Gender

Question 1

Why do we study gender?

Answer 1

• Sex and gender can be powerful predictors of behaviour
• Sex and gender can influence your life chances
• Belonging to one gender or another can predict: Education, occupation, Income, health, voting patterns, whether yoy do housework, if you commit crimes, etc.

Question 2

How does sex differ from gender? (2 point)

Answer 2

• Sex refers to biological differences
• Gender refers to differences in behaviour resulting from socialization
  Males: masculine behaviour
  Females: Feminine behaviour

Question 3

What is Gender identity? (2 points)

Answer 3

• Ones biological gender does not always correspond to their gender identity.
• A small number of individuals biological gender does not match their gender identity

Question 4

What is sexual orientation? (3 points)

Answer 4

• Most individuals are heterosexual: like opposite
• Some individuals are sexually attracted to the same biological sex, or both: Some of theme experience homophobia
• Some are not sexually attracted to anyone (asexual)

Question 5

What are gender roles? (2 points)

Answer 5

• As we grow up we learn that each gender has a specific gender role
• Boys and girls and men and women are expected to behave according to their gender role.

Question 6

How do gender roles cause stereotypes?

Answer 6

• Women have “feminine” characteristics
  Emotional, nurturing, caring, empathetic, weal, fragile, passive, concerned with appearance and relationships, inferior.
• Men have “Masculine” characteristics:
  Stoic, strong, muscular, rational, brave, authoritative, aggressive, sex obsesses, dominant, superior, etc.

Question 7

How is socialization effected by gender? (6 points)

Answer 7

• Teach reinforce and maintain gender roles
• Family:
  Colour, clothes, toys
  Girls are given domestic chores
  Boys are given maintenance chores
  Family roles and dynamics
• School:
  Teacher-student interactions (sports, praise gender dominant courses, etc)
• Media
  Blatant and subtle messages about “feminine” and “masculine” traits and behaviours
• Religion
• Peers

Question 8

How is inequality shown through gender?

Answer 8

• The labour market in gender segregated

- More women are working than ever before, but women select feminized jobs and men select masculine jobs.

Question 9

What is Gender Segregation?

Answer 9

• Horizontal Segregation:
  Ex: Nursing is a women’s job and computer science is mostly men
• Vertical Segregation
  Ex: male nurses are more likely to be promotes to higher positions and women are less likely to work as a manger in senior officials.

Question 10

How are jobs selected to match specific gender roles?

Answer 10

• Males avoid feminine jobs for fear they will be seen by society as effeminate homosexuals.
  (Fear of being perceived us unmanly or losing their masculinity)
• Men avoid female dominated occupations because they are known to earn less pay, and possess less prestige and authority
• Men experience “powerful social pressures” from society or family that pull them towards male dominated rather than female dominated occupations.

Question 11

What are some gender segregated occupations?

Answer 11

• Female dominated jobs :
  (nursing, therapy, health jobs, clerical and administrative)
• Male dominated job:
  (Trade, transport, construction, natural sciences, engineering, maths)

Question 12

How does gender segregation look over time?

Answer 12

Is stable, has remained similar from 1987 to 2009

Question 13

Why is nursing a women’s jobs? (2 points)

Answer 13

• Is characterized by feminine and maternal traits such as nurturing and caring for others rather than masculine traits such as dominance, strength and aggression.
• Male nurses are viewed as not being able to become a doctor, therefore they has to settle into the nursing profession.

Question 14

Why are the computer sciences and engineering male dominated jobs? (6 points)

Answer 14

• Parents are more likely to by sons video games at an early age
• Males are more likely to have access to a computer earlier than females. which means females have less exposure to computer sciences)
• Female stereotypes = negative images (geeks)
• Double edges sword = Women are typically NOT encouraged to enter computer science and women feel like they dont belong because they dont fit the image society makes for them.
• Women discount their abilities
• Males my not allow female students to do hard work in groups because of stereotypes

Question 15

How does gender impact how individuals choose careers? (2 points)

Answer 15

• Individuals choose their occupations based on their gender and associated gender roles that they have learned and/or internalized.
• Matching gender with occupation based on qualities required and nature of occupation

Question 16

What is the Gender Wage Gap? (3 points)

Answer 16

• The wage gap refers to the wage differential.
• Men earn more than women
• Men even earn more than women when both are in the same jobs (in 2002, women make about 70% of what men make.) and Marital status makes a difference.

Question 17

What things explain the gender wage gap? (4 points)

Answer 17

• Choosing part time job or a job with Flexible Schedule
• Lower On-the-job effort
• Ling Career Interruptions
• Employer Discrimination

Question 18

Why do women take part time jobs with flexible schedules?

Answer 18

• Mothers may accept a job with lower wage in return for schedule flexibility
• Mothers tend to seek jobs that offer non-monetary benefits, such as a lower penalty from discontinuous employment or flexibility.
• In general, the more children women have, the fewer hours they work.

Question 19

Why do women have lower on-the-job effort?

Answer 19

• Young children require more physical care and are more likely than older children to wake up and scream at night. Therefore mothers of pre school children reported significantly less work effort compared to mothers with older children.

Question 20

What are 5 long career interruptions?

Answer 20

• Women with children may experience a long career interruptions.
• Long career interruptions have a negative impact on the earning of mothers
• The longer the career interruption, the higher the earnings losses.
• This is due to the reduced labor market experience
• Human Capital Theory

Question 21

How is Employer discrimination effected by gender? (3 points)

Answer 21

• Recent research has found striking differences in how people evaluate perspective employees
• Employers are often bias against mothers
• They thing that men are most productive when they have a family to support and that women with children are not as productive when they are distracted by child-rearing obligations.

Question 22

How has the gender difference in educational attainment changed?

Answer 22

The differentials now favour women. In the past they favoured men.

Question 23

How can functionalism be applied to sex and gender?

Answer 23

• Functionalists see marriage as the bedrock of society, because through this union comes the procreation and the sustainability of the species.
• Homosexuality is incompatible with this and as ling as it is practices aiming a small number it is ok. Otherwise, it undermines procreation and the survival of our species.

Question 24

How can Conflict Theory be applied to sex and gender? (3 points)

Answer 24

• Just like society is unequal, unequal power exists between men and women. Men and heterosexuals dominate.
• Sodom against the law until 1967
• Same sex couples given equal rights to marry in 2005

Question 25

How can symbolic interactionism be applied to sex and gender? (4 points)

Answer 25

• Femininity is devalues
• Those that adopt such traits are ridiculed
• Homosexuals are seen as hyper sexual and therefore deviant.
• Homosexuals continue to be discriminated against.