Title: Gender%20Roles%20and%20Development
1Gender Roles and Development
2Gender Roles in the Family
- Roles are not innate but are learned
- Progress toward Egalitarian roles in family
- However, women still engaging in second shift
- Equal sharing closely tied to marital satisfaction
3Role Relationships in Happy vs. Unhappy Couples
Role Issues Happy Couples Unhappy Couples
Both are equally willing to make adjustments 87 46
Both are satisfied with division of housework 81 41
Both work hard to have an equal relationship 90 54
Couples make most decisions jointly 89 57
Household tasks based on preference not tradition 71 55
Olson Olson, 2000
4Top Five Role Relationship Issues for Married
Couples
Percentage
Concern about unfair division of housework 49
House work is based on traditional roles versus interest 44
The husband is not willing to adjust as much as the wife 44
Women are responsible for running the household in addition to working outside the home 43
Disagree that both work to maintain an equal relationship 40
Adapted from Olson Olson, 2000
5Key Concepts
6Key Concepts
- Sex who we are biologically as male or female
- Gender includes psychosocial components that
characterize us as masculine or feminine - Gender Identity an individuals personal,
internal sense of maleness or femaleness - Gender Role expectations about attitudes and
behaviors based on whether male/female
7Key Concepts
- Masculinity constellation of traits
traditionally associated with men - Aggressiveness
- Independence
- Dominance and competence
- Femininity constellation of traits traditionally
associated with women - Passivity and dependency
- Sensitivity and emotionality
8Bem Sex-Role Inventory
Feminine
Masculine Undifferentiated
Feminine Traits
Androgynous
-soft spoken -affectionate -cheerful -compassionat
e -gentle -sympathetic
High
Low
High
Low
Masculine Traits
-assertive -athletic -competitive
-dominant -independent -leadership
Bem, 1995
9Traditional Patterns found in Dating Marriage
- Traditional
- Men are initiators
- Woman take husbands name
- Live apart prior to marriage
- No premarital sex
- Roles are rigid
- Men are providershead of household
- Womensupporters and nurturers
- Contemporary
- Women men initiators
- Woman keeps own name
- Cohabitation acceptable
- Premarital sex acceptable
- Roles are flexible
- Both partners share in household tasks
- Both partners initiate sex
- Career of both important
10Gender Differences Found in Families
- Second Shiftwomen take on primary
responsibility for housework - Women have higher standard
- Women feel responsible for housework
- Women ask men to help out
- Source of conflict in relationships
11International Perspective on Gender Bias
Percent in Agreement That Their Society Favored
Men over Women
Gallop Poll, 1996
12International Perspective on Traditional Gender
Roles
Percent That Support Traditional Gender Roles
Gallop Poll, 1996
13Multicultural Perspectives on Gender
- Mexican American
- Stereotype of male machismo
- African American
- Egalitarian marriages
- Economic marginalization
- American Indian
- Communal orientation
- Asian American
- Filial piety
- Segregated sex roles
14Gender and Socialization Theories
15Gender and Socialization Theories
- Social Learning Theory
- Cognitive Development Theory
- Family Systems Theory
- Feminist Theory
16Social Learning Theory
- Learn sex appropriate behavior
- consequences control behavior
- Learning involves
- Observation
- Imitation
- Reinforcement
- Understanding standards and rules
17Cognitive Development Theory
- Learning changes with maturation
- Children create
- Gender identity
- Gender role stereotypes
- Gender values
- Once learnseek congruence
18Criticisms of Social Learning Cognitive
Approaches
- Assumes children of same sex develop similar
identities - Favors traditional role identities as desirable
- Focus is on childhood processesoverlooking adult
processes
19Family Systems Theory
- Gender role development and change occurs within
family context - Change difficult
- Balanced families more open to change
- Unbalanced families resist change and independence
20Feminist Framework
- View that women have been exploited, devalued and
oppressed - Focus on institutional restrictions on womens
development - Focus on changing conditions
21Gender Inequalities Around the World
- Mortality
- Natality
- Institutional
- Opportunity
- Professional
- Ownership
- Household
Nobel laureate Amarta Sen, 2001
22Power in Families
23Family Power
- Ability of an individual to change the behavior
of other family members - System property versus individual
- Dynamic, not a static process
- Multiple perspectives
24Why People Want Power
- Self Actualization
- Social Expectations
- Family of Origin Influences
- Psychological Need
25Bases of Family Power
- Power Bases or Resources
- Power Processes
- Power Outcomes
26Power Bases or Resources
- Resource theory of family power
- Power balance relative to resources each partner
brings to relationship - more resources equals more power
- Principle of Least Interest
- Person with least interest in relationship has
most power in relationship
27Power Bases and Resource
- Coercive
- punishment
- Reward
- Ability to provide rewards
- Legitimate
- authority
- Expert
- special knowledge
- Referent
- Respect and/or love
- Informational
- knowledge
Raven, Centers Rodriguez, 1975
28Family Power Processes
- Interaction techniques that occur during decision
making - Assertive
- Expression of wants or desires
- Aggression
- Demands of conformity
- Control
- Effectiveness of attempts to change behavior of
others
29Family Power Outcomes
- Focuses on who makes decisions
- Focuses on who are the winners
- Research often examines ratios of assertive
statements and responses
30Marital Power Balances
- Husband-dominant
- Man is the boss
- Wife-dominant
- Woman is the boss
- Syncratic
- Authority shared joint decision making
- Autonomic
- Equal authority but in different arenas
Herbst, 1952
31Power Patterns in Marriage
32Power Dynamics in Couples
- Symmetrical
- couples send similar messages to control how the
relationship is defined - Three subtypes that both partners utilize
- Competitive
- Submissive
- Neutralized
- Complementary
- one is dominant, the other submissive
Fitzpatrick, 1988