In many ways, men and women have more similarities than differences. However, differences remain in what society expects of them and what opportunities they have. Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right but also an essential basis for achieving peace, prosperity, and sustainable development. Historical stereotypes that have manifested themselves for centuries in many aspects of public life have become the order of the day, and the problem is gradually being eradicated: more girls go to school, fewer girls are forced into early marriages, and more women serve in parliament and occupy leadership positions, and law reform for gender equality (Huang et al., 2020). However, there are different points of view on this issue from the directions of psychology and sociology.
Symbolic interactionism theory has heuristic possibilities for explaining and understanding the sources and consequences of sexism in everyday interactions. For example, sociologist Karin Martin was interested in understanding how boys and girls learn gender-normative modes of movement using physical space and themselves. To explore these questions, she studied preschoolers in five different classrooms, two different preschools, with different teachers (Baligar, 2018). She found that teachers regularly structure children’s play and impose discipline in ways that reproduce and reinforce gender differences. These games later lay the foundation for other symbols of interactionism: language, gestures, and body movements.
The transition of the gender conflict from the sphere of the vital world to the sphere of the sociocultural organization of society at the level of social structures leads to the reproduction and renewal of values and norms that support the social order. The sociocultural model of a monolithic masculine value-homogeneous culture is being replaced by a model of another cultural value world built on the dialogue of male and female cultures. Conflictology emphasizes the dynamics of the social redistribution of social statuses and roles in conflict resolution against the background of the constant formation of sociocultural communities based on specific social values and norms (Durueke, 2022). Accordingly, in this dynamic process, conflictologists focus on the direction of transformation of social attitudes, finding patterns in the characteristic sociocultural phenomena – male and female cultures entering into dialogue and struggle.
Feminism in the global concept also stands for creating an equal society. However, the purpose of the movement is more focused on women. Gender inequality in this respect is the engine of the primary function of this direction. The struggle is directed only against negative attitudes that violate equality, within which neither domination, subordination, exploitation, nor, among other things, emancipation is possible (O’Reilly, 2021). At the same time, the trend itself diversifies into many different subgroups, including the most radical ones. Therefore, the prerequisite for forming this movement is still necessary and sufficient for its activity, unlike other areas focused on only one gender.
Prior to the spread of feminist criticism in the 1970s, the interpretation of gender in sociology was, in one way or another, based on essentialist principles. It also applies to Marxist sociology, structural-functional analysis, and micro-level sociology. Sociology has almost always included in its field the consideration of gender relations, which depended on a general theoretical approach, while gender was interpreted as an ascriptive or ascribed status (Scarborough & Risman, 2020). Accordingly, social roles and many stereotypes were manifested in structural functionalism as one of the early currents of sociology. The current problematics of this direction is to define new relevant and all possible roles of the sexes without pre-set labels.
References
Baligar, M. P. (2018). Gender theories in sociology. IJRAR-International Journal of Research and Analytical Reviews, 617-619.
The question of gender does not depend on the society and the prevailing context-constituting elements, including space and time. In other words, gender is an aspect of society and forms a social structure. Any attempt to redefine and reconstitute gender has its limits. Although the “changes” are judged based on how they deviate from the traditional thoughts, there is still much evidence of a salient gendered psychology of society.
This phenomenon is best seen and understood by observing social contexts in which men and women interact. A social context is what Hochschild refers to as “magnified moment”, and is a metaphorical ‘society’ (4). One such context is the Super Bowl XLVI, the Patriots vs. the Giants game.
The purpose of this paper is to explore how gender as a social structure is manifested in this context, what generally helps its perpetuation and how women attempt to change this situation.
Discussion
The Super Bowl case is not only a social context as a whole, but also a mosaic of micro-contexts. One could observe how men and the women relate with each other in this space where the football players create a strong consciousness about ‘masculinity’ on one end, and femininity on the other; the players in action or Madonna’s half-time performance.
In Madonna’s performance for instance, it is quite evident how the male and female performers relate on the stage especially on the use of space and what they perform. Men who dance with Madonna are notably taller than she is. Mostly, the women flaunt their hips, while the men flaunt their muscles and do other things including sword-fights.
In addition, the body languages seem to emphasize the performers’ femininity and masculinity. Men and women barely share space and performance at any particular moment in time. For instance, when the ladies in red-white costumes come on stage to do their “cheerleading” performance, the men take the background.
Risman (431), in her explanation of social and gender relationship, says that the notion of the differences between different genders is socially and contextually constructed. The context shapes what is perceived as gender-appropriate behavior.
The players are well built men and they become ‘beasts’ in the field. It is likely that most- if not all, the people start to feel that this is actually how all men should look like. Ladies become conscious of their “femininity” and long for their men to have the same body type. On the other hand, men who are not built “well” start to feel inferior as compared to other players.
This case where a man does not necessarily care to ‘build’ his body, but feels ‘less’ masculine in the presence of ‘built’ men is what has been referred to as a ‘pervasive double-bind’ relationship of men with their bodies (Norman 2). However, such feelings and reactions are not likely to appear in a context where such ‘oozing masculinity’ is not so explicitly displayed.
Ridgeway and Correll argue that these “social relational contexts”, are some of the key components that help keep the gender system as it is, or help change it. The authors observe that these contexts /provide ‘unwritten’ cultural instructions or rules that define the social structure of inequality and difference that many perceive to be gender” (510,511).
The ability of the social context thrives on the collective life. The football culture is such a good example. It has the ability to constrain individuals and individualism. The individual internalizes the values and norms that they witness (Risman 431). Individuals define themselves in relation to others. The ‘not well-built’ men here compare themselves to the players. The term ‘structure’ is therefore dualistic, referring to both the constraints that society imposes on the people and the people’s actions in line with or against these constraints (Ridgeway and Correll 510).
Evidence of this patriarchal psychology has been found in different social contexts. Such a context like the Super Bowl game is one of ways that boys and girls (4 to 5 years of age) interacted during the opening of an end-of-summer soccer season. However, there are some other notable differences.
First, while adults are generally conscious of the notion of gender and the constituting elements, the children are not. Secondly, Madonna’s performance for instance, is intentionally staged. In his study, Messner observes how the children unconsciously “construct gender” (Messner 765).
Messner largely analyses the cases of Barbie Girls and Sea Monsters from the perspective of performative theory. The girls emphasize by performance and femininity in this manner. The boys emphasize by use of their masculine nature to control, constrain, configure and violate (Messner 765; Norman 14). Nevertheless, quoting Walter, he also acknowledges the ‘involuntariness’ of these actions.
Generally, his argument is based on social structure theories, which argue that everyday interactions as favored by the prevailing historical, political and social circumstances provide a platform in which gender is enacted (Lorber). On the other hand, while some girls flinch when the boys invade their space, which is in line with the perception of girls as mild and easily trounced by boys, other girls do not budge. On the contrary, they push the boys from their space. This is largely against expectations.
What is interesting in Messner’s account is the way the adults react to this scenario on the whole scene. To them, the scenario displays a clear distinction between the two genders. They keep commenting on how the two groups, the boys and girls, “look different.” Perhaps the distinction was in the mind of the adults, “seeing what they wanted to see” (Messner 766).
The parents too are most probably victims of the society’s psychology. They insist on viewing the two sexes as the very different. Indeed, the patterns of behavior and thought that parents instill in their children during their formative years will perhaps remain with them throughout their lives and influence the structures of their households (Fox 375). Depending on parenthood, the woman typically cares for the baby, while the man helps the mother and provides for the family.
Generally, the question here is on the presence of gendered labor divisions during the period when a woman transits to motherhood and how these influence the weight of her responsibility. Normally, the welfare of children is the responsibility of the mother (Fox 378).
Most studies show that transitioning to adulthood and the responsibilities attached to it also affect women health-wise. For instance, it has been found that female Cystic Fibrosis patients have the lowest chance of survival and of improving their lives than their male counterparts. The median survival age of women has been found to be higher than that of men in most countries and even states. Willis, et al find links between this trend and women’s transition to adulthood (1164).
Women have not taken this sitting down and have sought to earn higher education accolades, break into traditionally ‘male’ occupations, and so on. Madonna’s performance displays other elements that reflect women’s rising power over men. For instance, one notices how Madonna apparently rules over the men on stage. She decides to slap and kick men.
Rose Weitz presents another way in which women fight back. One of the ways is using their body. For instance, she explores how women use their hair to change the general perception of their beauty and attractiveness. She argues that women’s hair “is key to defining and establishing their social position” (Weitz 667).
Additionally, she explores the way that women seek to gain power through their hairs, the benefits, and limitations of such strategies. For instance, it is generally thought that women intentionally improve their hair by applying chemicals and blow-drying, which also means spending money on it. Thus, in their mind, when beautifully maintains hair, this is thought to give women power.
