Preview

Has gender equality been achieved in Si hellip

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
584 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Has gender equality been achieved in Si hellip
Has gender equality been achieved in Singapore?

“Gender equality” constitutes the provision of the same opportunities to all genders. Males and females are physically, and psychologically different. This leads them to having different wants and needs hence treating them equally might actually result in gender inequality rather than “gender equality”. With that, “has gender equality been achieved in Singapore?”

Firstly, the traditional perception of the roles that men and women ought to take on are still very much ingrained in Singaporeans. For instance, the concept of househusbands remains foreign. This is largely influenced by society’s association of househusbands with adjectives such as “weak” and “emasculated”, framed by the stereotypical view that such a “feminine” role should only be filled by women. In addition, societal expectations of women causes women to have more duties at home as compared to men in terms of housework. However, such a mindset is slowly being changed as evidenced by the Singaporean government’s introduction of Government Paid Paternity Leave policy where fathers are able to obtain paid leave after a child is born, subject to certain conditions. Policies like this are instrumental to achieving greater equality among the genders. Nevertheless, Singapore has still some ways to go before achieving total “gender equality”.

Next, Singapore is a country that places great emphasis on meritocracy, allowing for objectivity and minimises discrimination. As a young nation, it takes time to change the beliefs and stereotypes that many have grown up with. For example, girls did not have the same educational opportunities as their male peers in the past. Now, equal education opportunities are made available to any individual who meets the entrance criteria, in adherence to the meritocratic system. In spite of all this, the fact that important roles such as the President are still dominated by males. A study carried out by the Diversity Task



References: Ministry of Social and Family Development. (2014).Women under-represented on boards of sgx-listed companies. Retrieved from: http://app.msf.gov.sg/press-room/women-under-represented-on-boards-of-sgx-listed- Yahya, Y., & Tan, M. (2014, Oct 28). The global gender gap: Here 's how Singapore compares to the rest of the woprld. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/news/business/more-business-stories/story/the-global-gender-gap-heres-how-singapore-compares-the-res

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Society today has established numerous new types and definitions of the word “work”. The division of labor has shifted and advanced due to reasons such as globalization and gender equalization. Instead of having to stay at home and do housework, women now have options to pick the kinds of work that they prefer. Women nowadays no longer have to rely on their other half for living because they are capable and well educated. With these changes in social reformation, we have created numerous different family conditions and situations. Arlie Hochschild and Amy Chua discuss in their articles “From the Frying Pan into the Fire” and “Why Chinese Mothers are Superior” the different types of work that mothers have today. Both authors argue that despite some mothers may have to go out for work, parenting is still a form of duty which all mothers have. These two authors described the definition of work differently. However, both authors define their perception of “work” from the same perspective for mothers. It is difficult and complicated for women nowadays to successfully undertake their roles. They believe that the idea of work in today’s society has been broadened and enlarged due to social advancement and feminist reformation. Work can now exists in various forms depending on each and other’s situations. Parenting is indeed no different than working in jobs. For women in both Western and Eastern societies, the idea of work is an obligation. It can either be a job or parenting.…

    • 1702 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    As economy changed to a wages of family economy the gender roles became more defined. Women have a lot of tasks to do in the household. The men worked outside of the home and women were restricted to the home to provide childcare and attend to household duties. Most men still have the mindset that cleaning up around the house and tending to the children are the part of women’s work. When emotional support, social and intellectual development for the child is needed the mother/ woman of the house is the sole provider. It’s not necessarily a disadvantage for the women but it is an added task for them to provide, even though it’s a form of nursing the children. It especially becomes useful if the man of the house is absent due to work, death or has abandoned the household, for the children already look to her to tend to their needs.…

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Women Inequalities

    • 2030 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Although men are making stronger efforts, it still remains the women who hold most of the child care responsibilities. A mind boggling statistic that in 1960 women performed 32 hours of housework a week compared to only 4 hours a week by men. Now in the last 40 years the gap has dropped and in the 2000’s women outworked the men 19 to 10 (PowerPoint 10), which is much better from the past but still hints at…

    • 2030 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    With the mainstreaming of social constructivist theories relating to gender roles, it is important for one to appreciate that all arguments surrounding gender roles are historically and culturally contingent. The meaning of this is that something that might be true about gender roles in one society’s cultural group might be different when it comes to another cultural group. Likewise, gender roles in all over the world have significantly changed over time. Therefore, there is no generalizable and universal statement regarding gender roles. The common thread in the discussion about gender roles has been the historical evolution of the family, from a time where families were single-income families, which were families where one spouse (the father) is in charge of…

    • 1826 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The authors have made different suggestions about the solutions to the problem. One thing that is common among the various author’s discussions is that, the society has made significant progress in promoting gender equality but at the same time, the society is still the biggest barrier to gender equality. This is because; even if the structures are created to allow women to have a significant role in the society, the perception of the society and institutions undermines the women role due to stereotyping and expectations. Therefore, the ultimate solution to the gender equality problem is changing the perception in the…

    • 485 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Diversity and Inclusion

