Ch 1

Question 1

Gender

Answer 1

Characteristics assigned to masculinity and femininity. Learned characteristics associated with sex.

Question 2

Assumption

Answer 2

Gender behavior is learned

Question 3

Sex

Answer 3

Biological characteristics

Question 4

Inequality

Answer 4

Socially constructed

Society designates “superior” position by sex, gender, race, and class

Question 5

Communicaton

Answer 5

Allows us to identify and challenge cultural views

Allows for alternative ideas to be introduced

Question 6

Language

Answer 6

The keys to our cultural perspectives

Question 7

Biological Theories

Answer 7

• 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

Question 8

Psychodynamic Theories of Gender Development

Answer 8

• 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

Question 9

Social Learning Theory

Answer 9

• 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

Question 10

Cognitive Development Theory

Answer 10

• 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

Question 11

Cognitive Development Theory (continued)

Answer 11

Interactions with others influence self-definition

• Internal desire for competence
• Child plays a key role in self definition by modeling
• Gender constancy emerges

Question 12

Gender Constancy

Answer 12

Is a person’s understanding that his or her assigned sex is stable or permanent and that it is accompanied by gendered expectations

Question 13

Gender schema

Answer 13

• 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

Question 14

Anthropology

Answer 14

• Many societies view gender differently than Americans currently do
• This highlights the fact that gender is culturally constructed

Question 15

Symbolic Interactionism

Answer 15

• Emphasizes the pivotal role of communication in gender development
• Communication with others is the primary way we develop identity, including gender identity

Question 16

Anthropological Theory

Answer 16

Examines the definitions of gender from culture to culture

• Hunter/gatherer societies
• Western/capitalist

Question 17

Standpoint Theory

Answer 17

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

Question 18

Deborah Tannen

Answer 18

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

Question 19

Muted Group Theory

Answer 19

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

Question 20

Symbolic Interactionism (Language)

Answer 20

• 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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Question 21

Symbolic Interactionism (Thought)

Answer 21

• 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”