Paula England (149-163) presents arguments on what she perceives as the failure of gender change. She does acknowledge that since the feminist movement began, the economic and social lives of many women have changed (Walters 123). She points out the fact that these changes have been uneven and they mainly occur among certain groups of people and in certain spheres more than others do.
Her main argument is that the society remains relatively stuck in the ‘old’ patriarchal psychology (England 158). The different roles that the different sexes perform in the Super Bowl game, from the players, to the audience and performance display this psychology to a certain degree. Acker attributes the gender inequalities in organizations to the gendered minds that construct organizations and have also formulated the theories about them (139).
Conclusion
In this paper, we have recognized and acknowledged the many social transitions that women have gone through. Nevertheless, we have equally seen that these changes have not exactly broken away from the society’s constraints. The patriarchal psychology of the society remains relatively the same. This has influenced the way the changes occur and which areas experience changes better and faster than others.
Works Cited
Acker, Joan. Hierachies, Jobs, Bodies: A Theory of gendered organizations, Gender & Society 4 (1990): 139-155. Print.
England, Paula. The Gender revolution: Uneven and Stalled. Gender & Society. 24.2 (2010): 149-166. Print.
Fox, Bonnie. The Formative Years: How Parenthood Creates Gender. CRSA/RCSA 38. 4 (2011): 374-388. Print.
Lorber, Judith. Night to his Day: The Social Construction of Gender. Mearc. 1994. Web.
Messner, Michael A. Barbie Girls Versus Sea Monsters: Children Constructing Gender. Gender & Society. 14.6 (2000): 765-784. Print.
Norman, Moss. Embodying the Double-Bind of Masculinity: Young Men and Discourses of Normalcy, Health, Heterosexuality, and Individualism. Men and Masculinities , 3. (2011): 12-21. Print.
Ridgeway, Cecilia, L. & Shelley, Correll. Unpacking the Gender System: A Theoretical Perspective on Gender Beliefs and Social Relations. Gender & Society 18.4 (2004): 510-531. Print.
Risman, Barbara. Gender As A Social Structure: Theory Wrestling With Activism. Gender & Society 18.4 (2004): 429-450. Print.
Walters, Suzanna. Sex, Text, and Context: (In) between feminism and cultural studies. In Revisioning Gender. California: Thousand Oaks, 2008. Print.
Weitz, Rose. Women and Their Hair: Seeking Power through Resistance and Accommodation. Gender & Society 15.5 (2001): 667-686. Print.
Willis, Evan., Rosemary, Miller and Johanna, Wyn. Gendered Embodiment and Survival for Young People with Cystic Fibrosis. Social Science & Medicine, 53 (2001): 1163-1174. Print.
Race, class, and gender are issues that many people find incredibly hard to appreciate and recognize as characteristics of diversity that define people not only in the United States but also on global platforms. From this dilemma, this paper focuses on conducting a critique of various articles appearing in Rothenberg’s book Race, Class, and Gender in the United States.
Racial Formations by Michael Omi and Howard Winant
Michael Omi and Howard Winant discuss issues of class, gender, and race. They see these issues as social constructions as opposed to scientific aspects, which define people’s differences (Rothenberg, 2009, p.11).
The authors view race as a concept that is deeply seated in the history of all people across the globe since time immemorial.
Although human beings are seen as equal irrespective of their race, gender, or class with the modern approaches to race, gender, and class studies, Michael Omi and Howard Winant wonder why it is possible for one to see people who are different in terms of skin color, gender, and social economic status. Social economic status is a major factor that is used to segregate people into different classes.
Although this debate is not consistent with the struggles by many nations including the United States to ensure that all people irrespective of their diverse characteristics are considered equal human beings whose fundamental human rights must be respected, the argument by Michael Omi and Howard Winant holds substance. I agree with it.
Despite the extent to which people may decide to deny the realities of racial and gender identities, it is a fact that they identify other people as women or men, or from their place of origin. For instance, some Americans are categorized as Asian-Americans, whites, or African-Americans.
Notwithstanding the fact that all these persons are considered part of the rich American diversity, the usage of these terms to distinguish Americans has the aspect of race ingrained within them. Now, consistent with Michael Omi and Howard Winant’s arguments, it is perhaps impossible to see other people as ‘just people’ rather than seeing them as women and men.
This argument contends with Michael Omi and Howard Winant’s Assertion that “we utilize race to provide clues about who a person is” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.12). This ability is often navigated from one generation to another based on perceptions of how a particular group of people appears in terms of their faces.
It is common during conversations to encounter people putting forward comments such as ‘you really don’t look like a white’, which indicate that some people have some racial stereotyping, either positive or negative, on the manner in which certain races of people behave or act.
I agree with Michael Omi and Howard Winant that perception of class based on social economic status is a major issue that afflicts many nations across the globe including the United States. For instance, the authors argue that interpretation of racial identities is heftily influenced by perceptions of class (Rothenberg, 2009, p.15). This argument often leads to construction of negative stereotypes.
For instance, blacks have had an experience of being negatively stereotyped as predominantly belonging to a low social economic status. This matter perhaps reveals why there have been repeated cases for blacks being associated with crime. The question that rises from this issue is, should negative stereotyping of blacks explain why there is a higher prevalence of the blacks is prisons?
Does it then necessarily mean that blacks belonging in low social economic class, as they are profiled in some media, imply that they engage in crime to earn a living? My position is that these cases are merely habits of thought, which while given public attention end up being legitimized. Consequently, they act as incredible mechanisms of distinguishing wrongly and profiling other people wrongly.
This position agrees with Michael Omi and Howard Winant’s position that failure to appreciate that people are equal and similar amid their skin color or social economic status ends pushing for negative gender, race, and class perspectives beyond skin color conceptualizations (Rothenberg, 2009, p.14).
How Jews Became White by Karen Brodki
Written by Karen Brodki, the article ‘How Jews Became White’ narrates how European immigrants as from 1880s became assimilated into America, what the author terms as becoming white. This discussion is significant in terms of advancement of the debate of race, class, and gender perspectives as major experiences that the U.S. has been struggling to handle.
The article explores deeply into one of the dominant issues in America, which marked the beginning of appreciation of diverseness for Americans in terms of recognition of the contribution of every person irrespective of his or her place of origin, race, or class in economic development of the American nation.
However, the author makes it clear that the substantive growth of America as a nation has not come into being in an easy way, but has entailed many struggles to deal with identities of people who make up the nation.
In the studies of gender, class, and racial differences of persons, the developments made by the article on the process that was followed by the Jewfish emigrants before they were assimilated into America is incredibly significant. Jews were emigrants from Europe. Here, they were treated as an inferior class of people.
Such perceptions of inferiority emanated from the fact that Jews provided the much-needed labor to the Native American. This case made the ‘white’ even more wealthy especially during the era of industrial boom in the United States (Rothenberg, 2009, p. 61). The usage of the word ‘white’ is strikingly significant in the perceptions of race and class. Indeed, Jews are white in terms of skin color.
However, when it is argued that the white owned the factors of production while Jews provided the necessary labor to keep the industries moving on, it implies that persons in the low social economic status were not considered as real whites, although their skin color could be white.
Education is one of the essential factors that determine the social economic status of an individual. Educated persons have better chances of acquiring better jobs. Hence, their social economics status is also likely to be higher. This argument coincides with the Karen Brodki assertion, “prior to the civil war, a college degree was still very much a mark of the upper class” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.61).
This idea means that schools could only be accessed by those individuals belonging to higher social economic status, whether Native American or immigrants.
The situation even became worse for immigrants such as the Jews when colleges in 1930s had minimal rooms to accommodate immigrants irrespective of their social economic status. This argument is significant by noting that 1930s marked a significant time when racism was at its peak.
In this context, I agree with Karen Brodki that perception of race and class are essential factors, which help to explain the struggles that America has gone through in the effort to reach its current state of embracement of various socio-demographic diversities of her inhabitants and integration of different cultures of a diverse number of people (Rothenberg, 2009, p.66).
Today, the racially and culturally diverse people have a common culture referred to as the American culture. This culture does not segregate people along tribal, racial, gender, or even socio-economic class. All people have the rights to access justice and basic human needs including education and employment opportunities.
The Social Construction of Gender by Judith Lorber
Authored by Judith Lorber, in the article Night to His Day: the Social Construction of Gender argues that people create gender through their social interactions. This argument means that gender is acted and performed. Judith Lorber supports this assertion by claiming that acting of gender involves prescription of various roles for different gender.
For instance, the author says that it sounds awkward to some people who still believe that the roles of women and men are different in the society to think of men strolling children in the city of New York (Rothenberg, 2009, p.54). The manner in which people describe the dressing code and other characteristics of people also acts as a means of acting gender.
For instance, thinking of description of a child as wearing certain clothes, which are thought of being supposed to be worn by a girl child is a mechanism of acting gender. This argument means that people have particular things that they expect one gender to do and not the other. Indeed, it is until the last two decades that people across the globe have appreciated that men could also put on earrings.
