...Gender Schema theory – Martin and HalversonOutline (AO1) 8 marks Gender Schema theory (GST) suggests that children learn about gender appropriate behaviour before gender consistency is achieved. The theory assumes that once a child has reached the gender identity stage at the age of 2-3 years. They start to accumulate knowledge about the sexes and order this information in the gender schema. Gender schemas are organised clusters of information about gender appropriate behaviours, attitudes and society’s explanations of each gender. This information is sorted so that it is relevant to their own gender, (the in group) and which is relevant for opposite gender (the out group). The children develop gender schemas by interacting with people and thus learning what toys, clothes and behaviour that are appropriate for each gender. Gender schema theory also suggests that children evaluate their own group positively and the out group negatively. This motivates them to be more like their own group and avoid behaviours of the other group. Children then start to imitate and display behaviours appropriate for their own sex. The theory assumes, once a child has developed a gender schema, they will show preference for the same sex play mates, gender stereotypes activities and actively ignore the other gender. GST also suggests that children ignore information that is inconsistent with their gender schema and therefore holds fixed attitudes about gender. Outline (AO1) 8 marks Gender Schema...
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...Outline and evaluate one or more evolutionary explanations for gender (4+16) One evolutionary theory of gender is mate selection. This claims gender role behaviours are related to ensuring the survival of ones genes. It states men have evolved a greater desire to have causal sex in order to produce as many offspring as possible to pass on their genes. Men look for specific features in women to ensure they can reproduce and have healthy offspring, for an example, it would be considered attractive for a woman to have large hips which are perfect for child bearing and a small waist which indicates they are not already pregnant. Other desirable features would be red lips, cheeks and good skin and hair as this would show the female is fertile and healthy and can produce healthy offspring. According to this theory, men also chose a younger mate as it means they are more fertile. Females also engage in mate selection and seek signs of healthiness e.g. a strong jaw and broad shoulders. This indicates the mate is most probably a successful hunter/provider as he is strong. However, they are more concerned with the number of resources the mate has due to infants demanding exclusive care for many months after birth thus meaning women cannot provide for themselves during this time. For this reason, it is important to the women that the relationship is monogamous so they can ensure most/all resources are for herself and her infant. If she believes another woman has access to her resources...
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...Gender Theory role in The Big Bang Theory In today’s society, technology plays a major role in ones day to day life, especially television. Each television show has its own theme, plot, and setting, which appeals to a particular audience. A popular comedy sitcom, airing on CBS, is The Big Bang Theory. The Big Bang Theory centers around two physicists, Leonard and Sheldon, that are roommates, and their neighbor, Penny. Leonard and Sheldon are extremely socially awkward, and so are their friends, Howard Wolowitz and Raj Koothrappali. The television show displays the interaction between these four geeky friends with Penny and other women. Throughout the show, the audience recognizes that many of society’s stereotypes on gender are portrayed through these characters. To thoroughly analyze gender stereotypes and its role in The Big Bang Theory, one must first understand what gender theory is, and its role it plays in society. Gender theory began as the Feminist movement, which was started around the late eighteenth century. The Feminist theory was a proponent of gender equality. Mary Wollstonecraft played a prominent role in this movement (Allen and Felluga). The Feminist movement originally started with women wanting rights with education; but women realized just how unfairly they were being treated. Now they wanted the right to own property, which would come with the right to vote. The movement then went from public to private; women wanted equal rights in home and work (Allen...
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...I will be explaining the following: radical feminism; marxist feminism; hegemonic masculinity;gender;homophobia;misogyny; rape culture; and Heterosexism. I have focused on these six terms because they highlight how sexuality and gender are categorized culturally and in our Western Capitalist society, causing women to be oppressed. I have focused on the previously mentioned feminist theories because they focus on a male dominated society that encourages unrealistic gender stereotypes. Also, these theories explain how women experience discrimination and unfair disadvantages. Radical Feminism Radical Feminism relates to the idea that women are being dominated in a male driven patriarchal society. Oppression of women has been engrained into the structure of society is reinforced through areas like motherhood,family, the state. Radical feminism indicates that we live in patriarchal society that sexualizes women and never allows them to be an authority figure. It affects women on a global scale and continues to build a prioritized system that continuously gives men dominant power and control. Women cannot seek help through the system because it is biased and controls women’s sexuality. Social dominance allows privileges to be given out according to gender and basically states women should not be in control of their own bodies and men are connected to power. Women are prone to unjust treatment and every aspect of their lives in shaped around male dominance. Women are put in a...
