Lecture notes Week 4- Chapter 4 5 -Gender Sexuality PDF

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Download Lecture notes Week 4- Chapter 4 5 -Gender Sexuality PDF

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Week 4: Chapter 4 & 5 -Gender & Sexuality Gendering: • Take the Gender Traits Test: • http://www.afifthofnothing.com/gendertest.html Take the BEM Sex Role Inventory Test: • https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/OSRI/ • Where do you fall? • Where there any differences? • What are the assumptions of these tests? • What is missing when you think of your own gender analysis?

Review Week 3 What is an ally? • 6 Barriers to success: Selective/ Limited Perception, Ethnocentrism, Stereotypes, Prejudice, Prejudice Plus Power, Discrimination

Measuring Inequality: • • •

The Low-Income Cut-Off (LICO) : The poverty line Low-Income Measure (LIM): For international comparisons Market Basket Measure (MBM): Cost of a specified basket of goods and services representing a modest, basic standard of living in comparison to the standards of its community Effects of child poverty Issues of gender and poverty and for the working poor Relative versus absolute poverty Homelessness definitions:  Absolute, unsheltered, provisionally sheltered Hidden, at risk • Mental Health • Solutions Social Inequality • • •

Social stratification Social class Classism

Gender Versus Sex • •

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Historically, gender and sex were rarely thought of as two separate concepts. In fact, the two terms were either used synonymously to indicate one of two possible options male or female or the concept of gender was ignored all together. This rigid binary construction left little room for biological, psychological, or sociological alternatives to male or female's, and the rules that women and men fulfilling society were very clear-cut and regimented. Our inaccurate understanding of sex, gender, and sexuality as segmented binary groupings of male or female, masculine or feminine, and gay or straight created rigid social groupings into which males and females are supposed to fit.

Gender as a Social Construct • • •

Two-Spirited • An umbrella term used by Indigenous North American people to recognize individuals who possess qualities or fulfill roles of both genders Third Gender • •

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A person who does not identify with the traditional genders of “man” or “woman,” but identifies with a third gender Many Indigenous North American subcultures (e.g., the Sioux, Lakota, and Cheyenne) live with two-spirited people as a third gender Mexico’s 3rd Gender- Huxes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlzhXBjmaUw India’s 3rd Gender- Hijra: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmWICmK37b4 Indonesia- Bugis: people there are 5 Genders: https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=K9VmLJ3niVo

Gender as a Social Construct •

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Some cultures have different categories, for example, many native North American subcultures for example the Sioux, Lakota and Cheyenne recognize and revere two-spirited people as a third gender. Another example the men of the Sambia tribe of Papua New Guinea engage in same-sex sexual behaviour as a rite of passage into becoming a warrior. The rights of the Zambia are considered "normal" and they know nothing about the binary notions of being gay or straight, even though the males in their culture experience both. The labels at Western society places on individual practises and preferences come with all sorts of implications, innuendos, and often inhumane treatment to those who find themselves outside of the norm. We see a similar process when we reflect on stereotypical gender roles that men and women are supposed to fill in their lives.

Gender Roles

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A set of behaviours that are considered acceptable, appropriate, and desirable for people based on their sex or gender Gender Socialization • The process by which males and females are informed about gendered norms and roles in a given society Baby Sparrow- 5 min. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M_Sgk94pKU As Early as 2 Years Old Children are capable of distinguishing between boys and girls and learn to evaluate them differently  Toddlers: Begin to recognize and adopt gender-stereotyped behaviours Their understanding of gender is quite flexible Lacks the permanence associated with rigid classifications of male and female, masculine and feminine • Many people confuse the definitions of sex and gender or use them interchangeably however, they have very different meanings. • Sex refers to the biological components that make up who we are, the chromosomal, chemical, and anatomical components that are associated with males and females. Some of these biological differences are on the outside of your body, external genitalia and secondary sex characteristics like breast size, hair growth, and musculature and some are on the inside of your body DNA, gonads, sex hormones, internal reproductive organs and brain chemistry. • Unlike sex, gender is a social construct that refers to a set of social roles, attitudes, and behaviours that describe people of one sex or another. Stereotypically we often attribute or identify different sets of roles and treats to males and females. For example, males may be expected to demonstrate strength and toughness and to act as protectors were as females may be expected to be empathetic, caring and take on the role of nurturer. • Gender describes what it means to be a man or a woman, it is the social and cultural meaning that we attached to the biological characteristics of male and female. • Gender encompasses our gender identity the internal perception of an individuals gender and how they label themselves, and gender expression, the external display of gender that is generally measured on a scale of masculinity and femininity. • Sexuality involves all the ways in which individuals express and experience themselves as sexual beings. • As a social construct, our understanding of what is masculine and what is feminine varies across cultures. Our understanding of gender also changes within cultures over time. As societal attitudes and beliefs about gender shift, so do gender roles 