This means that the history of people has always dictated things that are supposed to done by one gender as opposed to the other. In this extent, gender is performed and acted by people.
Although gender may be seen from the perspective of Judith Lorber as an issue that can be evaded, the manner in which evading it can be done supersedes the reality of the manner in which gender is constructed within the minds of people. Judith Lorber posits, “Gendering is done from birth, constantly, and by everyone” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.55).
This position means that immediately people are born, they are introduced to the debate of gender perspectives so that, by the time children learn to talk, they know the gender they belong to, mostly male or female.
Arguably, the process through which this process takes place is beyond the control of people since gender is implied even in the language that people use to communicate right from the usage of nouns to pronouns that refer to different genders. This kind of gender categorization of persons often gives rise to conflicts.
For instance, based on normalization of the only two types of gender, transgendered persons may end up having whole life internal conflicts amongst themselves in the attempt to come to an understanding of why they divert from the normalized gender categories.
Should this case then reveal why some persons who are transgendered strive with the problem of looking for mechanisms of transforming their gender identity so that they can fit into one of these two-gender categories: male or female?
Despite the challenges that are introduced in the society by gender acting, I agree with Judith Lorber that gender is inevitable in some aspects. Judith Lorber argues, “As a social institution, gender is one of the major ways that human beings organize their lives” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.55). The collective progression of a society is dependent on divisions of labor.
People can be selected to fit into different areas of economy based on motivations, talents, and even their academic qualifications. However, can people run away from the culture of classifying some jobs as more prevalent to certain gender relative to the other?
This question is perhaps more important by considering that, even today, while people claim that there is no specific job that needs to be the province of a given gender, people still allocate tasks in a work environment to different persons based on age and gender demographic factors.
Arguably, it is not surprising to encounter a job opening being advertised stating that the most preferred candidate should be a male or a female. Nevertheless, I agree with Judith Lorber that people are born with determined sex, with gender being socially induced (Rothenberg, 2009, p.57).
Although one is born with the awareness that he or she is a girl or a boy, or even transgendered, it is from social interactions that one comes to learn than boys or girls dress in a certain manner, play certain games, have certain names, which are feminine and masculine, and the unique characteristics that best explain their sameness.
The argument here is that, consistent with Judith Lorber’s presentation of gender identities along with how they are constructed, people perform and act gender. It is through such performance that one becomes cognizant of his or her sex.
The Invention of Heterosexuality by Jonathan Ned Katz
In his article The Invention of Heterosexuality, Jonathan Ned Katz traces the historical development of the concept of heterosexuality. To the author, studying the history of this concept is important since, “by not studying the idea of heterosexuality in history, analysts of sex, gay, and straight have continued to privilege the ‘normal’ and ‘natural’ at the expense of the ‘abnormal’ and ‘unnatural’” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.150)
. From this assertion, it is evident that the author sees the concept of heterosexuality and the entire sexuality concept as being characterized by different interpretations as time progresses from when the biblical story of creation took place to the modern world.
I subscribe to the above school of thought. There has been a change of what people consider a normal sexual inclination. The history of American experiences with sexuality struggles perhaps reveals it all. In the early 19th century, being a gay or a lesbian was a big crime. It was seen as both ethically and morally inappropriate. It was considered one of the ways of tearing the social fabrics that had been binding the American society together.
The only socially justifiable sexual inclination was heterosexuality, which is now being described by the term straight. A century later, homosexuality including lesbianism and gay sexual orientation are considered as normal sexual orientations. Indeed, it is an offence to discriminate people on the grounds of their sexual orientations in America.
Jonathan Ned Katz also believes that there has been a big change in the manner in which sexuality is visualized. During the early Victorian age, 1820 to 1860, the author claims, “the actors in the sexual economy were identified as manly men and womanly women and/or as procreators” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.151).
This description means that, if procreation did not fit in the equation of any relationship between two people, such a relationship was condemned. This case was to change later in the 1960s to 1980s when recognition of only one sexual orientation began to raise attraction of sexuality movements such as those staged by homosexual with the objective of acquiring the rights of being recognized (Rothenberg, 2009, p.158).
This case clearly showed that sexuality is not a function of procreation but eroticism. In this regard, I agree with Jonathan Ned Katz since desire is the main driver of one’s sexual orientation. People have the freedom to satisfy their own desires subject to the limitation that they do not harm other people. Why should people fail to recognize homosexuality and other sexual inclinations?
Disability and the Justification of Inequality in American History by Douglas Baynton
In this article, Douglas Baynton argues that disability encompasses one of the main aspects that are used historically to treat people unequally. According to him, discrimination of people has called into question the aspect of disability to ensure that such discriminations are justified (Rothenberg, 2009, p.33). Careful scrutiny of developments in the political arena of various nations makes this assertion of Baynton important.
Analysis of how different groups of people have struggled to gain their freedoms reveals that disability is not just a physical incapability. For instance, women were denied suffrage rights in America until 1930s on the ground that they had flaws that were related to their gender, which incapacitated them from making good decisions.
Such deficits provided amicable responses to why male members of the society were not only valid and capable for making decisions such as voting the right people but also why they needed to domineer over women. Considering also the mass killing of Jews during the Nazi regime, the question of disability also arises.
People who were killed during this time, mainly of Jewish origin, were considered an inferior race. Hence, the Jewish question was worth resolving. The solution was to mass slaughter Jews on the accounts of the perceived disability.
From the above discussion, it intrigues one to think of how gender, race, and class are interrelated in terms of disability. Baynton provides an adequate response to this noble challenge by discussing the experience of black Americans with slavery.
He argues, “The most common disability arguments for slavery were simply that African-Americans lacked sufficient intelligence to participate or compete on an equal basis in society with white Americans” (Rothenberg, 2009, p.37).
Therefore, there was a misconception that skin color could indicate the degree of one’s intellectual intelligence. Consequently, skin pigmentation, other than white, was a disability. In this extent I agree with Baynton that disability is a crucial discriminatory issue that the society has always attempted to handle.
Baynton evidences the darkest part of the historical relationship between disability and incapability when he argues that African-Americans were also considered having the risks of developing physical disabilities when they were given freedom.
While this argument is important in developing the arguments for justification of denial of freedom among black Americans on the grounds of the perceived and actual disabilities, it is questionable whether indeed skin color may be indicative of one’s proneness to certain disability challenges such as deafness yet biologically there is evidence that skin color is due to melanin.
This chemical component of the human body is not related to other aspects such as intelligence and susceptibility to situations that may make an individual disabled.
Reference
Rothenberg, P. (2009). Race, Class, and Gender in the United States. New York: Mac Higher.
The concept of gender has never been a topic that is particularly easy to discuss. Over the past few decades, gender studies have stretched the concept of gender and gender identity (Asante et al. 31), questioning the established norm. Among the recent changes in viewpoints, society as a factor that shapes one’s gender identity has been brought to public attention. Because of the strong emphasis placed on heteronormativity and the gender binary (Nelson) in my culture, as well as my personal identity as a strictly heterosexual man, I have had a strong propensity toward supporting heteronormativity.
However, the recent exposure to the idea of gender as a partially social construct (Asante et al. 25) has made me more accepting of other viewpoints. Due to the influence of the patriarchal society in which I was born and raised, I identify myself rather rigidly and have a strong idea of gender normativity (Asante et al. 25) as the foundational principle of social roles and relationships.
Main body
I believe that my gender and sexuality have been affected by societal norms to a considerable extent. Belonging to the Armenian culture has defined my gender development significantly since it strongly supports and encourages the idea of heteronormativity (Asante et al. 24). Therefore, I have always identified as a heterosexual man and have never felt any discrepancies between the sex with which I was assigned at birth and my gender identity. For instance, when considering the examples of the societal influences that have contributed to my current concept of gender, I must mention the idea of manhood that I was taught since my early childhood.
Everything from the toys with which I played to the clothes that I was wearing signified me being a man. Specifically, I had mostly army men and robots for toys and played the types of sports that were labeled as “male” in my community, such as football and soccer. As a child of 9-12 years old, I even remember looking at the games that were deemed as “girly” with slight disdain. Put differently, I used “communication to assert by ideas, opinions, and identity” (Asante et al. 33). The specified behavior can be characteristic of behavior influenced by the environment with rigid gender roles and stereotypical masculine preconceptions.
Furthermore, the upbringing that I had and the media that I consumed have led me to believe that men and women should have specific roles within society. Particularly, I was taught to draw a thick line between male-oriented and female-oriented behaviors. Most of the games that I played could be described as very characteristic of patriarchic society, where gender roles are very rigid. As a result, I have grown to expect men to be very masculine.
