User:Kalynnmc/sandbox

Gender Inequality
Gender equality is intrinsically linked to sustainable development and is vital to the realization of human rights for all. The overall objective of gender equality is a society in which women and men enjoy the same opportunities, rights and obligations in all spheres of life. With gender inequality both genders do not share equal opportunities, rights etc. one, usually over the other more so the male is looked upon as higher in society than the other usually associating with female. Human rights is a right that is generally supposed to be shared within every person.The word equal means being the same in terms of degree, size, quantity or value, in this case this is the opposite of what i’ll be talking about. What is the difference between sex and gender? Well sex is referred to as a biological term and gender is used as a social reference. Usually when gender inequality is present women are more discredited and left out of all of the good opportunities, decisions, and accomplishments. If women were included in these events women empowerment would be increased, confidence as well and a lot of other factors. Gender Inequality was specifically focused on mainly after the Civil War ranging from 1861 to 1865 it then became a bigger issue following into the 20th century when suffrage was again a problem. In the 20th century men still had more power in terms of economy, power and politics so that is when the petitions, protests and more action was taken amongst women.

Psychology

Stereotypes are a mental representation of the characteristics of an individual based on group membership. Stereotypes can be formed indirectly by gatekeepers this involves the media, family members and authority figures. Indirect stereotypes also means one’s attitude can be influenced by cultural messages. Direct experiences usually involve illusory correlations, this happens when the mind makes connections that don’t exist. Furthermore "Pushes and pulls in the environment that cause people to focus on sex differences will prompt them to categorize those around them into “women” and “men” groupings, and therefore view the members of those groups as possessing stereotypic attributes" (Madeline, 13). Rare behavior is linked to a particular group but there is little to no relationship with that particular group.This leads to the idea of the Self Fulfilling Prophecy (Pygmalion Effect) which is when expectations or stereotypes lead people to treat others in a way that makes them confirm their expectations. This prophecy occurs in a cycle, our actions (towards others) impact others beliefs (about us) cause others actions (toward us) reinforce our beliefs (about ourselves) which influence our actions (this is when the cycle starts back over). In 1979 two researchers named Tajfel and Turner came up with a Social Identity Theory, (SIT) is the act of being grouped will inevitably lead to prejudice against another group. Our social identity comes from the groups that we belong to, in groups are the groups we belong to and out groups are the groups that we don’t belong to. There are three cognitive biases to SIT,  one being social categorization which is the act of automatically putting yourself into a group (In=Us and Out=them). Social categorization could also depend on the group you believe you are in for example the poor could be a in group and the out group could be the rich. Another cognitive bias would be social identification which is absorbing the culture of that group-becomes apart of your social identity. The third cognitive bias being social comparison which is making your group appear better than the out group to boost your self esteem.

In the Workplace

“In 1995 Women comprised nearly half of all paid workers in the United States. Moreover, the Bureau of Census (1991) has projected that by year 2000, 62.6% of American women will be employed”. (Madeline, 3) The U.S. Census Bureau indicates that 58% was the overall percentage at the time. Bureau hoped for was more present women in the work field however, because of the stereotypes of women being made still they are held back in the workforce but to a certain extent. Research indicates that women face a lot of interaction disadvantages in task groups. Studies of mixed-sex laboratory groups indicate that women are less active, less influential, are interrupted more often, and are chosen as leaders less often than men (Eduardo/Catherine/James, 53). Women are looked down upon because of how submissive women were in history, women generally would do all of the cooking, cleaning, taking care of the kids while the men usually worked. That has affected the way women are looked at today because no matter what men will always feel that women have certain gender roles in society this plays into stereotyping. Similarly, studies in organizational settings have demonstrated that women are perceived as less effective managers, and as having less leadership ability, self-confidence, and business skills than men (Eduardo/Catherine/James, 53). One consequence of this inequality is that women are underrepresented in many occupations and upper levels of the organizational hierarchy, and women may face a formidable barrier to gaining status and influence in work settings men are looked at more as leaders than women so women would not be chosen as leaders more often, it separates humans and promotes gender inequality. Additionally as children being raised by our guardians we’re taught to be respectful of others respects and wishes, so for women to be interrupted, shamed and ridiculed by men, it usually leads to women becoming more silenced in society. Pines, Aronson and Kafry (1980) examined the work experiences of women and men in professional fields. These researchers found that professional women had less autonomy, less freedom, less influence at work, less variety in their assignments, fewer challenges, and a less positive work environment compared to professional men (Rebecca/Patricia, 164). With women having less freedom to express themselves it creates controversy and distance between women and men. Less influence at work means that the woman may not be able to be comfortable in their own work environment because they know how much of a minor influence they have at their workplace. Fewer challenges shows how less men think of women, they feel as if they are too “weak” or that they can’t handle the challenge given to them so they don’t present the challenge to the woman at all or they rarely present it to them and may depend on a male for the challenge. The work environment is less positive for a woman than a man because if more males work the job they prefer to talk to someone they can associate themselves with more which happens to be a male. Males can relate to each other in different aspects of life such as issues, activities (sports), personal problems and etc. Karasek, Gardell and Lindell (1987) found that mental health problems of female workers are significantly related to a high workload and a low level of control at work (Rebecca/Patricia, 164).

