Gender And Health Flashcards
What is sex and what is gender
Sex is the biological differences between men and women
Gender is an identity constructed by men and women based on how they act or behave and think in a society. It is the social, cultural and psychological differences between men and women
What dictates how men and women should act
Society, especially in the earlier times with patriarchal societies and the dominance of men
Men vs women roles traditionally were
Men: power, independence, ruling and control, family’s image, “man of the house” representing a home, could take on large spaces.
Women: vulnerability, dependence, obeying, raising children, take on small spaces, family refashions.
They were socialized from a very early age to be different
What were traditional male activities/ things they could do
- hard powerful jobs
- working in the fields, going out
- could be violent against children or wife
- voting
- smoking and drinking
What were traditional female activities?
Housekeeping
Raising children
Going outside must be accompanied by a male
Must obey husband, and not react to their violence
Voting was prohibited until beginning of 20th century
Is smoked or drank they were stigmatized
Has gender segregation changed
A lot has changed but there are still activities that are social considered as more male or more female
- university subjects
- types of jobs
- managerial positions
- socioeconomic class
- politics
- smoking and drinking
Gender is ___ constructed
Socially constructed
Do men and women have equal opportunities in modern societies
No:
In socioeconomic positions women are less likely to participate in decision making processes
In divorce, women are more likely to be a single mother without the help of a father
There is a gender gap of 17% in pay- women make less
Women are more likely to be under the poverty line due to the fact they were less likely to be employed in the past, they earn less and more likely to work as part timers.
Yes:
Traditionally men were more likely to be educated and be employed – nowadays women are educated and employed as much as men are
Womens work tends to be ___
Underestimated, and not taking into account the multiple roles of a women is society:
Mother
Employee
Housewife
Do these social conditions for women play a role in their health?
Life expectancy now, the 19th century and the 16th/17th centuries?
Now: women live longer than men, there is a biological advantage
19th century: similar life expectancy for the 2 (infectious diseases were handled, medicine provided women a safer environment to give birth)
16th: male advantage (women were more vulnerable to infectious deceases and female mortality at birth delivery was high)
Mortality in men and women
Men die more often from: car accidents, heart disease, lung cancer
Women: more likely to attempt suicide but men are more likely to commit it
Morbidity between men and women
No differences between them
Men more likely to suffer cardiovascular diseases (coronary hear disease) and lung cancer. Women are likely to suffer Alzheimer’s
In morbidity
List the 3 disorders
Disorders of thought
Disorders of emotion
Disorders of behaviour
Give an example of a disorder of thought
Psychoses
Is psychoses (disorder of thought) more prevalent in men or women
Gender neutral
Is schizophrenia (disorder of thought) higher in men or women
Gender Neutral but higher in younger men
Name 3 disorders of emotion
- depression
- anxiety
- phobias
Who is more likely to suffer emotional disorders
Women
What is a disorder of behaviour
Behaviour and personality disorders such as alcohol and drug abuse
Who is more likely to have behavioural disorders
Men
What do you think are the social reasons behind the differences in mortality/ morbidity between men and women?
To summarize
Women and socially disadvantaged than men however they live longer then men.
The is no difference in morbidity rates but men are more likely to slugger heart/ lung disease or cancer while women more likely to suffer Alzheimer’s
CASE
Yiannis Georgiou is 60 years old and is rushed to the hospital after he collapsed at home. At the emergencies, doctors manage to keep him alive and run all necessary tests in order to understand what the problem was. Yiannis’ wife, Cynthia, gives doctors a clue: “He complained of strong chest pain and then passed out”. Doctors diagnose a heart attack which resulted from chronic heart disease. Yiannis wakes up the day after. Doctors inform him about what happened and that he has to take medication, change his lifestyle and may need surgery in the near future
What might be the social reasons why Yiannis developed heart disease?
Why do women live longer then men?
Social and biological factors
Life expectancy and mortality are affected by both ___ and _____ factors
Social and biological
Men were more likely to die early cause
Men did more dangerous jobs: mining, oil rig work, fishing,
constructions and heavy industry
Men are more likely to be risk takers and undertake dangerous activities (men are dumb): dangerous sports (i.e. hang-gliding), car and motorbike racing, rock-climbing, criminal activity etc
They drive carelessly: majority of ppl killed in car accidents are men
Lifestyle choices: males smoke more 21% of male deaths vs 13% of female due to smoking in the UK
Through serious chronic diseases men are less likely than women to read symptoms effectively and to seek help early
What about morbidity. We know that men are more likely to have cardiovascular diseases and lung cancer, whereas women are more likely to have AD. Why?
Women report more symptoms and consult clinicians more often
Men are more likley to suffer cardiovasc disease and lung cancer due to lifestyle (smoking alcohol)
Women suffer more from AD: apart from biological reasons this is due to poor cognitive reserve and lack of prior exercise
Yiannis is concerned with lifestyle changes. He explains to the doctor that he has been smoking and drinking since he was 15 years old. This is something he enjoys doing with his friends. “You know doctor, I have a life. I am alive when I go with my friends at restaurants to eat kebab and drink, to watch soccer and talk. There are no friends without drinking”.
Read case
Why is Yiannis not willing to change his lifestyle?
- masculinity
Explain masculinity as an influential factor of not quitting smoking
It is the underlying force for mens more risky behaviour
It’s mens social identity: what defines somebody as a man
What is the most influential type of masculinity
Hegemonic masculity
What is hegemonic masculinity
It is linked with authority/ power, paid work, physical strength and heterosexuality (classic finance bro)
How may one achieve hegemonic masculity
Involve themselves in dangerous activities = physical strength and power
Smoking and heavy alcohol are considered a “tough” male habit
Note: Research shows that men tend to believe that health is a womens job
Masculinity means men not wanting to behave in ways as other people perceive as
Feminine
Hegemonic masculinity is __ nature
2nd nature
Interestingly the gap between men and women in life expectancy is decreasing while more and more women tend to die from cardiovascular disease and lung cancer.
Why?
This has to do with the reasons why the gender gap in life expectancy is getting smaller
• Women are increasingly adopting a mans way of life
• More and more women are heavy smokers
• More and more women are heavy drinkers
• Women’s diet is getting unhealthy
• Women increasingly undertake more dangerous activities
What has caused yiannis condition
Based on research evidence, Yiannis’ condition might have been caused by smoking and unhealthy diet
Why has yiannis behaved dangerously
His behaviour relates to masculinity and the ways to reaffirm his male identity – to be accepted as a “real” male in community and not to be taken as a “feminine” man.
Masculinity is Yiannis’ 2nd nature and this why it is not easy for him to make life-style changes
To summarize
The higher mortality rates among men are attributed to dangerous jobs and activities as well as lifestyle
➢ Any differences in mortality are associated with lifestyle, though there is no difference in the overall morbidity between the genders
➢ Masculinity is a leading force behind men’s activities, lifestyle, risk taking and health literacy
B. Disorders of behaviour
C. Masculinity and strategy