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...Describe and evaluate the gender schema theory of gender development. Martin and Halverson believe that gender identity is gained around the age two-three. They also stated that when children realise that they are either a boy or girl they split themselves into two groups, their gender group being the ‘in-group’ and the opposite sex group is the ‘out-group’. The children then actively seek out how members of their group should behave (toys, games, activities) and ignore those that do not relate to their group, for example a young boy would completely ignore a girl’s toy and may avoid anything perceived to be ‘girly’. This leads them to form schemas and their environment, peers and parents helps them to develop these which become more complex over time. Gender schemas help us to understand why children’s beliefs and attitudes about sex roles are so rigid, for example children may ignore behaviours which go against gender schemas e.g. female fire fighters or male nurses. Studies that support this have shown that when young children watch films which depict contradicting gender role behaviours, they tune them out. A study that goes against Martin and Halverson’s theory of gender development is Campbell’s study (2000). Although Martin and Halverson believe that gender identity is gained earlier than what Kohlberg thought, Campbell has proof that children develop gender schemas even earlier than ages 2-3. His study was with children of three months, nine months and eighteen...
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...INTRODUCTION Television programs can reflect already existing gender roles that segregate men and women in modern society. This segregation supports the biological determinist argument that gender roles are embedded in us since the day we were born. Proponents of biological determinism apply the logic that sex determines one gender, thus each gender has different social and psychological dispositions (Baxi 2017). With new research and historical context, sociologists have determined that sex and gender are two different concepts. Sex is considered to be the biological and physiological difference between males and female, whereas gender is a concept that has been socially constructed through culture (Baxi 2017). The sociological argument supports...
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...The Big Five Personality Theory and Gender Identity According to American Psychological Association (2000), personality refers to individual differences in characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. The study of personality focuses on two broad areas: One is understanding individual differences in particular personality characteristics, such as sociability or irritability. The other is understanding how the various parts of a person come together as a whole. A number of different theories have emerged to explain different aspects of personality. Some theories focus on explaining how personality develops while others are concerned with individual differences in personality. The following are just a few of the major theories of personality proposed by different psychologists: Behavioral Theories, Psychoanalytic Theories. This paper focus on the Big Five personality dimensions to explain childhood personality development. Big Five Personality theory described the personality in childhood and later in life as a set of variations across five primary dimensions identified by researchers: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness/intellect. Each bipolar factor (e.g., Extraversion vs. Introversion) summarizes several more specific facets (e.g., Sociability), which, in turn, subsume a large number of even more specific traits (e.g., talkative, outgoing) (Gosling, Rentfrow and Swann Jr, 2003). These basic factors can explain and predict...
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...THE WID, WAD, GAD APPROACH ON GENDER DEVELOPMENT March 19, 2013 · by cn2collins · Bookmark the permalink. · Over the years development programs have been criticized for ignoring gender roles and the impact it has on women in the global south. However we see a shift to integrate women into development programs in hopes of eradicating poverty and low social economical status. The six main theoretical approaches are: “(1) the welfare approach; (2) women in development (WID); (3) women and development (WAD); (4) gender and development (GAD); (5) the effectiveness approach (EA); and (6) mainstream gender equality (MGE). Martinez tries to understand the various outcomes and effectiveness of all 6 development theories. Despite the effort to reinforce gender mainstreaming into society we still see a vast number of gender inequality especially in the developing world. Women make up the 70% of individuals living in poverty and in sub-Saharan Africa 57% of HIV infected individuals are women. This also includes the disproportionate ratio of women to men in the job market and at leadership position, low level of education among women, and low socio-economic status among women. The term “Women, Gender and Development” could be seen a discipline much like ever other area of knowledge. However, what sets it apart from various disciplines is that, its major contributors are individuals that raise issues and concerns, concerning women, gender and development. These are academics, feminist...