Of all the existing theories that explain gender and the development of specific behaviors, within the framework of contemporary society, the standpoint theory (Borisoff and Chesebro 148) seems to be the most legitimate to me. The proposed theoretical framework implies that opinions, or standpoints, define the course of societal change and, therefore, affect the relationships between people of different genders (Borisoff and Chesebro 148).
The identified approach suggests considering the combination of effects including social principles, the key aspects of the dominant culture, and other relevant influences, as the cornerstone for the development of gender identity and the attitude toward interactions between people of different genders. Based on the specified theoretical tenets, my way of perceiving gender and playing gender roles within the target society is defined by the Armenian traditions and the Christian religion. Since both emphasize the importance of the traditional patriarchal social and familial structures, I have a distinct propensity toward displaying the behaviors and attitudes that are typically coded as male.
In addition, I have always felt the presence of what I can now identify as the gender-linked language effect (Asante et al. 116). Particularly, I have always felt the urge to speak as less tentatively as possible when conversing with others. In addition, I often use what Asante et al. refer to as “minimal response cues” (p. 116). Specifically, I have always deployed the communication technique that can be characterized by high levels of assertiveness and the tendency to convince others. The identified aspect of my communication and behavior has always been a part of my nature, and I have been giving it very little attention up until recently.
Being a male representative of a rather patriarchal society, I have to admit that my body has not been as politicized as a female one. However, I have experienced the pressure of society regarding my physical appearance when recognizing the need to look physically fit and strong to maintain my status among my peers.
Herein lie the roots of the phenomenon of body surveillance (Asante at al. 118), which is also present in my life. Although I genuinely like feeling healthy and strong, I have experienced certain discomfort when facing the threat of possible weight gain and the failure to maintain my usual look. As a result, I tend to look rather condescendingly at the men of my age who fail to meet the current standards of physical fitness and strength.
Overall, my understanding of gender is rather heteronormative since I actively support the traditional concept of gender relationships and the image of gender that has been in existence for decades. Nevertheless, I am trying to be more accepting of people with other types of sexuality and the representatives of other genders. However, I have to admit that switching from the set of viewpoints that I have been holding throughout my entire life to a completely new set of beliefs and ideas is rather challenging and painstaking.
A significant number of stereotypical attitudes and ideas are coded into the way in which I speak and perceive interpersonal interactions. As a result, I often succumb to the behaviors that are regarded as positive in my community. Apart from using typically masculine communication techniques, I have a rather well-established image of male and female roles in society, which could use certain adjustments due to the changes in the global society.
Conclusion
If I use queer or multicultural approaches, I could be able to change my viewpoints and philosophy to a certain extent. For instance, my view of gender roles may alter slightly since I am ready to see women as active participants in modern society and a contemporary family. For instance, the queer theory allows challenging the concept of heteronormativity, which currently consider the default one. Similarly, the feminist theory would help me explore the challenges that women face in modern society and, thus become more understanding of their plight (Wood 92). Although the presence of traditions and stereotypes that I have been viewing as the ideas defining my personality may become significant hindrances in the process of deconstructing gender, I might ready to question the status quo.
Works Cited
Asante, Molefi Kete, et al., editors. The Global Intercultural Communication Reader. 2nd ed., Routledge, 2013.
Borisoff, Deborah J., and James W. Chesebro. Communicating Power and Gender. Waveland Pr Inc., 2011.
Nobody can deny the fact, that school plays a crucial role not only in children’s education, but also in their character and outlook forming. It is important that children learn about the norms of society they are supposed to follow as men and women. This is because gender is defined by the society and therefore as the boys are growing up they need some guidelines on how to live and behave as the society expects. Most of the time these boys are in school and it is during their early years in life that they get to learn about their gender roles.
Discussion
It is supposed that “boys in particular need strong, charismatic teachers who mix firm discipline with a good-natured acceptance of boyish energy” (Mills, 2004). It is supposed that such teacher must be a man only. And the possible solution is to involve more male teachers in schools hence providing boys with male role models. So the aim of this research is to find out if boys really need male primary school teachers as role models. This is a very interesting problem to explore because of the changing gender roles which brings a lot of conflicts in relation to gender balance. There has for long been silence on the issues of gender, this problem is not referred openly. This approach has negative consequences for the present gender relations in schools.
The term gender can be used to describe the socially prescribed roles and relationships between men and women. “Gender is always lived in the modalities of ethnicity and class, nationality in the modalities of gender and race, and class in the modalities of gender and nationality” (Prins, 2006). Every society has its gender norms which help to assign specific responsibilities and entitlement to men and women.
In recent years, there has been the need for gender equity, so the presence of male teachers in primary schools is considered to be a reasonable strategy in order to help in trying to achieve gender equity and is an attempt to demystify the notion that learning and teaching is a girls’ thing. Teaching and especially in primary and elementary school is considered as a ‘woman’s’ work. This is the perception that is held by most people and thus the presence of male teachers in the school might help to reduce the myth that is associated with school among the boys. There is a lot of fear when it comes to teaching; this is how the people are socialized. So if the boys are told that there is nothing wrong in teaching and learning then it will go a long way in trying to achieve gender equity in the society. (Davies, 2003)
This is in school where the boys get their first hand experiences about life outside the home. It is considered by many scholars that one of the problems our system of education faces today is so called “feminization” of school. This approach implies that that there is a kind of “feminist conspiracy against boys” in schools, and male teachers are not welcomed also. So the Queensland’s Male Teachers’ Strategy suggests some reasons for why there are so few males in teaching.
There is a stereotype that teaching is not a “masculine profession”. But the main reason for this is low salary. Still “the upper echelons of the profession are filled by men”. The status of the profession might be improved by means of higher pay levels.
According to the latest research conducted in Queensland the number of male teachers in schools is only about 28%, and it is constantly decreasing. So a new strategic plan was developed in order to attract and retain male teachers. (Mills, 2004).
There is a wide-spread notion that this so-called “feminization” may have negative influence upon the education of boys. It is also stated, that there is an urgent need to re-masculinize schools in order to make them more ‘boy-friendly’.
This suggestion gives us the idea that a “charismatic teacher” must be a man only, and female teachers appear to be a deficit:”Women are seen as problem and men as the solution”. The idea of a male teacher as a role model in some way denies women’s pedagogical skills.
What is more, male figures are seen as the disciplinarians in the society. This means that the society has certain expectations about the schools. There is the myth that fathers or the male figures in the society are supposed to discipline the children. These myths have been carried forward to the schools.
Our society has idealized the nuclear family and the children who are brought up by single mothers are shunned by the society. This therefore leads to the idea that male teachers would act as role models to the children who lack fatherly advice. That is the society has valued the father figure so much that the absence of a father makes the society to want to replace or have a substitute who will lead the students. This is further connected to under achievement in school for the boys. These are the myths that are associated with teaching and learning. In a society that has a lot of kids who are brought up by single parent and mostly mothers, a male primary school teacher is the closest role model that these boys have (Lingard, 2002).
As Mills states, “for many mythopoets, the pressures confronting boys could be avoided if there were men involved in their upbringing”. It presupposes that male teachers play a father-like role to children, the main aim of which is to discipline them. It means that without a firm male hand the children are uncontrollable. This idea valorizes masculine domination in families and in school. The mail teachers are in such a way supposed to possess “natural” disciplining skills. This approach leads to implication that female teachers are deficit. At the same time, in order to show their “manliness” some male teachers are apt to put-down to boys. These actions are treated as something compatible with masculinity.
Of course some children may learn better from some male teachers. But the question of discipline in a class is not only a question of teacher’s gender (Lingard, 2002).
The society has made the learning institutions to appear as feminine. This is because the curriculum seems feminine in nature and the lack of male teachers in school further mystifies this notion. It is stated, that boys usually view learning as feminine, because they are normally taught by female teachers in school. This in turn makes learning activities feminine in the view of the boys and most of the time they are assisted by their mums with their school work since they have been socialized to have a male figure around. Therefore the availability of male teachers in school would help to increase the achievement of boys in primary school. Gender balance in schools is important in a society that wants to achieve gender balance. If this situation is reflected in schools it will help the society at large to deal with gender issues. If the boys learn about gender balance early in life, that is, during the primary school years they will transfer this knowledge to the society. The boys are able to know through their role model that they do not lose their identity by being in school. Masculinity or femininity is not defined by what a person does but rather who he/she is. The male primary school teachers show the boys that any one can teach and teaching and learning is not for women and girls respectively. (Davies, 2003).
As for “boys’ energy”, many teachers state that they spend more time dealing with discipline than teaching, and that boys are the main focus of disciplinary action. This is because boys’ loud, physically disruptive and aggressive behaviour has to be addressed before learning can occur”. (Gender Equity)
As observed by Abbott (2005) boys need male teachers as their role models as they help to reduce discipline cases in schools. This is an example of “boys will always be boys” approach to the problem, when school is supposed to value such essentialized masculine behaviours.
