Jaymie Ticknor Intro Sociology 1510 Sect 900 7 November 2013 Chapter 11 Gender The Social Construction of Gender Defining Sex and Gender Sex refers to biological identity being male or female Gender socially learned expectations and behaviors associated with members of each sex Berdaches Navajo society were anatomically normal men who were defined as a third gender considered to fall between male and female Hijras of India are a sexual minority group born male considered to be a third gender Biological Determinism explanations that attribute complex social phenomena to physical Sex Differences Nature or Nurture characteristics Intersexed Hermaphroditism condition caused by irregularities in the process of chromosome formation or fetal differentiation that produces persons with mixed biological sex characteristics Transgendered deviate from the binary male or female system of gender include transsexuals those whose sexual identity as a man or woman differs from their biological sex identity at birth cross dressers and others who do not fit within the normative expectations of gender Status Quo existing social arrangements Within Gender variation on a given trait can be as great within given gender group as the difference across genders Gender Socialization Gender Socialization men and women learn the expectations associated with their sex The Formation of Gender Identity Gender Identity one s definition of oneself as a woman or man Self esteem how well one thinks of oneself Sources of Gender Socialization Parents peers children s play schools religion media are all sources of gender socialization Title IX schools are forbidden by law to discriminate based on gender Race Gender and Identity White men and women are more likely than Latinos to select different traits for men and women a fact that is counter to the stereotype of Hispanics as holding highly polarized views of manhood and womanhood African Americans are most likely to find value in both sexes displaying traits such as being assertive athletic self reliant gentle and eager to soothe hurt feelings African American women tend to be more liberal in this regard than African American men Asian American women are more like than Asian American men to value egalitarian roles for men and women Asian American women like White women are encouraged to become nurturing and other oriented but African American women are also socialized to become self sufficient aspire to an education desire an occupation and regard work as an expected part of a woman s roles Machismo exaggerated masculinity Homophobia fear and hatred of homosexuals Gender Socialization and Homophobia The Institutional Basis of Gender Gender is embedded in social institutions Gendered Institutions total pattern of gender relations that structure social institutions including the stereotypical expectations interpersonal relationships and the different placement of men and women that are found in institutions Gender Stratification Gender Stratification hierarchical distribution of social and economic resources according to gender Women are more nearly equal in societies characterized by women s work is central to the economy women have access to education ideological or religious support for gender inequality is not strong men make direct contributions to household responsibilities such as housework and child care work is not highly segregated by sex women have access to formal power and authority in public decision making Gender Apartheid extreme conditions of segregation by sex Sexism and Patriarchy Patriarchy society or group in which men have power over women Matriarchy society or group in which women have power over men Women s Worth Still Unequal Labor Force Participation Rate percentage of those in a given category who are employed either part time or full time 60 women and 74 in labor force women with children tripled participation in labor force mothers in labor force including more than half of mothers with infants Human Capital Theory Explains gender differences in wages as resulting from the individual characteristics that workers bring to jobs assumes that the economic system is fair and competitive and that wage discrepancies reflect differences in the resources or human capital that individuals bring to their jobs asserts that these characteristics will influence people s worth in labor market Contends that women and men earn different amounts because they tend to work in different The Dual Labor Market Theory segments of the labor market Primary Market jobs are relatively stable wages are good opportunities for advancement exist fringe benefits are likely and workers are afforded due process Two tiers high status professional and managerial jobs with potential for upward mobility room for creativity and initiative and more autonomy comprises working class jobs including clerical work skilled and semiskilled blue collar work more vulnerable and do not have much mobility pay prestige or autonomy as jobs in the first tier Secondary Market characterized by high job turnover low wages short or nonexistent promotion ladders few benefits poor working conditions arbitrary work rules and capricious supervision Gender Segregation Pattern in which different groups of workers are separated into occupational categories based on gender Occupational Segregation segregation in the labor market can also be based on factors such as race class age or any combination thereof Overt Discrimination Practices that single out some groups for different and unequal treatment Theories of Gender The Frameworks of Sociology Functionalists have been criticized for interpreting gender as a fixed role in society purports that men fill instrumental roles in society whereas women fill expressive roles and presumes that this arrangement works to the benefit of society emphasize people s socialization into prescribed roles as the major impetus behind gender inequality Feminists argue that functionalist perspective presumes sexist arrangements are functional for society limiting women s roles to expressive functions and men s to instrumental functions is dysfunctional Conflict see women as disadvantaged by power inequities between women and men that are built into the social structure Ethnomethodological perspective feminist scholars have developed what is known as doing gender a theoretical perspective that interprets gender as something accomplished through ongoing social interactions