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...Theories of Development-Empowerment a)WID,b)WAD,c)GAD Ever since the formation of the United Nations Commission on the Status for Women in 1946, it had been proposing a U. N. Women’s Conference with little success. Gradually with pressure from the American Women‟s Movement, the U.N. General Assembly declared 1975 as the International Women’s Year and 1975-1985 as the International Decade for Women. This declaration led to a growing awareness of women‟s issues and an acceptance of their demands as legitimate issues for policy making, both at the national and international level. The major themes of the International Women’s Year and Conference were-- Equality, Development and Peace. Equality, however, had been a dominant issue for the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women and it came primarily from the feminist movement of the Western industrialized nations. Peace was increasingly considered to be a women issue by the countries of the Eastern block. Development, on the other hand, was a recent issue put forward mainly by the newly independent “Third World” nations as a key to improving women’s lives. During the Decade, the important but previously invisible role of women in the social and economic development of the poorer countries was highlighted. The declaration of the International Decade for Women (1975-85) signified the new visibility of Women in Development (WID) in international forums. During the past few years, the term "women in development" has become...
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...INVESTING IN AFRICA’S FUTURE FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCE Name: Chupical Shollah Manuel Reg Number: R 086305 HU Lecturer: Musvosvi, E (Ms) Course: Gender and Development (HSO 306) Question: Briefly discuss the following theories and show the strengths and weaknesses of each approach to Gender Development; WID, WAD and GAD. Gender relates to the social constructions and relations between men and women and it does not simply look at maleness or femaleness. Development is a multidimensional concept but in general it entails social upward mobility and empowerment but not limited to this. In studying gender relations and development it is of great importance to look at the approaches adopted by feminists in redressing and addressing social disparities. There are many approaches but shall give considerable to WID, WAD and GAD and give their contributions to development as well as their strengths and weaknesses. One of the most famous approaches to development was the feminist Women in development (WID). This was adopted in the 1970s in response to women movement in the west. The women in the west advocated for inclusion of women who have been excluded from development policies and programs. Baserup (1979) point out that the primary goal of WID was to include women into existing initiatives cited in Schech and Haggis (2000). Women were marginalized and excluded from the benefits of development. In so doing...
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...Kohlberg’s theory of gender development. (8 marks + 16 marks) June 2013 Kohlberg’s theory on gender development offers a cognitive approach. He proposes that a child’s understanding of gender comprises of three stages. He believes that it is only when the child has developed a full understanding of gender at about 6-7 years of age that they will begin to display gender appropriate behaviour. The first stage of the Gender Constancy theory is the gender labelling stage (2-3 years of age). At this stage, a child will be able to judge themselves or others based on their appearance only. For instance, they will judge that a man with long hair is a woman. In the later stages of this period, children will not only be able to label others, but also themselves. Evidence for the age of the children in this stage comes from Thompson (1975). He found that 76% of 2 years olds could correctly identify their own sex, and this rose to 90% of 3 year olds. This shows that an increasing number of children can identify their gender at the ages of 2-3, as outlined by Kohlberg’s Gender Constancy Theory. At stage 2 (3-5 years of age) , and around the age of about 4, children realise that gender is also consistent over time, boys become men and girls become women. Therefore, their concept of gender is one of stability but consistency is not yet recognised, hence the reason why this stage is called the gender stability stage. Kohlberg also suggests that children cannot yet realise that gender is...