Still there is some evidence proving that boys tend to misbehave more often for female teachers. Jone (1985) indicates that some female teachers complain about the behavior of the boys towards the female teachers. In the DEST study conducted in a small rural school some female teachers expressed their concern about the problem of boys’ behaviours. Observations showed that indeed boys are likely to be more disruptive with women. “This will often entail requiring boys to consider the influence of gender concepts, and more specifically their understanding of masculinity, on their attitude and behaviour. Such an approach is seldom taken up by male teachers” (Mills, 2004). While as it is true that any teacher can maintain discipline in school, the society has socialized the boys to view the male teacher as the disciplinarian. For a society to achieve gender balance, these myths need to be demystified. They have to start from the society, that is, the immediate family. For example the disciplinarian can either be the father or the mother. This notion will be transferred to the school setting where every teacher will be given the appropriate respect and treatment that he/she deserves.
Gender and sexuality are very complicated issues. Sexuality is complex and the boys tend to feel that the male teachers have some first hand experience. “Self is constituted within relations of control and is deeply embedded within systems of knowledge and discourse. This is an important development, one that has contributed to new directions in the study of identities associated with gender and sexuality” (Callero, 2005). It is considered, that the male teachers can offer them some comfort and show how to behave and accept their sexuality.
But there are some facts, that prove that men in school are not always an advantage.
Numerous researches prove that when men teach boys they are likely to collude with boys in order to maintain existing relations of power. Some male teachers are abusive to boys.
Some attempts are in progress to improve the situation. Schools revise the school curriculum, since the society views the curriculum as feminine, this is in turn attributed to the under achievement of the boys. Certain areas of education where under achievement for boys are noted include: listening, speaking, writing and reading. The curriculum should incorporate the interest of the boys in the school curriculum.
“While it is well established that certain transformative politics are imperative to pursuing the goals of gender justice, an affirmative agenda, characteristic of large-scale initiatives, such as Success for Boys, has clearly been most effective in steering current gender equity policy directions in Australia.” The educational needs of schoolboys continue to be addressed; it aims at creating boy-friendly curriculum and establishing positive relationship with boys. (Keedle, 2005).
The under achievement that is today noted with the boys would reduce because the boys will have something that is interesting and it will keep them in school. This together with the presence of the male teachers will help to model the boys. Mills shows how some school-based programs that are dealing with “the social construction of masculinities” have some positive influence on boys when it comes to relationships with the other children and violence. It is shown that some boys whose behaviour does not correspond to the dominant style of being masculine face with homophobia. “Masculinity tends to be defined as that which is not feminine, but femininity is not defined as that which is not masculine […]. To be like a girl is much worse than to be like a boy – so that to accuse a boy of being girl-like has far more negative weight than to accuse a girl of being boy-like.” But nowadays many of stereotypes shift. Sociologists demonstrated the variability of sexual meanings, identities, and categories; many shifted their focal point from “the homosexual’ as a fixed, natural, universal sort of being to homosexual as a social category that “should itself be analyzed and its relative historic, economic, and political base be scrutinized’ (Conell, 2005).
It is no doubt that socialization is an important concept in every society as it helps to condition the children as they grow up. This is what helps to define masculinity and femininity. It helps to define how boys and girls perceive each other and the society at large. But it is not obligatory that boys have male teachers as their role models. But still men can and should participate in education of the children, both boys and girls. The benefits for boys having more men in their lives are doubtful, but men should take responsibility for welfare of children.
Teachers should be taught more about gender. “While there had been some professional development focus in the Case Study Schools on these matters, at times there was an absence of awareness of the most current research and theory about the topic. The most effective approaches appear to be those that combine such a focus with a stress upon enhancing teachers’ pedagogical repertories” (Lingard, 1997).The dominant notions of masculinity and femininity must be changed. Nowadays we see that in our society poverty, suicide rates, violence in families become even worse. All these factors make the need for gender education even more urgent. So being a positive role model does not depend on gender, but mostly on education and teaching skills.
References
Abbott, Wallace. (2005), Sexuality in “Introduction to sociology: feminist perspectives. New York: Routledge.
Callero, P. L. (2003). The Sociology of the Self. Annual Review of Sociology. vol.29 115-132.
Connell, R.W. (2005).‘The Social Organization of Masculinity’, Masculinities (2nd edition, pp.67-86), University of California Press: Los Angeles.
Collins, Patricia Hill.1990. Black Feminist Thought, New York: Harper Collins.
Corbertt, Grecille J. 1991. Gender, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Davis, Angela. 1981. Women, Race and Class. New York: Random House
Davies, B. (2003)‘Becoming Male or Female’, Frogs and snails and Feminist Tales: Preschool Children and Gender (pp1-22).Hampton Press: New Jersey.
Doane, Mary Anna. 1987. The Desire to Desire. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Gender Equity: A framework for Australian Schools (1997). pp.23-73.
Grant, Judith. 1993. Fundamental Feminism, New York: Routledge.
Martino, W. (1999)”Cool Boys’, ‘Party Animals’,’Squids’and’Poofters’: Interrogating the Dynamics and Politics of Adolescent Masculinities in School’, British Journal of Sociology of Education, 20(2):239-263.
Keddle, Amanda (2005). Gender, masculinities and schooling. Redress. pp.23-29.
Lingard, B. et al. (2002) Research Report Addressing the Educational Needs of Boys. The University of Quensland.
Mills, M. et al. (2004) Attracting, recruiting and retaining male teachers: policy issues in the male teacher debate. British Journal of Sociology of Education. vol. 25, no 3, pp.356-369.
Prins, B. (2006) Narrative Accounts of Origins: A Blind Spot in the Intersectional Approach? European Journal of Women’s Studies, vol. 13, no. 277, pp.278-290.
West, C and Zimmermann (1987)‘Doing Gender’, Gender & Society, 1(2):125-151.
For a long time there has been a gender difference between men and women in life and social environment. Women have been fighting for equality rights and fair treatment and it has almost been achieved. Even though there are more opportunities today there is still prejudice and partially, it comes from the fact that men and women are different not only biologically but mentally as well. Gender plays a differential role in society and communication which is needed to attain certain results.
The main difference comes from the understanding and thinking of each gender. For the most part, to say generally, men are more power hungry and demand to be in a position of authority. This has come from a long history of male domination and men have gotten used to being in control and charge. Also, men are more focused on finding out the neutral and clear cut facts about something which leads them to being more direct and assertive.
Women use a much different technique in achieving their goals, as it stems from better insight into the matter of things. Because women were segregated for such a long time and were prevented from taking up higher and more prominent positions, they have developed a unique method of reaching their goal and it is not the same as men’s. Women tend to center on the person, deeper insight into the context and personality of the speaker and the general situation.
This allows for better qualitative analysis of information, linking it to the individual presenting the facts. Of course, it would be unwise to conclude that all men and women exhibit these qualities, as there are women who want to have all the authority and men who have profound insight but the standard for the majority is upheld by existing evidence.
There is a supposition that women are better at communicating than men. In reality, it is difficult to say because every individual has their unique technique in the interaction with other people. It could be assumed that women are better because they were environmentally forced to be better communicators.
Since they could not wage wars and overpower men, they had to develop skills that are different from forceful overtake of power. This would develop language and thinking skills. But the modern times have made gender differences less noticeable with men being great negotiators and women strong fighters.
It could be said that both genders have become equal in their communication and sense of direction. The present times have brought many changes to the social construction of genders and the way the separation is viewed. Often, the media abuses the roles of men and women, focusing on the sexuality and criteria that define and separate men and women. One of the oldest gender constructions came from the functioning of the family.
Women were thought to have a role of homeowners, raising children and taking care of any home or farm matters. Men were hunters and centered their life on providing for the family. This separation is a historical construct that has been enforced through segregation and unequal treatment of women.
Even though the world has greatly changed, the separation is still noticeable through social roles and duties. The majority of positions of power are still held by men, depriving women of a chance to demonstrate their strengths.
Differences at the workplace can either break or strengthen an institution depending on how they are treated and accommodated. “Diversity among men and women focuses beyond equal opportunities and promotes equal treatment towards all employees, including both men and women, as well as people from the minority groups.” One of the most significant developments of this century is the sudden flowing in of women into the field of employment and positions that allow them equal responsibilities as men. The sudden change of events has been attributed to many social changes such as single parenthood and high divorce rates. The trend though well experienced in developed countries, it is yet to be so in upcoming economies. A culture which began in the United States in the 20th century has today enhanced and spread to many developed countries.
Diversity recognition is today a commonplace, even as the world gets smaller and smaller. The results are a better recognition for everyone regardless of their gender, race or cultural background. Leadership and management styles do differ between men and women, creating a labor market with more choices. Women are considered more relational, encouraging communication to explore solutions. Men on other hand are considered more action oriented, choosing to concern themselves more. The process of creating a common understanding enables an organization come up with more options for solving problems.