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages

    With diversity and inclusion we are more or less replicating the structure of the society into an Organization. It is a proven fact both men and women are biologically the same and hence equal opportunities must be given to them in each and every sphere of life. Any discrimination or biasing done on the basis of Caste, Creed or cultural background will eventually lead to huge amount of talent being wasted and ultimately a loss for the organization.…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    From reading Klein’s and Lara’s essay about gender role we see how far women have come from their traditional status as a housekeeper. Women have fought a long hard battle for equal rights and say in this country. The influence of gender roles in society can be traced all the way back to Adam and Eve. Adam was Eve’s protector. Has much as we might hate gender roles, and wish they would fade with time they will always be a factor in our society. As we progress with time these roles change as well. Tradition tells us that a male works and female stays home. In the modern age we see something much different males at home while women work. My mom told me when she was a child her dad worked while her mom stayed home, and was the housewife. This is the typical American family, but now I see my grandma going to work while my grandpa stays home with the “housewife”…

    • 1245 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When their wives leave, men are faced with the challenge of adapting to changes in traditional gendered roles. According to Pingol (2000, 2001), Ilocano men are often overwhelmed by the sheer amount of relentless work since they take over the role of mothers while they are away. The results regarding household work vary. Some readily accept the changes while some dissociate themselves or relegate the responsibilities to someone else (Angeles 2001; Hoang and Yeoh 2011; Nagasaki 2016; Parreñas 2005; Pingol 2000, 2001). Reasons for adapting to or rejecting these changes varies. Hoang and Yeoh (2011)’s men depict the performance of household work as part of their duty as responsible fathers. Others however, conceive doing household work because there is no alternative (Parreñas 2005). Some consider the dominance between them and their spouses; as long as husbands maintain authority over the household, men will be more likely to acknowledge their spouses’ financial contribution (Parreñas 2005). However, not all rely on their wives’ remittances. They try to maintain financially afloat through side jobs (Pingol 2001); they utilize their wives’ income only for their children’s expenses (Cappelloni 2011). Huang and Yeoh (2011) explain that employment is a mechanism to preserve their elevated, pre-migration…

    • 638 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    First at all, the “family” remains culturally at the centre of Malaysian life. A 1999 WAO report, 'Monitoring the Fulfilment of the Malaysian Government's Obligation to Women's Equality: A Baseline Report on marriage and Divorce', shows how Malaysian women face much discrimination in the area of marriage and divorce, through attitudes towards expected roles of women, and through the formulation, interpretation and implementation laws.…

    • 1505 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Gender equality is empowering women’s autonomy to decision making and manage their own lives. Therefore, achieving gender equality changes it enfold for both men and women. “Gender equality is an important aspect which should be strived for to eliminate poverty and promote sustainable development” (morungexpress.com). Nor should both sexes are able to have equal access to enjoy finances, work or through personal ambitions and interest. Also free from threat or coercion when it comes to children and home responsibilities. Furthermore, planning for family, control their own fertility, it limits the number of children. They have protection against…

    • 1536 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gender roles have made it so women are the ones who are supposed to quit their job and raise the children, but that model of a household isn't as common anymore. Women and men are starting to change around the dividing of household duties and creating a new model for society. There even stay-at-home dads now. 50 years ago, that would have been shunned, but now, it is becoming more common. Gender roles are becoming more fluid. Women can now become the primary breadwinners, or both parents can share equally in both being caregivers and breadwinners. This fluidity is allowing for women to become equal in the workforce, because it is taking away the pressure of having a job, and being a full-time caregiver. Society just needs to embrace these changes, and women and men will become equal in both the home, and the…

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Previously it was believed that a woman belonged at home with their children. It was a woman's responsibility to take care of her husband and the household chores. The gender assignment of these responsibilities has not changed (as we are giving little discussion to transnational fatherhood). Today, we are discussing how women provide financially for their children. Previously, the financial responsibility was placed on the father figure in the home. Times are changing, but whether or not they are moving toward gender equality is strongly…

    • 218 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    (Chan & Cheung, 2007) Stated that the most evident indicator that gender inequality is influenced by the culture is that policies and rules are implemented to counter such inequality. In addition to, different countries in Europe have approved such policies to protect gender equality. For example, gender equality has been the subject of government policy making in the United Kingdom at several points during the (20th) century (Chan & Cheung, 2007). Furthermore, the U.K. government have implement and introduce these policies, there must have been a general agreement within the government and the society that gender inequality must be eliminated (Chan & Cheung, 2007). In order to these causes it leading to the one major effect of gender inequality which is education. The degree to which the goals of men dominate those of women, societies can be distinguished in terms of masculinity and femininity. According to (Chan & Cheung, 2007) in a high-MAS society, men’s and women’s values are very different, men are stimulated to be tougher than women. Men are meant to be confident and ambitious while women are expected to be caring. In high-MAS societies, men are expected to be career minded. On the other hand, if women accomplish to climb to the top of the hierarchy, they tend to be viewed as very assertive. (Bauer, feng, Riley, & xiaohua, 1992)…

    • 798 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gender may be defined as one`s identity as male or female. It is a social concept and this term according to Stebbins (1990) is related to the one`s awareness of oneself as a sexual being and as thinking, and behaving. The unequal treatment base on that identity is known as gender inequality.…

    • 254 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The rate of female participation in the workforce has in fact, risen significantly over the decade from 50.9% in 2003 to 58.1% in 2013 (Ministry of Manpower, 2013). As a result, dual-income families have now gradually replaced the Parsonian family structure. However, although gender perceptions of the public sphere have altered, those within the private sphere have not. Until today, women are still seen as being solely responsible for domestic work. This traditional gender role ideology - reinforced and supported by the state’s ‘normal’ family ideology - has imposed overwhelming stress on the Singapore women, resulting in the problem of the double burden caused by the second shift (Hochshild, 1989). As such, the prevalence of “Supermoms ” are in fact, laced with issues of gendered…

    • 2024 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays

Related Topics