Agents of Gender Socialization  Gender Socialization The process by which males and females are informed about gendered norms and roles, in a given society.  As children, we come to understand gender and gender appropriate roles through the socialization process. We learn what it means to be a boy or girl and how to behave in masculine or feminine ways from our parents, guardians, teachers, peers, and the media.  Parents are often the first and most influential when it comes to gender socialization in the early years. They pass along their own beliefs about gender and communicate gender expectations through their rearing practises and choices that they make about children's clothes, toys, chores, discipline, and so on that are often gendered, or different for boys and girls.  Schools are also deeply gendered. Children spend a great deal of time in a school environment and learn gender expectations from teachers and peers. Teachers often exhibit implicit or explicit bias that influences the ways in which they teach. They may model gender stereotypic behaviours exhibit different expectations for male and female students or use gender as a tool for organizing or grouping within the classroom environment. Agents of Gender Socialization

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Hegemonic Masculinity (heg·e·mon·ic –pronunciation) • The version of masculinity that is set apart from all others • Considered dominant or ideal within society • Often associated with toughness, bravado, aggression, and violence • Emphasized Femininity • The acceptance of gender inequality • A need to support the interests and desires of men • Often associated with empathy, compassion, passivity, and focused on beauty and physical appearance Although there may be many forms of masculinity's in Canadian society, not all are created equal according to sociologists R.W. Connell, one version of masculinity is set apart from all others and consider dominant or ideal within society. • Hegemonic masculinity is not only defined against femininity it is also set in opposition to other masculinity's that do not measure up to construction of the ideal. • Boys don’t cry • It's better to be mad than sad • don't get mad get even • take it like a man • he who has the most toys when he dies, wins • just do it or ride or die • size matters • I don't stop and ask for directions • nice guys finish last • it's all good • He also argues that there is no hegemonic version of femininity, no equivalent collective understanding of the phrase “be a woman” instead gendered expectations for women come in the exaggerated ideal of femininity called emphasized femininity The Media Agents of Gender Socialization • Tend to reinforce the misconception that gender is inexplicably tied to sex • Advertising: 160 print and television ads reveal the dominant message for women is : • Physical appearance is most important • Ideal female beauty is absolute flawlessness • Created through cosmetics, airbrushing, and digital editing • “a cult of thinness” • The media, like most agents of gender socialization, tend to reinforce the misconception that gender is inexplicably tied to sex, and male should be masculine, and female should be feminine. • But notions of masculinity and femininity are not universal constants, not only do they vary over time and across cultures, but also among men and women within a particular culture and over the course of their lives. • The difference exists within genders as much as it exists between genders, there are dominant forms of masculinity and femininity that are use the standards or presented as ideals within Canadian society. • In North America dominant forms of masculinity and femininity are hierarchical and rooted in power, privilege, and marginalization. They exist as unrealistic and unattainable ideals that are use the standards to evaluate the degree to which men and women measure up in terms of their masculinity and femininity. Killing us softly trailer 5 min https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWKXit_3rpQ (Kilbourne & Jhally, 2010) •

