8 : gender and health

Question 1

feminism

Answer 1

theories and movements for women’s rights and liberation

-response to previous theories that mainstream sociology is “male-stream”
-inequities and unequal power relations are shaped by gender/gendered understandings
-gender informs how one experiences the world

-many perspectives, voices and paradigms house within the feminist theory umbrella eg. liberal, radical, marxists,

Question 2

society is gendered such that women and men have…

Answer 2

different access to power, opportunities and decision making. These differences are SOCIALLY constructed

Question 3

assumptions of feminist theories

Answer 3

a. concerned with power inequity stemming from gender relations

b. concerned also with redressing* gender inequity

c. power can be

-structural : systemic privileging of one gender over another through formal structures and institutions in society (laws, income)

relational : one gender may experience more privilege in relationships or interactions with others (who is heard, who makes decisions

sociocultural : how genders are valued (preference for a son over a daughter)

Question 4

first wave (late 19th century - early 20th century)***
-dont need to know key dates

Answer 4

-right to vote (“suffrage”) granted provincially to some women beginning in 1916 (Alberta, saskatchewan & manitoba)
-> asian men and women - 1948
-> inuit men and women - 1950s
-> first nations men an women - 1960s

BNAA amended to recognize women as persons (1929)
-> the famous five : person include female persons
-> supreme court of canada -> privy council of england

-led by educated upper-middle class white women

Question 5

second wave : key concepts **
-patriarchy

Answer 5

a system of power, including social institutions, which functions to subordinate women and children and privilege men

eg. hiring system that excludes women

Question 6

sexual division of labour

Answer 6

nature of work performed as a result of gender roles (men = breadwinner; women = homemaker)

Question 7

socialization

Answer 7

process of learning the culture of a society (e.g. its language and customs), which shows us how to behave and communicate -> gender role socialization

Question 8

gender role/norm

Answer 8

role or behaviour considered to be appropriate to a particular gender as determined by prevailing cultural norms

Question 9

second wave (1960s - 1970s) ***

Answer 9

• prominent inequities challenged : gender role socialization, control of body, reproductive rights, access to opportunities

-“the problem that has no name” = assumption that women’s destiny = housewives

• outcomes : domestic violence shelters, women’s health clinics, contraceptives, legal abortions

-critiqued for being white-, hetero, upper-middle class centric

Question 10

third wave (1990s-present) ***

key words and key figure

Answer 10

diversity, individualism

Kimberle Crenshaw

Question 11

Intersectionality **

Answer 11

a term coined by american critical race scholar, kimberle crenshaw in 1989 to examine how race and sex/gender were mutually constituted

-how various biological, cultural, and social categories interact on multiple (and often simultaneous) levels that lead to oppression and inequality

-has expanded over time to include other social positions and forms of oppression beyond gender, class and race

Question 12

fourth wav (2010-present)

Answer 12

-#metoo movement
-harvey weinstein case, isla vista shooting, slutwalks, pussyhat project

-trans-inclusive, queer-inclusive, sed-positive, body-positive, online and offline

Question 13

four waves : summary

Answer 13

weaving thread : gender as an organizing principle of society

-some waves focus on gender socialization and gender roles; other waves have highlighted how gender intersects with other forms of exlusion like racism, or homophobia and transphobia

Question 14

equality

Answer 14

everyone should be treated the same
1st wave : right to vote
2nd wave : equal pay for equal work

Question 15

equity

Answer 15

equity : everyone should be treated fairly and according to their own needs

3rd wave : diversity and individualism
4th wave : social justice, allyship, gender inclusive

Question 16

Sex

Answer 16

a multidimensional biological construct that encompasses anatomy, physiology, genes and hormones which together affect how we are treated in the world

-> DO use sex to refer to the classification of male and female . this is a medical and legal assignment made at birth, based largely on the external genitals of newborn infants

Question 17

gender

Answer 17

the socially constructed categories of feminine and masculine (cultural values of how men and women should behave)

-> DO use gender to refer to the social meaning ascribed to sexed differences. This includes gender norms, roles, stereotypes, as well as gender identity, expression and gender conformity or non-conformity

Question 18

gender identity

Answer 18

your “sense of self as a woman, a man, both, in between or neither. Only you can determine your gender identity”

-cis-gender : umbrella term for al people whose gender identity aligns with the sex assigned at birth

trans-gender : umbrella term for all people whose gender identity and the sex assigned at birth do not align

Question 19

gender identity : implications for health

Answer 19

-assumptions that sex will align with gender seriously limits access to certain services and treatments

