Ch 1 Flashcards
Gender
Characteristics assigned to masculinity and femininity. Learned characteristics associated with sex.
Assumption
Gender behavior is learned
Sex
Biological characteristics
Inequality
Socially constructed
Society designates “superior” position by sex, gender, race, and class
Communicaton
Allows us to identify and challenge cultural views
Allows for alternative ideas to be introduced
Language
The keys to our cultural perspectives
Biological Theories
- Focus on how chromosomes, hormones, and brain structure affect physiology, thinking, and behavior
- Valuable in informing about genetic and biological influences on abilities and options
- Biology is edited by social factors
Psychodynamic Theories of Gender Development
- The first relationship influences how we define our identity, including gender
- Mothers may act differently toward male and female infants
- Mothers generally interact more with daughters, keeping them physically and psychologically closer than sons
- Mothers may realize their difference from sons, and they may reflect it in their interactions with sons
Social Learning Theory
- Learn to be masculine and feminine by imitating others and getting responses from others to behavior
- Children imitate communication seen in media and by the people around them
- Behaviors that are rewarded are reinforced
- Social learning suggests that rewards from others teach boys and girls which behaviors are appropriate for them
Cognitive Development Theory
- Children play active roles in developing gender identity
- Pick models to teach themselves competency in masculine or feminine behavior
- Children go through several stages in developing identities
Cognitive Development Theory (continued)
Interactions with others influence self-definition
- Internal desire for competence
- Child plays a key role in self definition by modeling
- Gender constancy emerges
Gender Constancy
Is a person’s understanding that his or her assigned sex is stable or permanent and that it is accompanied by gendered expectations
Gender schema
- Even before reaching the first birthday, an infant distinguishes between male and female faces and voices
- Internal mental framework that organizes perceptions and directs behavior related to gender
- Using gender schema children organize clothes, activities, toys, traits, and roles appropriate for each sex
Anthropology
- Many societies view gender differently than Americans currently do
- This highlights the fact that gender is culturally constructed
Symbolic Interactionism
- Emphasizes the pivotal role of communication in gender development
- Communication with others is the primary way we develop identity, including gender identity
Anthropological Theory
Examines the definitions of gender from culture to culture
- Hunter/gatherer societies
- Western/capitalist
Standpoint Theory
Complements symbolic interactionism by noting that societies are made up of different groups that have different amounts of power and privilege
- A person’s position within a culture shapes his/her life
- Race, class, and gender influence position
-Limitations and opportunities are governed by position
-Subordinate survival is dependent on the understanding of one’s own position and the position of those in power
Deborah Tannen
Genderlect Styles
- Women talk more in private and less in public
- Men talk less in private and are more vocal in public
- Women gain rapport by sharing details and engaging in small talk
- Men report through lecture and debate (convey information, command attention, and insist on agreement)
- Men tell more stories than women
- Men’s story content, usually jokes, have a “ beat this” feel
- Women’s story content has do with others, showing community, or with down playing her own attributes
- Women usually listen actively and overlap the speaker to show agreement or support
- Men tend not show signs of listening and overlap to gain control of the conversation
- Men do not like asking for help
- Women ask questions to establish a connection with others
- Women use more tag questions
- Women ask question to demonstrate expertise, while men ask questions to incite debate or stump the listener
- Men usually initiate conflict
Muted Group Theory
Cheris Kramarae
- The language of a particular culture does not serve all of its speakers equally. Women in our culture are at a disadvantage: A muted group
“I now pronounce you man and wife.”
“Mrs. Jack Nelson”
“A college student should learn effective study habits. [He] should also learn how to organize.”
- Men are in control of the language, thereby creating and unfair advantage
- The framework for what is acceptable and unacceptable is established in the language, and men are the gatekeepers of language.
- Men dominate politically, so their system of perception prevents women’s freedom to explore alternative models for the world
- If meaning is created through negotiation of symbol, then whoever controls the symbols controls the power
- Because men are the gatekeepers of communication, women have been excluded from the history as key contributors to the country
Symbolic Interactionism (Language)
- Symbols are arbitrary
- A symbol is a stimulus that has learned meaning and value
- The extent of knowing is dependent on our extent of naming
- Symbolic interaction is the way er learn and interpret the world
- Cultural norms and preferences that are tried to a symbol
- We act toward people based on the meaning we assign to those people or things
- Once defined as real; it is very real in it’s consequences
- Meanings arise out of the interaction that we have with people
- Meaning is not inherent to objects; it is not preexistent in nature
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Symbolic Interactionism (Thought)
- Interpretation of symbols is modified by one’s thought processes
- Humans are reflective/inner conversations
- Conceptual thought requires interaction and exposure to abstract symbol systems
- W/O human contact, language does not develop or inner conversation
- Subconsciously, we place ourselves in the role of “others,” and thought is the conversation that we hold with these “others”
