Gender—Sexism and Stratification

1. Gender—Sexism and Stratification

2. Gender and Sexism…. • Prejudice and discrimination directed against women because of their gender is called sexism. A measure of sexism is the ambivalent sexism inventory. • Gender stereotypes are beliefs about the characteristics that are associated with men and women.

3. Sex and Gender Stratification and Inequality…. • Social inequality is especially evident in gender relations, and although in some societies women are treated with deference; they are rarely given first access to positions of significant power or financial reward…. • Although gender identities and roles change slowly, they do change over time, reflecting the economic, political, and social realities of the society and influence of other societies.

4. Sex and Gender Stratification and Inequality…. • Why did groups in different corners of the globe develop such radically different ways of organizing their gender roles? • In many societies, great lengths are taken to assign a sex. Why is this issue?

5. Sex and Gender Stratification and Inequality…. • Although the terms sex, gender, and sexuality are often used interchangeably, it is useful to understand the technical difference. • A person’s sex…. • Gender identity is learned and created…. • Sexuality refers to how cultures shape the meanings of sexuality and the act of sex and how we experience our own bodies and our bodies in relation to others. • Even what we find attractive is culturally defined.

6. Sex and Gender Stratification and Inequality…. • In the 19th century, medical science began to study sexuality and sexual behavior. Most often, sexuality was defined in binary terms, and behaviors falling outside heterosexual boundaries were often defined as perverse. • The struggles that individuals have with their sexual identity are reflected in the studies of transgender: when intersexed individuals do not fit clearly into female or male sex classifications.

7. The Social Construction of Gender: Socialization…. • Why do we behave the way we do? Three forces are at work: biology, socialization, and the human will or the internal decision-maker…. • There are limitations of the socialization perspective….

8. Conclusion…. • The development of norms against discrimination is helpful…. • There is also evidence that social norms coming from interpersonal sources (rather than laws) are influential in the area of stereotypes and prejudice….

9. Conclusion…. • At the individual level there is advocacy for contact between groups, especially for those of school age; it is difficult, not impossible, to change adult prejudices. • At the societal level, legislation against discrimination minimizes the impact of prejudice, establishes a norm of tolerance, and probably influences attitudes in a desirable direction over time.

10. Conclusion…. • Although the terms sex, gender, and sexuality are often used interchangeably, it is useful to understand the technical difference. • Prejudice underlies many of the problems we face in our world. Negative attitudes toward members of particular groups are a fundamental cause of human conflict and misery, ranging from interpersonal hostility to war and genocide.