Rationale
This is a research paper, seeking to understand and discuss the benefits of gender diversity at the workplace and how far the firefighting industry has come in appreciating the trend. To understand the paper’s background, there will be a simple analysis of various gender diversity trends in different industries and regions, and why there is a variation. Even with many countries and businesses recognizing the need and importance of gender diversity, it is yet to be so in many developing countries, and in the remote areas of developed regions. Many industries are yet to benefit from integrating the differences between men and women, as well as their different approaches to management and leadership. The paper will look at why this is so in the firefighting department, highlight important changes that have occurred in the past to encourage diversity, as well as those factors hindering a fully realized diversity among the firefighters.
Among the questions to be researched on include; how has the concept of gender diversity at work evolved over time? How has the firefighting industry reacted to the concept? How has it impacted the way business is done and how decisions are made in the department? Is gender diversity in the firefighting industry a genuine concern or is it a distraction from real problems at work? How does the industry differ from different professions and how is the situation in different parts of the world? What can be done to help appreciate the concept more and help the industry reap the benefits?
Literature review
Gender diversity continues to attract a significant level of debating even as the world shifts its trends to accommodate more women in the corporate world. In her book, Susan Jackson notes that women are the best and most common whistle blowers in organizations where things are not going right. She gives an example of a few organizations which have experienced different types of crises in the recent past. One of the organizations is the FBI, which has been accused of neglecting terrorism warnings just before the 911 attack. Coleen Rowley, an employee with the agency for 21 years, blew the whistle over the matter. The author gives another example of Sherron Watkins, the vice president of Enron, who blew the whistle of the company’s large scale corporate abuse. Immediately after that, Cythia Cooper, Worldcom’s vice president of finance, blew the whistle about the company’s hypocritical accounting practices, which resulted in one of the largest bankruptcy in the county’s history. All these women have been named as Times persons of the year for bringing to the spotlight some of the most scandalous and unprofessional practices going on in big organizations.
In his book Powell Gary analyzes how far the world has come in addressing gender diversity at the workplace. The book takes the reader on a journey of gender diversity noting the most important times in the journey as the 20the century. The book highlights challenges that women face in trying to balance their responsibilities as mothers and their positions at work. He also argues that gender diversity benefits employers and helps them select employees from a bigger pool, increasing their ability to find top performers.
“While the lines between genders differences in the workplace are blurring, and while experiences are based on specific individuals involved, there are some differences in management techniques and attitudes that can be influenced by gender.” In their analysis of gender diversity in the boardroom, Renee and Daniel document significant correlations between the type of decisions and the gender diversity of corporates boards. In their research involving 1024 publicly traded firms, “the results revealed that firms whose stocks had higher variability in returns had less women in their boards, while those with more diverse boards had more pay-performance incentives.” It was also evident that firms with more diverse boards held more meetings than the rest of the firms. The authors then conclude that board diversity has a significant effect on decisions made by corporates and their results.
In their study of gender diversity and its influence on growth, Dwyer, Orlando and Ken Chadwick examine a group of professionals composed of managers at all levels. The study reveals that gender diversity does affect the management of an organization, its strategic orientations and culture. The authors however note that a supportive organizational structure has to be in place before a company can fully reap the benefits of gender diversity. Yoder and Lynne’ article on the psychology of women quarterly, discuss how women exclusion affects the department and challenges facing women firefighters.
From the survey conducted by the authors, common challenges include hostility, lack of support, criticism and stereotyping. Harper’s book on women firefighters, and his view of both sexes at the workplace puts together a collection of views from both men and women in the firefighting department. Olson Garret’s case study of the Arizona fire department researches on the problem of gender diversity among firefighters, and develops recommendations for a recruitment plan that will stop discrimination and see more retention of female firefighters.
Most authors and research papers tend to agree on the fact that gender diversity has an effect on an organization’s performance. However, it is notable that not many authors address the fact that even in this century, women are still not well represented in some careers, a good example being firefighting. Those careers that have been for a long time been labeled as men’s, such as engineering and firefighting, still lack gender diversity. For example, in the United States, women only make 10% of all firefighters even though they continue to play an important and sometimes invisible role in firefighting. The industry is still not willing to trust women with major responsibilities, evident by the ratios of men to women at the different levels of firefighting. Men and women portray different characteristics in leadership and when put together, organizations are able to reap the benefits of both.
Method and design
Part of this paper will include a well entailed research of the topic. Gender diversity is a topic of high interest among researchers and therefore, has a wide range of information. Data collection will be through study and analysis of past research projects. These include books, scholarly articles and online materials. Data on gender representation is easily available in gender based organizations and different governmental bodies. The firefighting department has a website that provides data of employees and volunteers in their department. Books and online articles will be used as the major sources of information.
Other sources of information for this paper will include interviews and consultations with different people in firefighting. Speaking to people at the middle and executive management level will ensure that the paper has real time information on how gender diversity, or lack of it, has impacted the department today. Consulting with experts in the field will help me get a professional perspective of the topic.
To test for my hypothesis, I intend to make variations in different departments in firefighting. Varying factors in the process of information collection will include field representation, gender balance at the office and variation in different age groups. These factors are intended to either confirm or disconfirm the hypothesis that gender diversity does affect the way operations in the industry are run and how different departments in firefighting perform. If for an instance firefighting in a gives state has improved by having a better gender representation, even after all other factors remained constant, then such an outcome confirms the hypothesis.
Organization and analysis
This paper will be organized into six parts. It will first introduce the subject of gender diversity in firefighting by looking at the origin and history of the concept. The concept of gender diversity among firefighters is not a new concept. It started in the late 19th century but became more popular in the 20th century. The first female fire fighter in the United States was Molly Williams, who worked as a volunteer, but the first paid female fire fighter was Sandra Forcier who began working in the mid 1970s. “In 1982, Brenda Berkman filed a suit against the New York city with an argument that the fire fighting exam discriminated against women and she won the lawsuit becoming one of the 47 women who passed the revised physical test that year.”
During this period, women started fighting for a chance to do more than taking care of children and homes. For women who were not married and had to fend for their families, they could only access manual and low paying jobs. Since then, the number of women going to school, those involved in different industries and in executive levels continues to rise. “Today there are more than 10,000 permanently employed women fire fighters and fire officers in the United States, and more than 40,000 volunteers, paid-on-call, part time and seasonal women fire fighters.” This part of the paper will also analyze how the trend varies in different regions. Susan Jackson’s book on diversity at the workplace will help understand the history of gender diversity in different fields of work. The International Association of Women in Fire and Emergency Service will give statistics on the history of women firefighters. Adams and Ferreira’s book on gender diversity in the boardroom will be used to understand how the presence or absence of women at work will affect decision making. Finally, the National Fire Academy paper will help understand what challenges women face during recruitment and training for the firefighting positions.
The second part of the paper will be literature review which will analyze the works and thoughts of different authors. From past study, it is clear that many authors agree with the importance of gender diversity in different organizations. Different authors and experts however argue that gender diversification on its own may not do much for an organization if other important structures are not in order. Literature reviewed will include lecture notes, books, scholarly journals, corporate and government publications, and online articles.
In her book, Susan Jackson notes that women are the best and most common whistle blowers in organizations where things are not going right and she gives an example of a few organizations which have experienced different types of crises in the recent past. The book will offer good examples of significant contributions made by women in leadership positions today. In his book about gender in the urban fire service, Chetkovich offers insights on physical and mental challenges facing women firefighters. Harper presents the views of both sexes about gender diversity in his book about the views of males and females in the fire service. Government statistics from the National Fire Protection Association and the U.S Fire Administration will make it easy to understand how the trend has been in the past years, and how the statistics have changed over time.
The next part of the paper will be methodology, which will examine the data and information collected from different literature studies as well as interviews. The paper will examine different results and feedback to see if the information collected confirms the hypothesis or not. Analysis of the results will help give a clear picture of what the situation is in firefighting and how real the hypothesis is to them. It will also help understand why the industries has remained behind in ensuring equal representation for both men and women. In this part, government and institutional data libraries will be very significant.
The American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine’ findings on their journals will help understand performance difference between male and female firefighters. The U.S Fire Administration handbook will give insights on the differences between men and women practices at work. The US Department of Emergency Service publications will provide the recent statistics on the topic, as well as help understand modern challenges facing the department in their attempt to promote gender diversification. The Arizona case study by Olson gives a different perspective to the problem by addressing recruitment and retention.
