Sociology Chapter 10- Sex and Gender

What is the patriarchy?

A society or group in which men have power over women. In patriarchal societies men's work is of higher status than women's work. Men have more power. Men and women do not necessarily make the same choices. There are a few women in male dominated areas.

Where is there gender inequality?

At home- some experiments utilize work diaries that show that men do less work than women. Women do the most work. Workplace- occupational segregation= women and men cannot have the same job, unequal pay for equal work, the defintion of sexual harrasment has changed In the school- title 9- started in sports, addressed how much more money was being put into male sports versus female sports.

What has been the trend in regards to gender and enrollments in Colleges and Universities?

From 1950 to 1978, enrollment was heavily male dominated. The ratio was finally equal in 1978. Since then, however, the number of women enrolling has increased, passing the number of men. Male and female enrollments have dropped off recently due to the great recession.

What about institutional gender inequality?

Gender is embedded in social institutions. A gendered institution is an institution in which there exists different opportunities for men and women. Gender is not just an attribute of an individual but is present in the processes, practices, images, and ideologies of social life.

What is the trend in regards to a gap in income?

In each category of education (elementary, high school, and college) women earn less than men. With people who only have an elementary education, women have experienced a slight increase in real earnings and men have experienced a decline. With those who only have a high school education, men have seen a steep decline in real earnings while women have been pretty stable. With those who have a college degree, males have experienced a decline since 1970. Since then women have made an increase in real earnings every year. The gap between them has gotten smaller and smaller but it is still the largest gap.

What has been the trend in regards to participation in the labor force?

In order to calculate the participation rate, first take the number of people working or looking to work and divide it either by the number of men working and the number of women working. If one is not working or not looking for work then they are not in the labor force. From 1940 to around 1990 the gap between men and women in the labor force was significantly large. In 1940, the labor force was 86.6% men and 32.7% women. In 2013, it was 69.7 men and 46.8% women. The male rate has been declining and women's rate has been increasing. Both rates have seen a recent decline because of the great recession.

What is biological determinism?

It assumes that differences in gender are natural and this should not change. It tries to keep the status quo and this thinking is most prevalent during social change.

What is a gender identity?

It is one's defintion of one's self as a woman or man. It is a basic self-concept that shapes out expectations for ourselves, our interests, how we interact, and how we behave.

What is gender socialization?

It is when men and women learn the expectations and identities associated with gender in society. It affects self-concepts, social/political attitudes, perceptions, and feelings about relationships.

What is gender stratification?

It refers to the hierarchal distribution of social and economic resources. It is supported by the belief that gender inequality is natural.

How are women treated in the workforce today?

More and more women are entering into the workforce. There is increased labor participation of women and increased importance of women in the workforce. There is a breaking down of occupational segregation. There has been a decline in unequal pay. An example of this would be risky jobs in the military being open to women.

Why is there an income gap between men and women?

One argument is called the Human Capital argument. A capital investment is putting money into a new technology in hopes that it will benefit your business. Human capital is putting money into a human being in hopes that they will come and work for you. Parents invest in you, education systems invest in you. In the past society did not invest in women to have higher salary jobs, thus leading to an income gap between men and women. Another argument is women's weak attachment to the labor force. This argument emphasizes an individual's choices. This is a supply side argument. Women bounce in and out of the labor force because of child rearing. Men have a larger attachement to the labor force. For every year spent outside of the workforce, the salary of a woman goes down. This is known as the cost of "home" work, the skills used at home will not help a woman gain more experience in the job market. Now more women are choosing not to have children and therfore can have a stronger attachment to the workforce. This is beginning to close the income gap. A demand side argument deals with a group, in this case, society as a whole. Society leans toward male domination and discrimination of women. This leads towards occupational segregation, distinguishing between what a man's job is and what a woman's job is. Leads to unequal pay for equal work. To a certain degree it creates a psychological conditioning that encourages people's expectations about thier future. For men it widen's their horizons and for women it narrows. It also develops a glass ceiling, their is a limit to how far a woman can make it in a business.

What is the difference between sex and gender?

Sex is one's biological identity, either male or female. Gender is the socially learned expectations, identities and behaviors associ ated with a certain sex. Behavior associated with gender is culturally learned. Gender is a system of social practices. Biology alone does not determine gender identity. One must adjust to the expectations of other sadn the social understanding of what it means to be a certain gender. There is not a fixed relationship between biological and social outcomes. There are different expectations for boys and girls and are treated differently. They are all pretty mcuh arbitrary. We have binary concepts about gender but there really is a continuum. We learn gender through gender socialization and the creation of a gender identity.

What are the sources of gender socializaiton?

Socialization is reinforced whenever gender linked behaviors receive approval or disapproval from agents of socialization. Sources include parents, peers, schools, religion, and media.

What is sexism?

The belief that women are different from and inferior to men. Makes gender roles seem natural but are actually rooted in entrenched systems of power and privilege. There is an institutional dimension that men should be payed more. Gender is a part of the wage structure. It works to devalue the work women do. Occupational prestige falls when women occupy a job.

What is the sexual division of labor?

The differences in what is considered "men's" work and "women's" work. Women are supposed to cook and clean. Men are supposed to mow the lawn and take care of cars.

What is the price of conforming to gender stereotypes?

There exists high rates of violence among women. Men's power in society is physical and emotional. This stems from the attitudes of power and control that gender expectations produce. That can lead some men to engage in violent behavior. Gender stereotypes can lead to narrow beauty standards and negative health patters. It discourages intimacy among men and encourages men to do risky things that can lead to early death.

What about the sex composition of the civilian labor force?

Today the labor force consists of about 53.2% men and 46.8% women. In 1950 it was 70.4% men and 29.6% women. During WWII there was the mobilization of women to enter the workforce. Since then the number of women in the labor force has increased. This means that anything that affects the labor force affects women.