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Kilbourne explains that when women’s bodies are sexualized, turned into objects, or only one body part is focused on in advertisements, women are dehumanized, creating

a dangerous climate in which there is widespread violence against women (Kilbourne & Jhally, 2010). Furthermore, Kilbourne argues that the obsession with thinness and the ideal body type presented in mainstream media is teaching women to hate their bodies and to associate eating with feelings of shame and guilt (Kilbourne & Jhally, 2010). Additionally, she argues that the sexualization of women and girls in advertising sends the message that sexualized behaviour and appearance is empowering and rewarded within society (Kilbourne & Jhally, 2010). Although there is nothing wrong with wanting to be attractive and sexy, it becomes problematic when beauty is emphasized as the most important measure of success, to the exclusion of other important characteristics (Kilbourne & Jhally, 2010). These messages encourage unhealthy attitudes that can have serious negative impacts on physical and mental health (Kilbourne & Jhally, 2010). Agents of Gender Socialization • Men’s bodies are not as scrutinized and criticized • Objectification of men has increased • Men are increasingly presented as bigger, as stronger, and as perpetrators of violence • Eroticized violence, featuring women in bondage, battered, or even murdered, exists • Do images and advertisements that eroticize violence desensitize people to violence in the real world? • Are people who are exposed to violent images more likely to engage in aggressive behaviour? Kilbourne Advertising Research Revealed • 7 min Tough Guise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAt_h1jjyFM • • • •

In what ways were you socialized / taught about your gender & gender roles? What were some positive messages that you received about your gender/ gender roles? What were some negative messages you received? Who were the agents who socialized you about your gender and gender roles? (media, grandparents, parents, friends, co-workers, etc.) Where there any competing messages?

• Gender Inequality • Patriarchy- Social System of Male dominated authority • Violence Against Women • Intimate partner violence • Sexual Violence • Employment • Unpaid labour of women • Precarious Employment • Glass Ceiling • Education • Women 2 x increase with college & university degrees in 25 years • Men 10-20% increase with college & university degrees Patriarchy • Historically, any social system that was based on the authority of the heads of the household, which were traditionally male • Recently, the term has come to mean male domination in general Education: • Over the past 24 years, the percentage of women aged 25–64 with a university degree more than doubled from 15% in 1991 to 35% in 2015, and the percentage of women aged 25–64 with a college diploma grew from 14% in 1991 to 26% in 2015 (Ferguson, 2016).

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For men, educational attainment also grew from 19% in 1991 to 30% in 2015 for university degrees and 9% in 1991 to 19% in 2015 for college diplomas (Ferguson, 2016). • Although women were more likely than men to complete a university degree in 2015, women were slightly less likely than men to complete a high school diploma (23% and 25% respectively), and half as likely to complete a trades certificate (7% and 15% respectively) as their highest level of education (Ferguson, 2016). The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) projects that if this trend continues in Canada, by 2025 women will outnumber men in post-secondary 2:1 (OECD, 2012). Precarious Employment • Employment that includes, but is not limited to • Part-time, temporary, or contract work with uncertain hours, low wages, and limited to no benefits Glass Ceiling • An invisible barrier • Prevents women and minorities from advancement in organizations •

Gender Identity • Cisgender • A description of a person whose gender identity, gender expression, and biological sex align • Transgender • A blanket term used to describe anyone who does not identify as cisgender • Genderqueer • A blanket term used to describe people whose gender falls outside of the gender binary • A person who identifies as both a man and a woman • Or as neither a man nor a woman • Often used in exchange with transgender • Bigender • A person who fluctuates between traditional gender-based behaviours and identities • Identifies with both genders, or sometimes a third gender • Genderfluid • Describes an identity that is a fluctuating mix of the options available • Genderless • A person who does not identify with any gender Gender Expression • Androgyny A gender expression that has characteristics of both masculinity and femininity • Agender Someone who sees themselves as existing without gender (Sometimes called gender neutral or genderless) • Gender Non-conforming a non-traditional gender presentation • Cross-dressing Wearing clothing that conflicts with the traditional gender expression of your sex and gender identity Drag King, Drag Queen “Metro Sexual” Drag King • A person who consciously performs traditional masculinity, presenting an exaggerated form of masculine expression; oftentimes done by a woman Drag Queen • A person who consciously performs traditional femininity, presenting an exaggerated form of feminine expression; oftentimes done by a man

