Gender Stratification

Gender Stratification
Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Gender and Inequality

GenderPersonal traits and social
positions that members of a society
attach to being female and male
Gender stratificationUnequal
distribution of wealth, power, and
privilege between men and women
Male-female biological differences

Gender in a Global
Perspective
Israeli kibbutzim
Gender equality is a stated goal.
Margaret Meads research

Culture is key to gender differences.
George Murdocks research

Some global agreement about feminine and
masculine tasks.
Gender and culture

What it means to be male or female is mostly a
creation of society.
Figure 13.1
Mens and Womens Athletic Performance

Patriarchy and Sexism

A form of social organization in which males dominate
females
MatriarchyA form of social organization in

which females dominate males
SexismBelief that one sex or the other is
innately inferior or superior
Institutional sexism
Found throughout the economy
The costs of sexism

Sexism has a high price for both women and men.
Inevitability of patriarchy
Most sociologists believe gender is socially
constructed and can be changed.
Global Map 13.1

Womens Power in Global Perspective

Gender and Socialization

Gender roles (sex roles)Attitudes and
activities that a society links to each sex
Gender affects how we think of ourselves

and teaches us how to behave.
Research suggests that most young
people develop personalities that are a
mix of feminine and masculine traits.

Gender and the Family

Is it a boy or girl?
Color-coding gender
Traditional notions of gender identity

Handling of children
Female: passivity and emotion
Male: independence and action

Gender and Peer Groups

Janet Lever (1978)
Boys favor team sports with complex rules and
clear objectives.
Girls sports teach interpersonal skills and the value
of sharing and cooperation.
Gilligan (1982)
Boys reason according to abstract principles. Girls
consider morality a matter of responsibility to
others.
Schooling
Gender shapes interests and beliefs, guides areas
of study, and career choices.
Gender and the Mass Media

White males have center stage.
Minorities locked out until the early
1970s.
Women receive roles based on sex
appeal.
The beauty myth

Social Stratification
60% of all women work and 72% of working
women work full-time
Women hold primary responsibility for
housework and parenting the second shift
On average, women earn 78 cents for every
dollar earned by men.
Some work defined as mens work
Pink-collar are at the lower end of the pay
scale.
Table 13.1
Jobs with the Highest Concentrations of Women, 2007
Figure 13.2
Housework: Who Does How Much?
Table 13.2
Significant Firsts for Women in US Politics
Education, Politics, and

Military
Gender and education
In 2007 women earned 59% of all associate and
bachelor degrees, 61% of masters degrees and 50%
of doctorates.
Politics
Nineteenth Amendment (1920)
Women active in local, state politics
Military
14% of US military personnel are women, including
deployed troops.
Sociology,
Edition
by John Macionis
Culture influences our views of women
in 13the
military.
h
National Map 13.1

Women in State Government across the United States

Are Women a Minority?

At every class level, women have less
income, wealth, education, and power
than men.
Intersection theoryThe interplay of race,
class, and gender, often resulting in
multiple dimensions of disadvantage.
Disadvantages linked to gender and race
often combine to produce especially low
social standing.
Multilayered system of disadvantage for

some and privilege for others
Violence Against Women

In the 19th century, men claimed the right to
physically discipline their wives.
Sexual assaults, rapes, attempted rapes, and
physical assaults
Campus and university gender violence
Much gender-linked violence occurs in the

home.
Female genital mutilation
Global Map 13.2

Female Genital Mutilation in Global Perspective

Violence Against Men

Men are more likely to be both the
perpetrators and victims of violence.
Our culture tends to define masculinity

in terms of aggression and violence.
Mens lives involve more stress and
isolation than womens lives.
Sexual Harassment
Comments, gestures, or physical contact of a sexual
nature that are deliberate, repeated, and unwelcome.
Rules for workplace interaction

Causes of sexual harassment
Culture encourages men to be sexually assertive
and perceive women in sexual terms.
Men occupy most positions of power.
By the effect standard, a hostile environment
involves different perceptions of the same
behavior.
Pornography
People take different views of what is and
isnt pornographic.
Concerns about pornography as a moral
issue
The gender-stratification point of view
considers pornography a power issue.
Concern that pornography promotes

violence against women by portraying them
as weak and undeserving of respect
Applying Theory
Gender
Theoretical Analysis of Gender

Structural-functional analysis
Parsons: Gender forms a complementary set of
roles that links men and women into family units
Modern societies relax traditional gender roles
as they become more meritocratic
Symbolic-interaction analysis
Gender involves differences in behavior
Women are expected to be more deferential
Social-conflict analysis
Gender involves differences in power
Engels: Capitalism strengthens male domination.
Figure 13.3
Use of Contraception by Married
Women of Childbearing Age

Feminism
The advocacy of social equality for women and men,
in opposition to patriarchy and sexism
Working to increase equality

Expansion of human choice
Eliminate gender
stratification
Ending sexual violence
Promotes sexual freedom

Types of Feminism
Liberal feminism
Free to develop own talents and interests
Socialist feminism
Family form must change with some collective
means of carrying out housework and childcare
Radical feminism
Seek an egalitarian, gender-free society
Opposition to feminism
Threat to male status and privilege
Resistance to feminism is strongest among women
with lower levels of education
Applying Theory
Feminism
Figure 13.4
Opposition to Feminism among First-Year College Students, 1970-2008
The share of college students expressing antifeminist views declined after 1970. Men are still more likely than women to hold such attitudes.
Source: Astin et al. (2002) and Pryor et al. (2008)


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Gender Stratification

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Gender and Inequality

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Gender equality is a stated goal.

Margaret Meads research

George Murdocks research

Gender and culture

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Patriarchy and Sexism

MatriarchyA form of social organization in

The costs of sexism

Global Map 13.1

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Gender and Socialization

Gender affects how we think of ourselves

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Gender and the Family

Traditional notions of gender identity

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Gender and Peer Groups

Gender and the Mass Media

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Education, Politics, and

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

National Map 13.1

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Are Women a Minority?

Multilayered system of disadvantage for

Violence Against Women

Much gender-linked violence occurs in the

Global Map 13.2

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Violence Against Men

Our culture tends to define masculinity

Rules for workplace interaction

Concern that pornography promotes

Theoretical Analysis of Gender

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Working to increase equality

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

Sociology, 13h Edition by John Macionis

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