The next part of the paper will be significance and recommendations. A review of the findings will help judge on whether the paper is significant to the topic. It will also help decide on whether the topic has any relevance in the society today. It will also be an outline of how the research can lead to a significant improvement over the past studies. It will explain the paper’s contribution to the field and why the concerns it raises should be addressed. Statistics from the National Fire Protection Association give a basis for measuring the extent of the problem. From Yoder and Lynne’s article about different challenges for women from different races, it will be possible to put together challenges in the department and base recommendations on them. Powell’s book on gender diversity at the workplace will be a good basis to understand what needs to be addressed urgently, to solve problems arising from gender diversity. Dwyer and Orlando’s article in the journal of business research helps the reader look at the problem from a managerial perspective, a factor that will be put in consideration in the recommendations section.
Recommendations will be based in the results and findings, which will help establish areas that need to be addressed. From previous studies it is clear that overcoming challenges is one part of ensuring gender diversity at the firefighting department. By giving women equal opportunities, they have been able to prove themselves and many times they have even been better than their male counterparts. In attempt to prove their worth, women have improved their commitment to their careers, producing even better results than men in many occasions.
The most sought after character in firefighting is commitment and women have many times shown more of it, most of the times in an attempt to prove themselves. Recommendations will therefore be based on measures which will appreciate their efforts more and attract more of them in the labor pool. They will also be based on ensuring that the issue does not overshadow more important factors in firefighting such as ensuring the proper managerial structure are in place. The last part of the paper will be conclusion. It will review the problem, the research process, findings and recommendations. The conclusion will be a brief summary of the rest of the paper, as well as a personal opinion of the subject.
Conclusion
Gender diversity at the workplace is easily confused with gender discrimination but they are not the same thing. It is more concerned with equal recognition of both genders at the workplace. This paper will review the genesis of the concept and look at achievements made so far, using the firefighting department as an example. Some professions seem to have achieved equal representation among men and women, while some seem to be trailing behind. Starting from school, science subjects still attract more boys than girls while art subjects seem to have equal representation.
To achieve compete gender diversification at the workplace, the culture needs to grow from the basic level of school. The government can promote this by setting rules and regulations that outline how gender representation should be addressed in different organizations. It can also provide incentive for more girls to enroll in firefighting careers. The paper will be my humble contribution to ensuring equal representation and participation of both genders in the firefighting industry.
Bibliography
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Chetkovich, Carol. Real heat: Gender in the urban fire service. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 2002.
Dwyer, Sean, Orlando Richard and Ken Chadwick. “Gender diversity in management and firm performance: The influence of growth orientation and organizational culture.” Journal of Business Research 56 (2003): 1009-1019.
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Olson, Garret. Gender diversity recruitment and retention for the Scottsdale fire department. Arizona, City of Scottsdale Arizona Fire Department, 2006.
Powell, Gary. Gender and diversity in the workplace: Learning activities and exercises. Thousands Oaks, Calif.: Sage, 2010.
The American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. “Performance differences between males and females on simulated firefighting tasks.” Journal of Occupational Medicine 29(2003), 200-314.
U.S Department of Emergency Service. Gender Issues and fire station facilities, 2010. Web.
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Society is a very strong and influential entity that has been known to do some horrible and unfair things. Individuals rarely voice their opinions if they go against a large group but when a great number of people share the same belief and idea, they become a major force, which is almost unstoppable. Division between men and women has existed throughout time and still does today.
“Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes’ ‘ by Holly Devor is written with a direct purpose—to specify and outline that society divides genders according to roles each one has in a civilized state. It was written to give people a perspective and make them take a look from the side because their immersion into their own unreliable regulations is nothing but an illusion. The message is to create awareness and let people know that this division is superficial and pointless, as it has no biological basis. It cautions people to be careful when making such judgments because they are often hurtful and misplaced. If someone wants to act and think a certain way it is their personal business and society or certain individuals have no say in how others should behave, think and in extreme cases feel. It openly tells people that they are wrong in their attitudes and behaviors because the reality is much different. The target audience is people who do separate men and women according to historically and pointlessly defined roles. It is directed at individuals who add their opinions and voices to society and create false truth and knowledge, which is unacceptable by the highest and much needed morals and fairness present society so desperately strives towards. The language used is very definitive and specific. It helps illustrate the issue and pinpoint the relationship between males and females. It is descriptive of the exact characteristics that are attributed to men and women and how society is readily judgmental in voicing opinions and assigning roles. It is very much open and does not hide the truth, calling things what they are without being cautious that it might raise some displeasement with the topic and statements being made. The introduction sets up the main idea and purpose of the work. It also defines the generally accepted notions of masculinity and femininity. It critically analyses how people do not approve of behaviors that are expected from the opposite sex. The conclusion sums up the points of how socially defined people’s roles are and that there is no real need for such division to exist. It reinforces the present state of matters where people follow the majority without really stopping and understanding the true reasons, which are usually thought up and pointless. The essay is very true and specific, which makes it very effective. The society is divided into those who are free thinkers and people who function according to frames that society and majority of the population have set up. This ridiculous concept is very obvious and it is ignorance and carelessness that does not permit people to see the really important qualities of others.
Holly Devor addresses an important topic that analyzes the highest moral judgments of any civilization. The true nature of her writing makes the reader realize that this is a problem in the current society and it must be resolved.
Gender refers to the state of being either male or female, which is distinguished by factors such as gender roles, social and economic status, perceptions, and ideals and values (Lee, 2005). Gender has been described as a psycho-sociocultural aspect. In contrast, sex is a biological concept that is determined by factors such as hormones and genetic make-up (Lee, 2005). Gender is also understood as evaluation of behavior based on individual perceptions and societal expectations.
Gender identity is defined as personal concepts and perceptions of self that are based on gender (Lee, 2005). This paper will explore determination of gender identity based on connections between hormones and behavior. In addition, it will scrutinize how biological and environmental factors affect gender identity. It will also explore current arguments on gender identity.
Interaction between hormones and behavior
Research studies have revealed that hormones have great influence on behavior. For example, hormonal processes contribute towards hostile and aggressive behaviors (Lee, 2005). Studies associate certain behaviors with certain hormones. For example, testosterone is associated with aggressiveness. Studies on effect of hormones on behavior are based on the net effect of hormones on emotions. They cause varying level of moods or behavior depending on their concentrations.
For example, in adults, estrogen causes positive moods while lack of estrogen causes depressive moods (Lee, 2005). This is the same effect testosterone has on moods and behaviors. Some hormones affect behavior directly while others affect behavior indirectly. For example, hormones that determine body size affect behavior indirectly. Big-sized people are domineering and usually rough towards small-sized people. Abnormal activity of glands can also influence behavior directly.
Hormones respond by combining with specific cell receptors to form behavior. Puberty and prenatal periods are the most critical periods in human development that hormones have the greatest impact (Lee, 2005). During the prenatal period, any anomaly in production of hormones results in anomalies in gender identity.
For example, a study conducted on 25 androgenized girls found out that even though they were raised as girls, they exhibited masculine attitudes, sexuality, and grooming (Lee, 2005). After the development of Money’s theories on gender identity, several studies followed that established connections between gender identity and environmental factors.
Current arguments on sexual identity
Current arguments on sexual identify claim that is mainly determined by biological factors rather than environmental factors (Lee, 2005). This argument is based on lifestyles such as homosexuality and lesbianism. These arguments claim that people who adopt these lifestyles were born that way because of interaction between different biological factors.
Other arguments claim that such lifestyles can be caused by environmental factors. If an individual gets exposure to one of these lifestyles early in childhood, then he/she would adopt a similar lifestyle owing to influence of the environment (Lee, 2005). However, research has established that these lifestyles are mainly caused by influence of biological factors and further augmented by environmental factors.
Biological influences on gender identity and sexual differentiation
The influence of biological factors on gender identity can be explained by considering functions of hormones and cerebral lateralization of the brain (Lee, 2005).
Gender is determined before birth by biological factors. Studies have revealed that brain lateralization and hormonal functions contribute in determination of gender. Males and females contain sexual and reproductive hormones in varying quantities. This is observed from childhood through adulthood although in each stage of development certain changes take place. During puberty, gender characteristics become more pronounced because attraction towards the opposite sex develops (Lee, 2005).
Brain lateralization follows different systems of development in males and females. For example, in females the left side of the brain is more developed compared to males whose right side is more developed. Variation in brain lateralization accounts for high performance by males in sciences and mathematics and better performance in languages by girls.
Environmental influences
The first environmental child experiences after birth is the family (Lee, 2005). Mothers dress newborn babies in clothes that depict their gender. As they go through different development stages, children learn to discern their gender from how they are treated. Fathers influence boys and mothers influence girls.
Absence of a father in the family affects discernment of gender identity significantly. Other environments outside the family also play critical roles. Television, music, movies, and books depict different genders in different ways (Lee, 2005). Children pick gender cues from these environments and incorporate them in their gender identity discernment processes.
Environmental factors have the greatest influence on gender identity compared to other factors. Environments such as family and classrooms have the greater influence on gender identity compared to biological and psychological factors (Lee, 2005).
