Psychology of Women 01 23 2015 Awareness of how far women have come in terms of opportunities But also aware of the realities of women today o Influences that you may not notice o Influences that you may notice but feel you can t do anything Chapter 1 Theme 1 treatment about it The History of Women In Colonial Times o Cooked cleaned o No legal rights could not own property Bible teaching The head of the woman is the man o All men created equally by new US government white men who owned property In the 1800s o Most of life spent having children birth control not discussed o Spinster unmarried woman rule of thumb o Education in early 1800s okay but later not so okay pitifully low wages for women workers o Slaves treated even worse In the 1900s o Voluntary motherhood Margaret Higgins Sanger o Right to vote 1920 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B Anthony o Impact of the wars gave women opportunity to work in many types of industry o Birth control 1961 o Civil Rights movements 1964 Women added last minute as a protected group o Roe vs Wade 1973 legalized abortion The Good Wife s Guide May 1955 Housekeeping Monthly Magazine Civil Rights Act 1964 Federal Legislation nobody can discriminate Protected groups o Gender o Race o Religion o National Origin o Color o Disability o Age Groups Protected by Federal Laws Groups still not protected by Federal Laws o Homosexuals 15 states that protect sexual orientation gender expression o Transgender States organizations can additionally protect more groups Theme 2 Well behaved women seldom make history Impactful Women o Many Years Ago Harriet Tubman Susan B Anthony arrested for voting illegally Helen Keller o Yesterday Anita Hill Shannon Faulkner 1st female candidate to enter the Citadel in 1995 Today Women make up 6 5 of Citadel students Louis Jensen o Today Hillary Clinton Danica Patrick Lt Gen Ann E Dunwoody 1st Female 4 Star US Army General Oprah Women in Other Countries o Severe discrimination Muslim extremists Taliban o Less discrimination Scandinavian countries Sex and Gender Afghanistan women have limited rights freedoms often victims of violence o Sex The classification of individuals as female or male based on their genetic makeup anatomy and reproductive functions o Gender The meaning that societies and individuals give to female and male categories What we as a society consider masculine and feminine Gender deviates across cultures Women and Men Similar or Different o Similarities Approach Beta Bias Also referred to as social constructionist approach Men and women are basically alike in their intellectual and social behavior Differences between women and men are produced by socialization not biology e g Bohan 2002 o Differences Approach Alpha Bias Also referred to as essentialist approach Emphasizes differences between women and men Differences thought to arise from essential qualities within the individual that are rooted in biology May emphasize and celebrate positive qualities historically associated with women cultural feminism Gender Differences o Women smile more than men o Women are less likely to graduate in STEM science technology engineering math majors o Women suffer depression 2x more than men o Women make up 50 of middle managers but about 3 of CEOs Feminism o Lots of negative connotation associated with this term o Equality between men and women o Value women as important and worthwhile human beings o Recognize need for social change Passing laws that guarantee equal rights for women Male control and domination of women throughout There are essential differences between men and Feminist Perspectives o Liberal Feminist o Radical Feminist history o Cultural Feminist women Women of Color Feminist History of Feminism o First wave early 1900s Centered around voting rights ended after 1920 Appliance ads 1950s Toaster washing machine dryer The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan the problem o Second wave 1960s 1989 with no name o Third wave 1990s harassment etc o Fear of Feminism Arose from backlash to 2nd wave of feminism Focuses on individual issues date rape sexual Backlash to feminism infertility epidemic man shortage career women with stress induced disorders o Negative stereotypes of feminists femi nazis bra burners o Insisting on differences o Women against women Feminism as a cat fight Stay at home moms vs working moms Breast feeders vs non breast feeders Women bullies in the workplace Women in Psychology o Late 1800s early 1900s o 1930s 1960s o 1970s o 1998 o 2005 Feminist research methods o Quantitative o Qualitative Chapter 2 Our environment Cultural Representation of Gender provides us information about how to live gender roles provide us information about how each gender should live What do we value in Security Women Personality abilities jobs family roles etc Men o Resources Assertiveness Intelligence Strong Reliable o Intelligence attractiveness compassionate nurturing What do we see as a weakness for Men Women o Listeners communications expressing feelings empathy o Decisions assertiveness emotional Important Concepts in Psychology of Women Dominants vs subordinates those in power determine philosophy morality values in society o Dominants often do not realize the privileges associated with being in power Majority group vs minority group Privilege o White as normative male as normative Those that differ from the norm are deviations o U S Centered Nationalism o Internalization of a dominant group s belief Self hatred Passing o Pressure to assimilate into dominate culture results in some minorities to try to pass as majority Bases for Gender Stereotypes Social categorization o Helps simplify our social perceptions o Based on easily identifiable characteristics o Can lead us astray o Observing the behaviors associated with typically performed Social role theory in their social roles Labels of her relationship o Long standing cultural norm that a woman is defined in terms Bias o Prejudice negative attitude or emotional reaction toward a particular group of people Example Gender Bias an inclination to hold a particular perspective about women at the expense of possibly equal alternatives o Discrimination unfair treatment of a person or group on the bias of prejudice Sexism Ambivalent Sexism Glick and Fiske 2007 o Stereotypes and or discriminatory behaviors that serve to restrict women s roles and maintain male domination Backlash effect Violating these gender stereotypes can result in social and economic penalties Ex