Gender roles at home

Thoits has extensively studied the area of multiple roles she suggests that the self is conceptualized as a set of social identities related to the roles a person has (e.g., spouse, parent, employee, student, church member) (Rebecca/ Patricia, 164). Some researchers have identified multiple role responsibility as a unique stressor for women who work outside the home. Thoits believes that possession of multiple roles can significantly reduce distress in women and men (Rebecca/Patricia, 165). Taking on many roles may help with organization and it may help a person become more focused on  being important and needed to do several things also it can make a person feel good about themselves.

Cross Cultural


 * Mexican-American

It is projected that the future prototypical worker will be a woman, specifically a woman of color. According to Peder (1989), women are expected to outnumber men in the workplace by the 21st century (Rebecca/Patricia, 163). Specifically it was predicted that the majority of women working will be women from specific cultural groups and immigrants (Eduardo, 53). I researched it and found that as of today women did not outnumber men in the workplace but they are close enough to outnumbering men being a little under half of the employment of men. In terms of cross cultural views, According to the Bureau of Census (United States Bureau of Census, 1985), 50% of Latinas worked outside the home in 1985, primarily concentrated in low status, low paying jobs with an average annual salary of $5,578, few Latinas have been able to obtain professional or high management positions (Rebecca/Patricia, 165). Few studies have been conducted to reflect the work experiences of Mexican-American Workers. Role reversals within the family are identified as a stressor for Latina immigrants who work outside the home (Rebecca/Patricia, 166). The birth rate is also higher for Latinas and may add to the complexity of the multiple role experience (U.S. Bureau of Census Report, 1985) (Rebecca/Patricia 166). In general, these findings support Thoits’ theory on multiple roles (Rebecca/Patricia, 166).This shows that Mexican-American women are used to having multiple roles so they have to cope with their daily living and their so use to these roles that they are resistant to change.


 * Nigerian

“Personnel problems that could arise from placing a female in a international position should be thought through in advance so they can be worked out before any confrontation can take place” (Joseph/Tope, 194). Men have their own negative opinions on the way women handle things, men feel as if women can’t handle big positions because women aren’t seen as dominant in society but the male is usually viewed as dominant. Women in Nigeria, both American expatriates and indigenous Nigerians, who aspire to managerial careers are likely to find formidable attitudinal impediments. (Joseph/Tope, 194). Nigerian males in this sample are very conservative concerning women as managers (Joseph/Tope, 194).

Gender Stereotypes

The documentary The Mask You Live In, expresses the emotions and point of views of male figures from different ethnicities, social statuses, famous/ ordinary. Usually when you think of masculinity you associate it with words such as tough, power, strong etc. Human beings are shaped by their surroundings and experiences throughout life, so if a child is taught that a man is supposed to act or behave a certain way their going to have that perception of a man throughout the rest of their lives. It shows that we can shape the world around us or either let it shape us. In the documentary men in prison were giving their perceptions of manhood, one man said that “we don’t cry” another “never back out of anything”. From a woman’s point of view, women would say what’s wrong with crying because they don’t seem to be phased by it. However with men they are looked at like they are weak and they are diminished because it is not like a “man” to cry because of this tough image they have to fulfill. Men look at the situation different, they feel as though women should do all of the crying because they are generalized as caring and sensitive so they tend to get more emotional. But it is not like a man to cry over a lot of situations in life because of this idea of them being ridiculed as being “weak”. Joe Ehrmann argues that there are three lies boys are taught about masculinity in American society. One is “masculinity is associated with athletic ability”, another “academic success”, lastly “sexual pleasures”. Males feel as though if they play a sport they are masculine because usually the good athletes are “strong, tough, and powerful” and other males look up to these athletes that show these type of characteristics. With that being said young boys are brought up with this misconception that if they play a sport they are masculine. Academically males feel like you have to have a lot of money or all of these nice materialistic things to be successful. If you have a lot of money it means that you worked hard for what you have and it makes you look great as a male. Masculinity shows sex appeal to some women in society so all men feel that that have to be masculine when it comes to that part in life. However some women like sensitive men who are gentle with them, proving this teaching of masculinity is a lie. Another aspect of gender inequality, toy companies usually produce girls toys with babies, bright colors, and light sounds. They associate girls with the attitude of playful, optimistic and caring so they make their toys appear this way to girls. In contrast to boys toys which are usually loud, colors, blue, black and more violent. This is because males are associated with being aggressive, rough etc. It was also expressed that in the documentary that there is a problem with men if they show empathy, vulnerability, and pain, they get ridiculed by others if they show these traits because they are not usually the characteristics that men are taught to show. Men learn to conceal or downgrade the traits of a girl, this leads to depression amongst males and causes hard edge, inner battles, toxic masculinity, and a lot of held back tears.