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Metrosexual • A man with a strong aesthetic sense, who spends more time on appearance and grooming than is considered gender normative Transsexual • A person who psychologically identifies with a sex/gender different from the one they were assigned at birth • Often wish to transform their physical bodies with Puberty suppression Hormone therapy Gender Confirmation Surgery, to align with their inner sense of sex/gender (Also referred to as Gender Assignment or Gender Reassignment surgery) Sexual and romantic attraction • Reward Theory: Maximum benefits at minimum cost: • Similarity • (Matching or complimentary) • Attractiveness • (Physical and Personality) • Proximity • Self-Disclosure Polyamorous Relationships • Polyamory- the state of being involved with or in a romantic relationship with more than one person. Sexuality • Sexuality Experience + express ion of ourselves as sexual beings Socially constructed Includes Norms of what is “appropriate and inappropriate “through our culture and our experiences • Sexual Scripts Behavioral Guidelines which are culturally created & that define how one should behave as a sexual being, in our sexual/ romantic relationships • Cultural Scripts Sex Roles, norms and behaviors deemed in a given society Largely conveyed through mass media and other social institutions, such as government, law, education, family, and religion Sexual Double Standards: Different norms for men and women • Interpersonal Scripts Created when individuals use the general guidelines they have learned from cultural scripts and adapt them to specific social situations, with specific people (with friends, dating partners, family, coworkers • Sexuality: I see myself as a cisgender female and I dress in clothing and tend to have mannerisms that match this stereotype- I have experienced discrimination as a female • Sexual Script: Often portrayed in media- Who makes the first move, gives the first kiss, the male is on top during sex scenes, women attracting men by wearing lingerie. Gay men meeting in a dark bar, etc. Some is via media; some is via our friend/ family/ dating influences. • Cultural Scripts- MEDIA Sex roles. Women in the kitchen, men served first, women looking after children and elderly. Men make more money, subservience and even hitting/ controlling women, ostracizing LGBTQ2, Gay men as effeminate or lesbian women as masculine, etc. • Interpersonal scripts: Guidelines about our behavior in our sex roles and as sexual beings we use with our dating partners, within our friend groups, assumptions we make about the appropriate use of the words we use with each other, and those we do not allow others to use

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with us. Guys ask girls out on dates. Would never serve a man diner first, except my grandfather, because well, that’s just how it is in my family. Sexual Identities  An all-encompassing concept that can include how we view ourselves as sexual beings  Are not restricted to a choice between the two binary oppositions of heterosexual or homosexual  Nor do they have to fall somewhere on a continuum between these two dichotomies Sexual Expression  The ways in which we engage in sexual behaviours Sexual Orientation  The romantic, emotional, and sexual attractions

Kinsey Scale: Sexual Identities Kinsey Report • Alfred Kinsey’s research began the study of human sexuality in the 1940s and 1950s • First to publish the idea that sexuality could be measured on a continuum • Suggested people weren’t necessarily exclusively heterosexual or exclusively homosexual, and that homosexuality was not deviant, damaging, or something that needed “curing” The Heterosexual–” Homosexual” Scale • The creation of a rudimentary scale • Allowed individuals to self-identify and categorize their sexual orientation • It measured only behaviours and took into account behaviours at only one point in a person’s life

https://psymed.info/kinsey-scale-test

Sexual Identities - Klein Sexual Orientation Grid:

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Fritz Klein ( 1985) http://www.americaninstituteofbisexuality.org/thekleingrid • It considers a person’s sexuality in the past, present (last 12 months), and an idealized future • Includes sexual behaviour, fantasies, emotions, and social behaviour • Considered a far more comprehensive indicator of an individual’s sexual orientation Sexual Orientation/ Sexual Identities • Gay: Someone who is emotionally and physically attracted to a member of the same sex • Lesbian: A woman who is sexually attracted to women • Heterosexual: The state of being sexually attracted to members of the opposite sex • Bisexuality: A person who is romantically and/or sexually attracted t...