Slide 1Value of Interdisciplinary ComparisonsPsychological Approaches to GenderPsychological Approaches to GenderSex Differences ResearchAnthropological Approaches to GenderAnthropological Approaches to GenderQueer TheoryQueer TheoryGender, Economics, and DevelopmentGender, Economics, and DevelopmentGender, Economics, and DevelopmentHOW DO DISCIPLINES OUTSIDE OF SOCIOLOGY STUDY GENDER?Chapter ThreeValue of Interdisciplinary ComparisonsSociological perspective on gender is clarified by contrasts with other disciplinesUnique value of sociological perspective more evidentDifferent disciplines use distinctive conceptual approaches for examining genderAssumptions about gender vary by disciplineE.g., gender as individual attribute vs. social characteristicUse different methods for studying genderPsychological Approaches to GenderPsychologists most interested in individualFocused on processes related to the mind and brainFreud – Located origins of gender in early childhood developmentPsychological Approaches to GenderSex difference research – Examines range of variation in traits, dispositions, and behaviors between men and womenSeeks to determine whether or not sex differences can be observed through psychological testsSex Differences ResearchFour important take-away ideasThe task of establishing sex differences is complex and difficultIt has implications beyond the realm of research (gender inequality in schools and workplaces)It is descriptive research (identifies whether or not differences exist, but without explaining causes)Anthropological Approaches to GenderCultural anthropology and sociology both study social lifeEthnography as main method for anthropologists (sustained fieldwork, living with the group)Anthropologists examine how gender is defined and enacted differently across various societiesAnthropological Approaches to GenderSex and Temperament in Three Primitive SocietiesMargaret Mead (student of Franz Boas) – Used cross-cultural research to show how nurture trumps natureSex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies (1935)Mead’s research revealed cultural variations in beliefs and behaviors about masculinity, femininityQueer TheoryArgues that conventional approaches to psychology, anthropology, and sociology all privilege science and objectivityThree main movementsGay and Lesbian rights movementPostmodernismFeminismQueer TheoryQueer theory does not aim to solve all problems of other theoriesDoes not aspire to be another meta-narrativeThree key features of queer theory???Gender, Economics, and DevelopmentDevelopment project: Colonizers assumed (sometimes quite wrongly) that their presence lessened gender inequality in colonized groupsModernization theory: Posits that postcolonial world could become like developed countries if they followed economic, political, and social lead of developed worldThis is the goal of some nongovernmental organizations that work on social issues around worldGender, Economics, and DevelopmentThe restructuring of a society’s economy has become key in modernizationProblem: Economic models often overlook women’s work in informal economy; focus on formal economy (regulated by government, legal systems)Text discusses study: If women’s work worldwide in the informal economy was included in official economic calculations, the world’s GDP would increase by nearly one-thirdGender, Economics, and DevelopmentWomen in development (WID) is a new perspective that developed out of the neglect of women’s roles in developmentDevelopment programs aim to convert more land to commodity crops vs. subsistence agriculture, which is not a gender-neutral process Theories about relationships between the developed and the developing world began by largely ignoring and bypassing gender