gender role theory

Examples of gender role theory in the following topics:

• Gender Messages in the Family

  • Gender role theory posits that boys and girls learn the appropriate behavior and attitudes from the family with which they grow up.
  • This teaches their children that the expected gender roles for men and women require the father to work and the mother to remain in the domestic sphere.
  • Gender role theory posits that boys and girls learn the appropriate behavior and attitudes from the family and overall culture in which they grow up, and that non-physical gender differences are a product of socialization.
  • Social role theory proposes that social structure is the underlying force behind gender differences, and that the division of labor between two sexes within a society motivates the differences in their respective behavior.
  • Division of labor creates gender roles, which in turn, lead to gender-specific social behavior.

• Gender Roles in the U.S.

  • Much scholarly work on gender roles addresses the debate over the environmental or biological causes for the development of gender roles.
  • Gender role theory posits that boys and girls learn to perform one's biologically assigned gender through particular behaviors and attitudes.
  • Gender role theory emphasizes the environmental causes of gender roles and the impact of socialization, or the process of transferring norms, values, beliefs, and behaviors to group members, in learning how to behave as a male or a female.
  • Social role theory proposes that the social structure is the underlying force in distinguishing genders and that sex-differentiated behavior is driven by the division of labor between two sexes within a society.
  • With the popularization of social constructionist theories of gender roles, it is paramount that one recognize that all assertions about gender roles are culturally and historically contingent.

• Gender Messages from Peers

  • Gender role theory posits that boys and girls learn the appropriate behavior and attitudes from the family and overall culture in which they grow up, and so non-physical gender differences are a product of socialization.
  • Social role theory proposes that the social structure is the underlying force for gender differences.
  • Social role theory proposes that sex-differentiated behavior is motivated by the division of labor between two sexes within a society.
  • Division of labor creates gender roles, which in turn lead to gendered social behavior.
  • Peer groups can serve as a venue for teaching members gender roles.

• The Feminist Perspective

  • Feminist theory analyzes gender stratification through the intersection of gender, race, and class.
  • It aims to understand the nature of gender inequality, and examines women's social roles, experiences, and interests.
  • While generally providing a critique of social relations, much of feminist theory also focuses on analyzing gender inequality and the promotion of women's interests .
  • Feminist theory uses the conflict approach to examine the reinforcement of gender roles and inequalities.
  • In light of this theory, the oppression and marginalization of women is thus shaped not only by gender, but by other factors such as race and class.

• Gender and Research

  • Sociological research will study such things as social stratification between genders, the socialization of gender, influences of sexism on educational performance, gender and mass media, inequality in the workplace, gender roles and social norms , and other gender-related topics and social phenomena.
  • Theories that have contributed to gender research and the realm of gender studies include structural functionism (the theory that gender roles were originally functional; for example, women took care of the domestic responsibilities in or around the home because they were often limited by the physical restraints of pregnancy and nursing and unable to leave the home for long periods of time); conflict theory (seeing society as a struggle for dominance among social groups, such as women versus men, that compete for scarce resources); feminist theories (which use the conflict approach to examine the maintenance of gender roles and inequalities); and symbolic interactionism (which aims to understand human behavior by analyzing the critical role of symbols in human interaction).
  • Other conceptions of gender influenced by queer theory see gender as multidimensional, fluid and shifting; something that cannot be plotted linearly at all.
  • Social research will often focus on the influence of gender roles in the workplace, at home, and in other aspects of society.
  • In this image, a woman is seen working in a traditionally masculine setting, challenging gender roles of the time.

• The Conflict Perspective

  • Conflict theory suggests that men, as the dominant gender, subordinate women in order to maintain power and privilege in society.
  • In the context of gender, conflict theory argues that gender is best understood as men attempting to maintain power and privilege to the detriment of women.
  • While certain gender roles may have been appropriate in a hunter-gatherer society, conflict theorists argue that the only reason these roles persist is because the dominant group naturally works to maintain their power and status.
  • According to conflict theory, social problems are created when dominant groups exploit or oppress subordinate groups.
  • Friedrich Engels, a German sociologist, studied family structure and gender roles from a Marxist perspective.

• Development of Gender Identity

  • After this "peak of rigidity," fluidity returns and socially defined gender roles relax somewhat.
  • Social factors include ideas regarding gender roles conveyed by family, authority figures, mass media, and other influential people in a child's life.
  • Another factor that has a significant role in the process of gender identity is language; while learning a language, children learn to separate masculine and feminine characteristics and unconsciously adjust their own behavior to these predetermined roles.
  • Gender-schema theory was formally introduced by Sandra Bem in 1981 as a cognitive theory to explain how individuals become gendered in society.
  • Apply social-learning theory and gender-schema theory to the context of gender identity development and the gender spectrum

• Theories of Gender Differences

  • Many of the gender differences just described are attributed to differences in socialization, though it is possible that as yet undemonstrated genetic and biological factors play some role.
  • It is important to keep in mind that gender differences are a combination of social and biological forces; sometimes one or the other has a larger influence, but both play a role in dictating behavior.
  • Extending Conflict perspectives, Symbolic Interaction theories examine the varied meanings and constructions of gender over time and space.
  • Blending aspects of Conflict and Symbolic Interaction theories, Feminist Theory critiques hierarchical power relations embedded within existing gender structures, cultures, beliefs, discourses, identities, and processes of self presentation.
  • Central to these efforts, Feminist Theories typically examine past and present gender relations shaped by patriarchy and intersectionality.

• The Functionalist Perspective

  • The functionalist perspective of gender roles suggests that gender roles exist to maximize social efficiency.
  • This theory suggests that gender inequalities exist as an efficient way to create a division of labor, or as a social system in which particular segments are clearly responsible for certain, respective acts of labor.
  • A structural functionalist view of gender inequality applies the division of labor to view predefined gender roles as complementary: women take care of the home while men provide for the family.
  • This view has been criticized for reifying, rather than reflecting, gender roles.
  • While gender roles, according to the functionalist perspective, are beneficial in that they contribute to stable social relations, many argue that gender roles are discriminatory and should not be upheld.

• Gender Discrimination

  • Gender discrimination refers to prejudice or discrimination based on gender, as well as conditions that foster stereotypes of gender roles.
  • Gender discrimination, also known as sexism, refers to prejudice or discrimination based on sex and/or gender, as well as conditions or attitudes that foster stereotypes of social roles based on gender.
  • Sexist mindsets are frequently based on beliefs in traditional stereotypes of gender roles, and is thus built into many societal institutions.
  • There are several prominent ways in which gender discrimination continues to play a role in modern society.
  • A poster depicting gender stereotypes about women drivers from the 1950s