THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF GENDER RELATIONS

FIRST CONSIDER THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN "GENDER" AND "SEX"

WOMEN AND MEN ARE BIOLOGICALLY DIFFERENT -- SPEAK OF EACH OTHER AS THE "OPPOSITE SEX" -- GOES BEYOND BIOLOGY AND MAKES REFERENCE TO "NATURE VERUS SOCIETY".

THE TERM "SEX" REFERS TO THE PHYSIOLOGICAL CATEGORIES OF MALE AND FEMALE -- (BIOLOGICAL AND ANATOMICAL DIFFERENCES)

THE TERM "GENDER" REFERS TO "SOCIALLY CREATED CATEGORIES OF MASCULINE AND FEMININE" -- (STATUS-ROLE DISTINCTION).

HOWEVER, IN RECENT YEARS, "GENDER HAS COME TO ENCOMPASS BOTH MEANINGS"!!!!.

(SHOWS THAT IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO SEPARATE THE PHYSIOLOGICAL FROM THE CULTURAL).

JOSEPH CAMPBELL SAID: "WOMEN BECOME THE VEHICLES OF NATURE AND MEN BECOME THE VEHICLES OF SOCIETY".

THIS DICHOTOMY BETWEEN NATURE AND SOCIETY (THINK OF ALL THE CONNOTATIONS?) HAS BEEN DISPLAYED TRADITIONALLY IN SOCIAL PRACTICES AND ORGANIZATIONS -- BUT -- IT IS BEING CHALLENGED TODAY.

ONE OF THE FIRST CHALLENGES - [TWO YEARS BEFORE FRIEDAN'S BOOK] SIMONE DE BEAUVOIR WROTE "THE SECOND SEX", WHICH EXAMINED THE SOCIALIZATION OF WOMEN INTO THE ROLE OF "SUBORDINATE GENDER"

1) BOYS WERE TAUGHT TO DO AND ACCOMPLISH - WHEREAS GIRLS WERE CONDITIONED TO "FORFEIT CHOICES" AND POSSIBILITIES, EXCEPT TO LOOK AFTER OTHERS WHILE "KEEPING UNWANTED DIRT AT BAY."

2) THIS LEADS TO AND IS PART OF A PERVASIVE PRESUMPTION OF WOMEN AS "NATURAL BORN NURTURERS" THAT FEW DARE TO STEP OUTSIDE FOR FEAR OF REBUKE OR REJECTION.

EX: DON'T PEOPLE STILL LOOK A LITTLE ASKANCE AT A WOMEN WHO DOESN'T HAVE CHILDREN? (SUSPICIOUS OF THE NON-NURTURING WOMAN).

MOREOVER - DON'T MANY WOMEN TODAY STILL STRUGGLE WITH THE "RIGIDLY SCULPTED GENDER SCRIPTS" ? (DID I LIVE MY LIFE WRONG?)

EX: THE SUBORDINATION OF WOMEN AS "SERVICE- PROVIDERS" COULD BE DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTED TO THE DEVALUATION OF WOMEN'S WORK AND WORTH."

IN 1963 BETTY FRIEDAN PUBLISHED "THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE" - A CRITIQUE OF AMERICAN WOMEN THAT PROVED TO BE REVOLUTIONARY IN GALVANIZING WOMEN'S CONSCIOUSNESS AND MOBILIZING WOMEN INTO ACTION.

FRIEDAN LABELLED THE UNHAPPINESS AND BOREDOM OF MIDDLE-CLASS WOMEN IN THEIR "COMFORTABLE CONCENTRATION CAMPS" AS "THE PROBLEM WITH NO NAME."

ACCORDING TO "THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE" - WOMEN WHO WERE "SEXUALLY PASSIVE" AND "ACCEPTING OF MALE DOMINATION AS NATURAL AND NORMAL" AND " OBSESSING OVER CHILDREN AND HUSBANDS" AND "FIXATING ON THEIR HOUSEWORK TO THE EXCLUSION OF LOOKING AFTER THEMSELVES" - SUFFERED FROM "A PROFOUND SENSE OF EMPTINESS AND DISILLUSIONMENT" - SOMETIMES "MISTAKEN AS CONTENTMENT."

EX: "THE STEPFORD WIFES" - NOW PERCEIVED BY NEW GENERATION OF WOMEN AS A "HORROR MOVIE."

FRANKLY, WOMEN HAVE INSTIGATED A LOT OF SOCIAL CHANGE SINCE GROUNDBREAKING BOOKS - "THE FEMININE MYSTIQUE" AND "THE SECOND SEX".

EX: NOW WE HAVE - "YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY BABY" AND "SISTERS ARE DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES" AND [MY FAVORITE] "GIRL POWER" (DEFUNCT SPICE GIRLS).

