Gender Norms Essay Example
"Gender" is a term that can be used to categorize the different roles of men and women, as determined by the society in which they live. Gender refers to psychological characteristics and social categories that human culture creates about being male or female.
A gender role is a set of social and behavioral norms that, within a specific culture, are widely considered to be socially appropriate for individuals of a specific gender. Proponents of gender role theory assert that observed gender differences in behavior and personality characteristics are, at least in part, socially constructed (the Similarities Perspective), and therefore, the product of socialization experiences; this contrasts with other models of gender that assert that gender differences are "essential" to biological sex. Research supports this theory, finding gender differences in almost all societies, but with differences in the norms adopted, suggesting that gender differences are, at least partly, influenced by culture (Maitlin, 2008).
According to the concept of doing gender, we express our gender when we interact with other people; we also perceive gender in these other people. For example, you provide gender messages to other people by your appearance, your tone of voice, and your conversational style. At the same time, you perceive the gender of your conversational parnter, and you are likely to respond differently to a male than to a female (Maitlin, 2008).
Some examples of gender role norms are men pay for a dinner/date, so it would be a gender role violation if the woman paid; women wear make-up, so, it would be a gender role violation if a man wore make up; women do the cooking and cleaning in the home, so, it would be a gender role violation if a man did the cooking and cleaning; men do household repairs like plumbing, so, it would be a gender role violation if a woman did such household chores; women wear heels, so it would be a gender role violation if a man put on
A gender role is a set of social and behavioral norms that, within a specific culture, are widely considered to be socially appropriate for individuals of a specific gender. Proponents of gender role theory assert that observed gender differences in behavior and personality characteristics are, at least in part, socially constructed (the Similarities Perspective), and therefore, the product of socialization experiences; this contrasts with other models of gender that assert that gender differences are "essential" to biological sex. Research supports this theory, finding gender differences in almost all societies, but with differences in the norms adopted, suggesting that gender differences are, at least partly, influenced by culture (Maitlin, 2008).
According to the concept of doing gender, we express our gender when we interact with other people; we also perceive gender in these other people. For example, you provide gender messages to other people by your appearance, your tone of voice, and your conversational style. At the same time, you perceive the gender of your conversational parnter, and you are likely to respond differently to a male than to a female (Maitlin, 2008).
Some examples of gender role norms are men pay for a dinner/date, so it would be a gender role violation if the woman paid; women wear make-up, so, it would be a gender role violation if a man wore make up; women do the cooking and cleaning in the home, so, it would be a gender role violation if a man did the cooking and cleaning; men do household repairs like plumbing, so, it would be a gender role violation if a woman did such household chores; women wear heels, so it would be a gender role violation if a man put on