Students of a Spring 2014 Psychology of Women course surveyed 43 participants for their attitudes and opinions about gender/sex. Before I delve/begin discussing the results of the survey I will present a short review of three scholarly articles. I will also detail my own analysis of who I am and how I learned about gender and sex.
Relevant Research
Gender and sex are two terms that are often confused. Gender refers to as to the visual context in which society creates to shape the sex they assume you are by your outside image, while sex is defined as what body part you were born with (Penis/Vagina). (Matlin, 2012) In our class we also learned about isms and the study of gender; for example sexism, is when a people are bias against another person based on their gender. (Matlin, 2012) Example of this term would be a person who doesn’t agree that man and women are equal, a man can stay home with the children while the wife works and supports the family. There are many associations with Feminism, such as Liberal feminism, meaning those who believe giving women and men the same rights and opportunities, Cultural feminism emphasizes the positive qualities that are presumed to, Radical feminism argues that the basic cause of women’s oppression lies deep in the entire sex and gender system, rather than in some superficial laws and policies be stronger in women than in men—qualities such as nurturing and caretaking and Women-of-color feminists emphasize that feminism must pay attention to other human dimensions such as ethnicity and social class (Baca Zinn et al., 2001; Chrisler & Smith, 2004; Lorber, 2005b).
In this section I will also detail my analyses of three articles about the psychology of Article 1: Why are Black women rated less ...
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... given, and add culture and possibly provide the surveys to more than one or two schools. I found that using the World Wide Web was a great idea, for as mentioned in the article it provides reassurance that people cannot, or them feeling judged. Woman should have been allowed to participate in this study for it would have made the study more interesting to have a sense as to how woman perceive these jokes and see if it relates to them in the way it does for the men. It is a strong belief that if participants from different backgrounds and cultures would participate in this study the results can differ in many ways. For example, some cultures would not agree or laugh at the some of the sexist jokes for they may not agree with how it terrorizes woman. That being said, maybe the study would just show how much of the population of men believe in these types of jokes.
Throughout Gendered World sociologist argue that gender and sex are socially constructed instead of being innate. The authors present evidence in regards to history, biology, and contemporary viewpoints using day-to-day examples. Although alternative viewpoints may argue that through a biological perspectives gender and sex is an innate characteristic through deeper examination it can be determined that gender and sex are truly socially constructed.
There is so much controversy in the society that we live in, it has resulted in an absolute mess. Certain topics as in gender or men and women’s bodies, is so controversial to the point that it has caused a misrepresentation of both men and women. Both Jean Kilbourne and Allan G. Johnson form their own opinions in their articles “Two Ways A Woman Can Get Hurt” and “Why Do We Make So Much of Gender” that comment on society as a whole, while expanding on the concept of why gender is so important for a fully functioning society. Although, both Kilbourne and Johnson have differentiating opinions to gender, they both come to the conclusion that gender is a key factor to explain our society and the social change in it. We live in a society where
Throughout Gendered Worlds sociologists argue that gender and sex are socially constructed as opposed to being innate. The authors present evidence in regards to history, biology, and contemporary viewpoints using day-to-day examples. Although alternative viewpoints may argue that through biological perspectives, gender and sex are innate characteristics through deeper examination it can be determined that gender and sex are truly socially constructed.
Predominantly, there are thought to be two sexes: male and female, and two genders: masculine and feminine (Kitzinger 1999), but nowadays we live in a society where intersex/transgender people are the new norm, whether we’d like to accept it or not. While sex and gender are two completely different concepts, oftentimes it is misinterpreted by the members of our society, to mean gender is related to sex. All the while people are being ignorant to intersex/transgenders, claiming that they are being affected by their existence. Gender roles are a part of our society and that people claiming “equal rights and equal privileges are fighting a losing battle, if not are actually hurting their own cause.” (Why Feminism Is Not The Fight for Equal Rights).
Feminism, in its simplest definition, is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. (Webster) Feminists fight for equality for women to men socially, politically, and economically. At the peak of feminist discourse is equality for men and women in education and in employment. However, feminism also focuses on more than issues regarding the rights of women in relation to men. Issues of gender equality and women’s right to control their sexuality are also at the core of feminist theory. A key argument made by many feminists is how women have very little control over their sexuality, mainly being defined and controlled by men. T...
Gender is not about the biological differences between men and women but rather the behavioral, cultural and psychological traits typically associated with one sex. Gender is socially constructed meaning it 's culturally specific, it 's learned and shared through gender socialization. What it means to be a woman or man is going to differ based on the culture, geographical location, and time. What it meant to be a woman in the US in the 19th century is different than what it means to be a woman in the 21st century. As cultures evolve over time so are the ideals of what it means to be man or woman.
When considering gender and sex, a layman’s idea of these terms might be very different than a sociologist’s. There is an important distinction: sex, in terms of being “male” or “female,” is purely the physical biological characteristic differences – primarily anatomical differences. (There are also rare cases of “intersexual” individuals as outlined in the Navarro article, “When Gender Isn’t a Given”.) Gender, on the other hand, is an often misconstrued concept that is commonly mistaken as synonymous with sex. A non-sociologist might surmise the following, “men act masculine and women act feminine, therefore, it must follow that gender is inherent to sex,” however, this is not necessarily the case.
In our present world, people understand and view gender in different perspectives, or “lenses.” The idea of gender that we see specifically in our present society today is very extensive compared to what it was years ago. We see a variety of different kinds of gender, whereas only years ago it was two: male and female. Personally, I have seen this in our society because I have met people that identify as many different genders that aren’t specifically just male or female. The word “gender” holds an important place in our language, specifically in today’s society, because it has determined who we are, how we identify ourselves, and ultimately our roles in society.
“Gender”: refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women.[2]
The following paper explores two different theories, gender schema theory and Psychoanalytic theory, which seek to explain sex and/or gender. Both theories that will be depicted throughout this paper has its own orientation towards what gender is, where it is located, and what this means for every day.
Gender is a socially constructed phenomenon, and how acceptable one’s relationship is determined by society’s view of gender roles. Because the majority of the population is characterized as heterosexual, those who deviate from that path are ...
In layman terms the concepts of sex and gender are favorably used interchangeably and are considered one. It is dominantly understood that the roles and functions of a a particular
Block, J.H. (1976) Conceptions of sex role: Some cross-cultural and longitudinal perspectives. American Psychologist, 28, 512-526.
When we say that we “do gender”, we are referring to accepted role taken by both females and males in a society that comes to play in their everyday lives. West and Zimmerman stated that doing gender involves, “complex socially guided perceptual, interactional, and micro political activities that cast particular pursuits as expressions of masculine and feminine natures,” (West & Zimmerman, 2014, pg. 121). That had lead to individuals conforming to what society deemed as appropriate for their gender and the implications that follow. By characterizing sex, we are doing gender, which creates societal norms that influence both female and male behaviors. By classifying people as either male and female, we are solidifying the culturally agreed upon
The relationship between sex and gender can be argued in many different lights. All of which complicated lights. Each individual beholds a sexual identity and a gender identity, with the argument of perceiving these identities however way they wish to perceive them. However, the impact of gender on our identities and on our bodies and how they play out is often taken for granted in various ways. Gender issues continue to be a hugely important topic within contemporary modern society. I intend to help the reader understand that femininities and masculinities is a social constructed concept and whether the binary categories of “male” and “female” are adequate concepts for understanding and organising contemporary social life with discussing the experiences of individuals and groups who have resisted these labels and forged new identities.