SOME WOMEN HAVE COME A LONG WAY "IF" YOU CONSIDER HOW:

1) WOMEN AND CHILDREN WHERE TRADITIONALLY REGARDED AS MALE PROPERTY FOR HIS DISPOSAL;

2) RAPE WITHIN MARRIAGE WAS DISMISSED AS A CONTRADICTION IN TERMS;

3) A WORKING (WHITE) WOMAN WAS OFTEN CONSIDERED AS IRRESPONSIBLE AND/OR AND EMBARRASSMENT;

4) UNWED MOTHERS WERE STIGMATIZED AND SHUNNED.

[BUT] - NOW - THE MOVEMENT TOWARD "SOCIAL EQUALITY" PARADIGM (AWAY FROM "SOCIAL DARWINISM") HAS LEAD TO LEGAL EQUALITY (AND POLITICAL SAFEGUARDS).

1) COURT CHALLENGES TO REMOVE SEXIST AND DISCRIMINATORY BARRIERS.

2) INCREASING NUMBERS OF WOMEN ARE IN PAID WORK, WHILE WOMEN ARE FORDING THE CORRIDORS OF POWER (IN MANY WORKPLACES).

3) CREATING A "GENDER QUAKE" BY EXERTING PRESSURE ON ALL INSTITUTIONS TO EMBRACE FEMALE REALITIES.]

4) CONSTRUCTING MORE "INDIVIDUALIZED" LIVES AROUND THEIR UNIQUE INTERESTS WITH NOVEL COMBINATIONS OF PARTNERS.

GENDER [SOCIALIZATION] IS [STILL] A BASIS OF HIERARCHICAL RANKING IN SOCIETY.

- IS THE BASIS OF ONE OF CANADA'S "SOCIAL STRATIFICATION SYSTEMS" IN SOCIETY -- SOCIAL STRATIFICATION REFERS TO "UNEQUAL PROPERTY, POWER, AND PRESTIGE".

IN OTHER WORDS, GENDER IS A DETERMINANT OF "WHO GETS WHAT THERE IS TO GET"

"GENDER" IS ONE OF THESE "KEY STATUSES" (AFFECTING IDENTITY) -- THE DIFFERENCE IN STATUS BETWEEN MALE AND FEMALE IS REAFFIRMED IN SYMBOLIC WAYS CONTINUOUSLY.

EX: (1) MEN ARE EXPECTED TO MARRY WOMEN WHO ARE SHORTER, SMALLER, YOUNGER, LESS EDUCATED, AND WHO HAVE A LOWER OCCUPATIONAL STATUS.

***QUES: WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE AN OLDER WOMAN WALKING ARM-IN-ARM WITH A YOUNGER MAN?

THEORIES OF GENDER

{ESSENTIALISM VERSUS SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONISM}

...

I) “ESSENTIALISM”:

(A) FREUD; (B) SOCIOBIOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY –

INTERPRETATIONS STRONGLY CONNECTED TO THE BIOLOGY OF HUMAN BEINGS --- EX ====>

BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM

ANATOMY IS DESTINY -- FREUD: THE WOMEN'S LACK OF THE MALE SEX ORGAN LED INEXORABLY TO CERTAIN NEGATIVE BEHAVIOURAL CONSEQUENCES FOR THEM.

(1) "PENIS ENVY" -- WOMEN DEFINE THEMSELVES BY WHAT THEY LACK. THEY COVET WHAT MEN ARE, AND DEVALUE WHAT THEY ARE. THIS LEADS TO RESENTMENT AND ALIENATION FROM THE VALUE AND STRENGTH OF THEIR OWN "FEMININITY".

(2) IN THIS SCENARIO -- "RADICAL FEMINISM" IS PENIS ENVY. THESE WOMEN DON'T WANT TO BE "FEMININE" BECAUSE THEY HATE WHAT FEMININE STANDS FOR. THEY WANT TO BE "MEN MINUS THE PENIS".

(3) THE SOLUTION (BY IMPLICATION IN THIS SCENARIO) -- WOMEN SHOULD NOT BE TRYING TO DENY THEIR OWN BIOLOGY (DIFFERENCE), THEY SHOULD BE ATTEMPTING TO ELEVATE IT -- "ELEVATE THE FEMININE".

(4) EX: -- PEOPLE HAVE ARGUED FOR A DOLLAR VALUE TO BE PLACE ON WORK IN THE HOME. THEY HAVE ORGANIZED CAMPAIGNS TO LOBBY THE GOVERNMENT TO PAY HOUSEWIVES FOR RAISING THE NATION, ETC.,

CRITIQUE OF ESSENTIALISM:

1) FIRST, ESSENTIALISTS IGNORE THE HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL VARIABILITY OF GENDER AND SEXUALITY.

2) THE SECOND PROBLEM WITH ESSENTIALISM IS THAT IT TENDS TO GENERALIZE FROM THE AVERAGE IGNORING VARIATIONS WITHIN GENDER GROUPS.

3) THIRD, NO EVIDENCE DIRECTLY SUPPORTS THE ESSENTIALISTS’ MAJOR CLAIMS [DOES PENIS “SIZE” MATTER?].

