Sex and Gender
Chapter 10
Sex and Gender
Sex = biology
Gender = cultural differences
Sex Characteristics
Primary sex characteristics
Distinguishes male from female at
birth
Secondary sex characteristics
After puberty
Used to distinguish male from
females
• Cause of new hormones
How Much Do You Know
About Body Image and
Gender?
True or False?
Most people have an
accurate perception of
their physical
appearance.
How Much Do You Know
About Body Image and Gender?
False
Many people do not have a very
accurate perception of their bodies.
For example, many girls and women
think of themselves as “fat” when
they are not.
Some boys and men believe that
they need a well-developed chest
and arm muscles, broad shoulders,
and a narrow waist.
How Much Do You Know
About Body Image and Gender?
True or False?
Young girls and women
very rarely die as a result
of anorexia or bulimia.
How Much Do You Know
About Body Image and Gender?
False.
Although the exact number
is not known, many young
girls and women die as a
result of starvation,
malnutrition, and other
problems associated with
anorexia and bulimia.
Hermaphrodites
Caused by a hormone imbalance
Combination of male and female
genitalia
Western societies acknowledge two
sexes
other societies recognize three:
• Men
• Women
• Berdaches - males who behave, dress,
work,and are treated as women.
Sexual Orientation
Individual’s preference
for emotional
relationships
Heterosexuality
Homosexuality
bisexuality
Sexual Orientation
Homosexual and gay are most often
used in association with males who
prefer same-sex relationships.
Lesbian is used in association with
females who prefer same-sex
relationships.
Heterosexual individuals, who
prefer opposite-sex relationships,
are sometimes referred to as
straight.
Gender: The Cultural
Dimension
Most “sex differences” are socially
constructed “gender differences”.
Gender is embedded in the images,
ideas, and language of a society.
Gender is used as a means to
divide up work, allocate resources,
and distribute power.
Microlevel Analysis of
Gender
 Gender role – attitudes, behavior, and
activities that are socially defined as
appropriate for each sex and are learned
through the socialization process
 Gender identity – a person’s perception of
the self as female or male
 Body consciousness – how a person
perceives and feels about his or her body
Macrolevel Gender
Analysis
Gendered institutions – structures
creating inequality
Society places tasks on men and
women
Gender belief system – all the ideas
regarding masculinity and femininity
are held to be valid
The Social Significance of
Gender
Stereotypes
Men – strong, rational, dominant,
independent, less concerned with
appearance
Women – weak, emotional, nurturing,
dependent, anxious about
appearance
Sexism
Subordination of one sex, usually
female, based on the assumed
superiority of the other sex
3 Components
Negative attitudes toward women
Stereotypical beliefs that reinforce,
complement, or justify the prejudice
Discrimination – acts that exclude,
distance, or keep women separate
Sexism
Patriarchy – a hierarchical system
of social organization in which
cultural, political, and economic
structures are controlled by men
Matriarchy – hierarchical system of
social organization in which cultural,
political, and economic structures
are controlled by women
Polling Question
 If you were taking a new
job and had your choice of
a boss, would you prefer
to work for a man or a
woman?
A. Man
B. Woman
C. No preference
Gendered Division of
Labor
Three factors
Type of subsistence base
Supply and demand for labor
The extent to which women’s
child-rearing activities are
compatible with certain types
of work
Gender and Socialization
Gender appropriate behaviors
are learned through
socialization
Parents generally prefer sons
Initially believed that only a
son could care for parents
Belief comes from socialization
Parents and Gender
Socialization
Starts at birth
Children's clothing and toys
reflect their parents' gender
expectations.
Children are often assigned
household tasks according to
gender.
Peers and Gender
Socialization
Peers help children learn genderappropriate and inappropriate
behavior.
During adolescence, peers often are
more effective at gender
socialization than adults.
College student peers play an
important role in career choices and
the establishment of long term,
intimate relationships.
Schools and Gender
Socialization
Teachers provide messages
about gender through
classroom assignments and
informal interactions with
students.
Teachers may unintentionally
show favoritism toward one
gender over the other.
Sports and Gender
Socialization
From elementary school
through high school:
Boys play football.
Girls are cheerleaders,
members of the drill team, and
homecoming queens.
For many males, sports is a
training ground for
masculinity.
Mass Media and Gender
Socialization
On television:
 Male characters typically
are more aggressive,
constructive, and direct.
Females are deferential
toward others or use
manipulation to get their
way.
Adult Gender Socialization
Jobs teach appropriate
conduct
Double standard of aging
exists after age forty
Gendered Division of Paid
Work
 Gender-segregated work
 Concentration of women and men in
different occupations, jobs, and places of
work
 Gender-segregation in professional labor
market has decreased
 Labor market segmentation results in
women having separate and unequal jobs
 Pay gap is best-documented consequence
% of Women, African Americans
and Hispanics in Selected
Occupations
Women
African
Hispanic
American
Managerial,
Professional
50.0
8.3
5.1
Technical, sales,
support
63.7
11.4
9.1
Service jobs
60.4
17.9
16.3
Pay Equity (Comparable
Worth)
 Occupational segregation contributes to a
pay gap
 Pay equity or comparable worth
 Belief that wages ought to reflect the
worth of a job, not the gender or race of
the worker
Paid Work and Family
Work
Most women combine paid work with
family work
Domestic responsibilities consume a
great deal of time
Many belong to the sandwich
generation
Functionalist and
Neoclassical Economic
Perspectives
Men and women have distinct roles
Essential for the survival of society
Women’s roles as nurturers are
more important in industrialized
societies
Men provide instrumental tasks
Women provide expressive tasks
Traditional division of labor is the
natural order of the universe
The Human Capital Model
Functionalist Model
Individuals vary in the
amount of human capital
they provide
What individuals earn is a
result of their own choices
Conflict Perspectives
Gendered division of labor is a
result of male dominance over
women and resources
Marxists assert that gender
stratification results from private
ownership of the means of
production
Feminist Perspective
 Liberal Feminism
 Gender equality is equated with equality of
opportunity
 Radical Feminism
 Male domination causes all forms of human
oppression
 Socialist Feminism
 Women’s oppression results from dual roles
as paid and unpaid workers in a capitalist
economy
 Multicultural Feminism
 Identifies struggles of females of differing
races