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...The Ratios Profitability Sustainability Ratios How well is our business performing over a specific period, will your social enterprise have the financial resources to continue serving its constituents tomorrow as well as today? Ratio | What does it tell you? | Sales Growth = Current Period –Previous Period Sales Previous Period Sales | Percentage increase (decrease) in sales between two time periods. If overall costs and inflation are increasing, then you should see a corresponding increase in sales. If not, then may need to adjust pricing policy to keep up with costs. | Reliance on Revenue Source = Revenue Source Total RevenueTotal Revenue | Measures the composition of an organization’s revenue sources (examples are sales, contributions, grants). The nature and risk of each revenue source should be analyzed. Is it recurring, is your market share growing, is there a long term relationship or contract, is there a risk that certain grants or contracts will not be renewed, is there adequate diversity of revenue sources? Organizations can use this indicator to determine long and short-term trends in line with strategic funding goals (for example, move towards self-sufficiency and decreasing reliance on external funding). | Operating Self-Sufficiency = Business Revenue Total Expenses | Measures the degree to which the organization’s expenses are covered by its core business and is able to function independent of grant support. For the purpose of this calculation, business...
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...Making sense of Gender and ICTs in Education: Exploring theoretical explanations for complex findings. Cheryl Brown and Laura Czerniewicz University of Cape Town Abstract This paper examines findings from two surveys of 10110 university students conducted in South Africa in 2004 and 2007. We report on the differences between male and females students access to and use of ICTs for learning. In particular we note that whilst equal opportunities do largely exist for both genders, there are subtle differences in terms of female students practical access and sense of personal agency. Findings about use are complicated with male students using ICTs more frequently particularly in the sciences disciplines and for activities such as information seeking and communication (in contrast to research elsewhere). In order to try and better understand our findings we explore four different theoretical perspectives namely; Bourdieu’s notion of habitus; Feminist Standpoint Theory; Critical Information Systems Theory; and Expectations States Theory. We then suggest using Bourdieu’s notion of habitus as we believe it offers us the most flexibility whilst enabling a gender focus to be maintained,. Introduction Research findings about gender differences and ICT access and use are complex and contradictory. While only a decade ago researchers were united about gender difference with regards to ICT access and use, recent discussions about gender divides are less emphatic, but more varied...
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...Mapping the Modern “An argumentative essay on ‘Gender’ through comparison and contrast of the views of authorities who are postmodern practitioners” Introduction Defining postmodernism as well as gender is an extremely difficult task if not impossible. This essay is an argument on the two postmodernist’s concept on ‘Gender’. This essay argues posing foucauldian postmodernism of Judith Butler against Baudrillardean post modernism of Arthur and Marilouse Kroker with analysis on both their ideas on gender including sex and sexuality. This essay also argues that these two approaches are fully flawed for a number of important reasons. This essay offered an argument on the ideas of two of the most prominent postmodernists in the field of ‘Gender’ including sex and sexuality namely Judith Bultler and Discussion Postmodernism of Judith Butler Judith Butler is one among the most influential proponent of postmodern practitioner of gender including sex and sexuality. In Gender Trouble It is stated that identity of gender constitutes the very expressions which are its results and does not go beyond the expressions of gender. Butler does not consider gender as an appropriate social as well as natural expressions of a sexed body, but it is a fluid identity which is always in a deferral state ad does not exist fully at any given point of time (Norris, 2010). She does not believe in the notion of a stable and essential identity of gender manifesting itself by way of external activities...
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...Gender Identity Every sexual thought, attraction,preference, development, feeling, memory, fantasy, and choice stem from complex brain activity. A complex genetic code determines body type; but that type does not always dictate sexual identity. Sexual identity is an even more complex development that encompasses hormone levels, social learning, individual perception, and attraction. Humans are born genetically male or female; but that does not necessarily control which sexual identity the individual will discover. Planned Parenthood (2012) defines gender identity as how a person feels about and expresses his or her gender; despite genetic or natural gender assignment. Some humans are genetically male or female and identify with the traditional gender roles; but others may find that the traditional cultural norms do not match their feelings or thoughts. Sexual identity is the sexual part of human expression that does not include ideas like sexual orientation, sexual preference, physical gender, or body type. If an individual considers his or her gender as female and is at ease with referring to his or her individual sexual characteristics in feminine terms, his or her gender identity is female. Gender identity has nothing to do with the physical characteristics of gender; but focuses on how the individual thinks (either masculine or feminine) and how he or she expresses those feelings. Ghosh (2012) explains gender identity as “self-identified, as a result of a combination...
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