-access to quality care with dignity is a significant concern for people who are trans

Question 20

gender expresssion

Answer 20

-how a person demonstrates or performs their gender identity
-> use of pronouns, dressing in ways that are understood to be masculine, feminine, non-binary, participating in spaces that are gendered

Question 21

gender expression - implications for health

Answer 21

-safety in public spaces and health spaces
-access to appropriate care and services
-psycho-social impacts on ongoing microaggressions and violence

Question 22

hegemonic femininity and masculinity

Answer 22

-refer to the qualities conventionally deemed “manly” or “womanly”
-“hegemonic” = ruling/dominant in a political or social context, dominance of one group/set of ideas over another, often supported by socially constructed norms and ideas legimated over time

-qualities that a man or woman is believed to have or shold have in order to be perceived as a man or a woman (in a given society)

Question 23

hegemonic feminity
-chracteristics and body ideals

Answer 23

characteristics : docile, submissive, sexy/sweet, emotional

body ideals : thin, toned, youthful

Question 24

hegemonic masculinity
-chracteristics and body ideals

Answer 24

chrac : stoic, aggressive, control of emotions, sexual prowess

body ideals : strong, muscular, machine-like, invulnerable, able-bodied

Question 25

sexual orientation

Answer 25

-pattern of emotional, romantic or sexual attraction
-> may include attraction to the same gender (homosexual), different (hetero), both me and women (bi), all genders (pansexual) or neither (asexual)

-LGBTQIP2SA :

two spiritied (2S) : having both masculine and feminine spirit - term used by some indigenous people to describe their spiritual, sexual and or gender identity

Question 26

genderbread

Answer 26

gender identity : brain

gender expression : body

biological sex : privates

sexual orientation : heart

Question 27

many health education and healthcare services based on ***

Answer 27

heteronormativity, heterosexism, cis gender bias (assumption that sex and gender identity align)

Question 28

access to health/ health care shaped and constrained by *****

Answer 28

heteronormativity and heterosexism

Question 29

heteronormativity **

Answer 29

the assumption that heterosexuality is the only normal and natural expression of sexuality, assumed to be superior to other sexual orientations

Question 30

heterosexism

Answer 30

a system of attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favour of opposite-sex sexuality and relationships. this may be the assumption that everyone is or should be heterosexual

Question 31

manifestations in health care **

Answer 31

-questions asked based on assumptions
-nonverbal cues
-overt discrimination and denying patient care
-providing inappropriate resources/information

Question 32

what do sex and gender have to do with health

Answer 32

a multitude of ways individuals will experience health differently based on their sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression and gender identity

-there is also a sex and gender-based pattern to health and illness
->life expectancy differences
-> chronic illness/disability differences
-> accidents, suicide and injuries

Question 33

using feminism to understand men’s health

Answer 33

men are 39% more likely to die from diabetes, 845 FROM ARTERial diseases and 78 from heart disease
-experience significantly higher mortality rates from all kinds of cancer
-have a rate of lost years of life twice that of women (most from heart disease, suicide, motor accidents)

Question 34

often fail to consider

Answer 34

health risks associated with men’s gender
-mens shorter lives often presumed to be natural or inevitable

Question 35

HIMM

Answer 35

health , illness, men and masculinities

theoretical model for understanding men and their health

-men with similar social disadvantages as women experience poorer health outcomes

-explores how msculinities intersect with other SDM creating health disparities among men

Question 36

HIMM : theoretical model for understanding men and their health

Answer 36

-being a woman is the strongest predictor of preventative and health-promoting behaviour
-women employ more coping strategies and are more likely to seek social support
-helath promoting behaviours linked with femininity
-risktaking behaviours linked with masculinity

Question 37

masculinity in youth

Answer 37

-for boys and young men, physical risk is naturalized, promoted and celebrated
-take it like a man, be independant, dont seek help -> long term implications
-encouraged to demonstrate aggression, stregnth and risk-taking

Question 38

masculinity in middle years

Answer 38

men construct masculinity in relation to work and/or income
-work defines status in masculine hierarchy
-work in physical labor requires men to demonstrate masculintiy through stoicism and denial of body pain
- white collarjobs = pressure to achieve, work long days, higher stress = high BP

-35-50 yo rise in depression, physical complaints, drkinking, but low acknowledgement

Question 39

masculinity in later life

Answer 39

illness becomes more frequent harger to sustain “hegemonic masculine ideals”

-masculine identities linked to work/career so leaving work can pose a challenge to identity
-location in gender “hierarchy” changes