Conclusion
Gender differs from sex in that it is psycho-sociocultural while sex is biological. Aspects such as social and economic status, roles, and personal perceptions determine gender. Gender identity is influenced and determined by biological, psychological, and environmental factors.
The environment has the greatest influence compared to other factors. From childhood to adulthood, people interact with different environments that influence how they discern and define gender identity. According to the foregoing discussion, nurture has greater influence on gender identity than nature. Each of the three factors plays a different role in determination of gender identity.
Reference
Lee, J. (2005). Focus on Gender Identity. New York: Nova Publishers.
Since time in memorial, anthropologists have utilized the dynamics of ethnography to understand the socio-cultural lives of people in various places around the world. Durkheim argued that social generations could perhaps be understood through studying how time is appreciated.
Evans-Prechard on his part argued that time and age are perhaps striking. Societies vary in terms of how they treat age and how they use time in their day-to-day lives. Bourdieu observed that age and time could not be neglected since they are not to be viewed in simple terms of structural differences globally. In fact, societies use the age factor to differentiate members of society (Peterson 1972, p. 25).
Concerning gender, various communities and societies treat each gender differently. In the traditional societies, the role of women was not appreciated in society since they were relegated to the domain of the home. In some traditional communities, women were treated with high esteem because of their role of bearing children. Such communities were mostly matrilineal, as compared to those that were patriarchic, meaning that they valued men.
However, all societies seem to be similar in terms of treating women. Upon this realization, this paper attempts to compare the ethnographic factors, specifically age and gender, of the two areas that is, Bali and Aboriginal Australia. The paper evaluates how the two area diverge and converge in terms of appreciating the roles of individuals in society based on age and gender. The two ethnographic variables affect members of society differently in the two societies.
Comparison
In the two areas, the pace of societal life tends to be structured by complex forms of history and age. Each ethnography variable signifies a particular social meaning. The two societies do not have static histories, particularly mythic histories regarding age and gender. The Bali society decodes the meaning of life based on the political and religious activities of society.
To the Bali society, the past does not have any significant meaning to the current state of affairs regarding age and gender. In other words, age and gender do not affect the activities of the individual in society. Generally, structural functionalism theory can be used to explain the position of individuals in the two societies.
Differences Based on Gender and Age between the two Societies
Balinese culture has always been referred to as one of the best form of socialism in the world. In this regard, each member of society is expected to participate in societal activities, especially in the labor market. Furthermore, ceremonies are to be attended by all genders that is, no discrimination based on gender.
The Balinese society appreciates the fact that women are very important in any developmental aspect, be it social, economic or political. Girls in the Balinese temples are allowed to present offerings to the gods meaning that they women take in religious activities. Young girls are shown how to present offerings to the gods, unlike in other societies where women are not given any opportunity to take part in religious matters.
Young girls are taught on how to lay a canang, place incense and present an offering. In ceremonies, women are valued too much since they are relied upon to perform traditional dances and serve guests. In this regard, young girls are shown how to prepare traditional foods in their homes before they are invited to serve visitors in ceremonies (Forge 1980, p. 8). In the Balinese culture, a female goddess exists, referred to as Dewi Sri, which is a goddess associated with food (rice).
The goddess is respected just like other gods. In fact, the Bali region depends on the goddess since it should be consulted before harvesting rice. In the Balinese culture, various gods are worshiped, including Brahma, Wisnu and the Shiva. De Danu is another important goddess that is relied upon by society since it is the crater of the lake.
To show how women are important in society, a virgin priestess selects 24 young men to serve the goddess in the temples (Geertz 1973, p. 365). Furthermore, the priestess chooses the servant who maintains the temples in many parts of the region.
With the changing climate, the society has been forced to accommodate the views of women in the Balinese society. The villages experience in influx of tourists from across the world due to the rich Balinese culture. Women have been forced to adapt to the new changes in order to survive.
In the traditional Balinese society, men could be allowed to marry various women, whose roles were mainly to bring up children and maintain the affairs of the home. Women were married at a tender age, which affected their educational needs in society. In this sense, they could not access jobs and other prestigious activities in society that come with education. In the modern society, polygamy is rare since the father of the family is required to consult the mother before bringing in the second wife.
Owing to interactions with the external world, Balinese female members of society are now sensitive to their rights regarding education and employment. Even though the society is slowly changing, women are still under pressure to provide a son to the family, failure of which might lead to subsequent marriages. In the Balinese society, a woman can only get married in case it is confirmed beyond doubt that she can get pregnant.
This explains the reason why many girls would get pregnant at a tender age and marry later in their lives. National policies provide that only women should access free healthcare regarding reproductive health treatment. In the Balinese society, married women can easily run their businesses and bank accounts. Furthermore, they are entitled to fifty percent of family property in case of divorce.
In the family, the woman plays an important role in the upbringing of children. Women are expected to carry out basic activities such as cooking, washing and general cleaning of the house. While things were getting better in the 20th century, things got worse for Balinese women.
Life became more demanding in the 20th century, which placed a big burden to the Balinese women around the region. The traditional bantens, which were pyramids of fruits, were no more since they had to be imported from other regions.
The tradition law of the Balinese people does not allow children whose fathers are foreign to enjoy traditional rights of the land. Just like in the Islamic culture, women must seek permission from their husbands before seeking for employing elsewhere. In this regard, the male partners of the family must approve their passports.
Unlike the In the Aboriginal Australian culture, society is closely interwoven and it is a mutually dependent unit. Each member of society has his or her own role that should be played faithfully. In terms of communication, there are specific societal laws and rules that govern social contacts, which are further determined by age and gender. In society, socialism is encouraged over individualism because it is believed that not each person is self-sufficient.
In terms of gender, both men and women figures in society are relied upon when it comes to the interpretation of dreams. In this aspect, age plays an important role since the old are always consulted in case the society needs interpretation over a particular aspect (Strehlow 1978, p. 13). Unlike in the Balinese regions, Aboriginal Australian society is different in that old women are supposed to link up with their male counterparts to ensure children are taught good manners in society.
Roles played by older women are the same as those played by men since women can also be lawmakers, performers, painters and custodians of customary laws. Since the aboriginal Australian society relied on hunting and gathering, women were supposed to gather fruits, seeds, and insects while men were expected to go to the forests and hunt for animals that would provide proteins.
Young women in society could be charged with the responsible of upbringing the children and taking care of the family. Therefore, young men were likely to link up with men in the jungles in order to acquire hunting dexterities while young women would stay at home with their home to acquire fruit gathering techniques.
As earlier stated, women could collaborate with their male counterparts to come up with treatment techniques in society, unlike in the Bali society where only men could be involved in matters related to medicine. For instance, Warlpiri female members of society from Yeundumu carried out Yawylyu ceremonies to better the physical condition of the ill members of society.
They would sing religious songs and paint the sick perform using colors from different plants since they had vast knowledge of plants that could serve as medicine. Unlike in the Balinese culture, the age of a woman determined her place in society in the Aboriginal Australian culture. Older women were respected since they were considered powerful and prestigious in society. Older women would be invited in societal meetings to make decisions in case the society was faced with a catastrophe (Bodley 2000, p. 28).
Similarities
The two societies share some similarities since in both societies women had inferior positions as compared to those of men. However, the position of women improved with age in the Aboriginal Australian culture. Since time in memorial, women have never enjoyed their rights in society. Male patriarchy is identified as one of the causes of their sufferings in society. Men are relieved from child bearing activities, which give them an advantage over women.
They can easily participate in societal activities as compared to women who are supposed to take care of their children. However, it should be noted that things are changing. In the two societies, modernism is taking root. It is evident that women are slowly gaining their position in society mainly because of the western influence. Therefore, globalization theory can be used to explain the gender disparities and changes in the two societies (Moore 2009, p. 265).
In the two regions, women are reclaiming their status in society. Their influence can no longer be taken for granted since they have to be provided with basic rights as stated by the international human rights. Pertaining to age, the two societies valued age in different magnitudes. Age played a key role since members of society could be awarded roles based on age.
List of References
Bodley, JH 2000, Australian Aborigines: mobile foragers for 50,000 Years in Cultural Anthropology, Mayfield, London.
Forge, A 1980 “Tooth and Fang in Bali, Canberra Anthropology, Vol.3, no. 1, pp 1-16.
Geertz, C 1973, Person, time, and conduct in Bali: an essay in cultural analysis: in the interpretation of Cultures, Basic Books New York.
Moore, JD 2009, Clifford Geertz: an interpretative anthropology. In Visions of Culture: an Introduction to Anthropological theories and theorists, Altamira Press, Lanham.
Peterson, N 1972, “Totemism Yesterday”, Man (N.S), Vol. 7, no. 1, pp 12-25.
Strehlow, TG 1978, Life on earth and the individual and his totem in Central Australian Religion, AASR, Bedford Park.