Gender Flashcards
Gender and health
Sex and gender impact health outcomes and health status
Sex
Refers to the biological categories of male and female based on chromosomal structure and in most cases reproductive organs; variations of this can occur and are know as intersex
Gender
Refers to the social categories of masculinity and femininity; it is socially constructed; how individuals choose to express masculinity and femininity or their identity (using gender pronouns like she/her, he/him, they/them, ze/zir)
Understanding gender
Keep in mind that gender is often understood differently throughout time and cultural context; its concept has changed throughout history
Contributions
- Gender also contributes to ideological belief systems, systems of power and social and cultural expectations
Gender roles and gender norms
Socially constructed expectations on how individuals should behave based on their gender expression or perceived gender expression; gender is also a mechanism used by larger institutions; both interpersonal interactions, environments & historical constraints often dictate these roles & the surveillance of these roles
Perceived gender expression
How other people identify you can be correct or misidentification
Nuclear Families
Started after WWI and was a model that was advertised as the family that can best contribute to society
Systems of power based on gender
Can reproduce, shape, and constrain access to opportunities and experiences (ex. The patriarchy, structural sexism, and gender-based violence)
Examples of systems of power
- Politics (underrepresented minorities in leadership positions)
- Jobs (pregnancy discrimination, motherhood tax & fatherhood premium)
- Patriarchy
- Gender/masculine hegemony
- Intersectionality
Equality
People treated same way way and/or the same resources to succeed; criticized by 2nd wave feminism, as women’s experiences cannot be generalized, they are not universal
Equity
People start at different places & thus, resource allocation & access is adjusted to take into account the imbalance
Why is surveillance important
When you feel observed, you change your behaviour; in context of in group & out group, preserve to stay in in group is high; women told don’t be loud, don’t take space (ex. of surveillance/gender policing?)
Gender differences
Have been identified in the ways in which individuals embody their health (how they view their own body & go about their health)
Embodying their health
How they deal with their health and how they interact with health care services
Gender spectrum
- Represents the fluidity of gender
- Two extremes: hyper masculinity and emphasized femininity
Hyper masculinity
- Form of masculinity embellishing stereotypical masculine traits: rational, less emotion, breadwinner, leader & risk taking behaviour
- Critiquing gender roles does not mean hating on men
Hyper masculinity with health
Not saying when you need help, not reaching out, being tough, manning-up
Emphasized femininity
- Other side to hyper masculinity
- Expectations of what femininity is based on expectations of (hegemonic) masculinity
- Emotional/ in charge of emotional labour (caretaking, social sciences before grad school, nursing, teaching), submissive, less likely to take risks because they are caretakers
Emphasized femininity with health
Hysterical, exaggerating, more likely to seek mental health
Hierarchical system
In social environments we create a hierarchical system of masculinity and femininity: hegemonic masculinity and femininity
Hegemonic masculinity
Putting certain forms of masculinity on top; valued most, what we must adapt to
Hegemony in social settings
- In university, expectation of men in stem (engineer and sciences), if in the arts like sociology, expectation is to go to law school after
- In sports, expectation of football, soccer, hockey, boxing, to play hyper masculine sports and exhibit hyper masculine behaviours in these settings (locker room talk, types of hazing, toughening up unless really bad injury)
What role does agency have in relation to gender and health outcomes?
Morbidity vs Mortality
Often related to one another, but not the same; morbidity is the state of being unhealthy for a particular disease or situation; mortality is the number of deaths that occur in a population
Morbidity vs Mortality (women)
- Lower mortality rates, higher morbidity rates
- Research suggests that high morbidity rates are due to the increase of cardiovascular disease after menopause
- Women face higher rates of debilitating disorders (ex. autoimmune disorders), less life-threatning