing about a man’s relationship to a
women
Women are referred to as Miss and Mrs. (and Ms.) which
define women in terms of their relationship with a man
Women still continue to be subsumed under their husbands
names for example, Mrs. John Smith
Sociological Perspectives on
Gender
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Taking your husbands name ….
Some argue – it is just easier if couple and
children have the same name –
Others argue - isn’t changing your name on all
legal documents confusing and time
consuming?
And why is it almost always women who
change their names to their husbands’ name?
This is a holdover from older patriarchal
customs
Summary
 Summary
Acting in gender appropriate ways
reinforces gender differences
 Sociologists argue that gender is
socially constructed through economic
and social constraints on women’s
behavior and their ability to achieve
equality with men
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Summary
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Summary
Gender is continuously constructed through
everyday interaction
Men’s power is embedded in the social
structure
Gender and families are intertwined
Families are a social institution in which
gender is socially constructed