4) FINALLY, ESSENTIALISTS’ EXPLANATION FOR GENDER DIFFERENCES IGNORE THE ROLE OF POWER. [HOW DO YOU “ELEVATE”WITHOUT POWER?]

II) SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONISM:

GENDER SOCIALIZATION: EG. BARBIES FOR GIRLS AND G.I. JOE DOLLS FOR BOYS.

CONSEQUENCES: BODY IMAGE CONSCIOUSNESS IN GIRLS; AGGRESSION IN BOYS.

EX: "SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY" -- WE LEARN APPROPRIATE GENDER BEHAVIOURS FROM THE VARIOUS AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION.

EX: PARENTS TREAT GIRLS DIFFERENT THAN BOYS; SCHOOLS AND OTHER SOCIALIZING AGENTS TREAT GIRLS DIFFERENT FROM BOYS --

BOYS LEARN VERY EARLY ON THAT THEY MUST NOT SIMPLY BEHAVE AS BOYS, BUT, MORE IMPORTANTLY, THEY MUST NOT BEHAVE LIKE GIRLS.

THEREFORE IT IS LESS PERMISSIBLE IN SOCIETY FOR BOYS TO ACT IN WAYS THAT ARE "BENEATH THEM".

STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT WHAT SEEMS NATURAL MUST BE CONTINUOUSLY SOCIALLY REINFORCED.

EX: BARRIE THORNE’S STUDY ILLUSTRATED “BOUNDARY CROSSING”….

THORNE’S CONCLUSIONS:

1) FIRST, CHILDREN ARE ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN THE PROCESS OF CONSTRUCTING GENDER ROLES. CHILDREN ARE NOT PASSIVE RECIPIENTS.

2) SECOND, WHILE CHILDREN TEND TO SEGREGATE THEMSELVES BY GENDER, BOUNDARIES BETWEEN BOYS AND GIRLS ARE SOMETIMES FLUID AND SOMETIMES RIGID, DEPENDING ON THE SOCIAL CIRCUMSTANCES.

GENDER IDEOLOGIES:

WHAT BOYS ARE SUPPOSED TO DO….

WHAT GIRLS ARE SUPPOSED TO DO….

THE MASS MEDIA AND BODY IMAGE:

--- NOTICE A PATTERN

--- BODY IMAGE BECOMES AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF ONE’S SELF-DEFINITION.

--- ADVERTISING AND THE CREATION OF ANXIETY.

GENDER IDEOLOGIES AND MALE-FEMALE INTERACTION:

--- WHO TAKES CENTER-STAGE?

--- WHO GETS HEARD?

--- WHO GETS CREDIT AT WORK?

FEMINIST THEORIES

FEMINIST PERSPECTIVES ====è OFFER VARIOUS, SOMETIMES COMPETING, “SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONIST” EXPLANATIONS FOR THE PERVASIVENESS OF RELATIONSHIPS OF DOMINATION AND SUBORDINATION BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN ===è AND FOR A RANGE OF UNDERSTANDINGS ABOUT THE CHANGES REQUIRED TO REDRESS EXPLOITATIVE AND OPPRESSIVE RELATIONSHIPS.

LIBERAL FEMINISTS

1) MAIN SOURCE OF GENDER INEQUALITY IS THE "PROCESS OF SOCIALIZATION" (LEARNING PROCESS BY WHICH YOU ACQUIRE THE KNOWLEDGE, SKILL, AND MOTIVATIONS REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE IN SOCIAL LIFE).

2) THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT SHAPED WOMEN’S LIVES WERE THE LAWS AND PREJUDICES (SHARED BY MEN AND WOMEN) THAT EXCLUDED THEM FROM THE PUBLIC SPHERE AND FROM THE RIGHT TO EARN THEIR OWN LIVING ON AN EQUAL FOOTING WITH MEN.

3) WOMEN STRUGGLED FOR THE RIGHT TO HIGHER EDUCATION, ENTRANCE INTO THE PROFESSIONS, THE RIGHT TO OWN PROPERTY AND HOLD PUBLIC OFFICE, AND FOR SUFFRAGE, THE RIGHT THAT CAME TO SYMBOLIZE FULL CITIZENSHIP.

4) THE SOLUTION: – EDUCATION = REMOVE INDIVIDUAL IGNORANCE. THEREFORE, THESE LAWS AND THE PREJUDICES THAT UNDERWROTE THEM WOULD GRADUALLY BE REPLACED BY EXTENDING EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY TO WOMEN.

SOCIALIST FEMINISM:

1) OPPRESSIVE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE SEXES ARE NOT SIMPLY DERIVATIVE OF CLASS.---THE INTERCONNECTIONS BETWEEN SEX OPPRESSION AND CLASS EXPLOITATION HAD TO BE ADDRESSED.

2) A FOCUSED ON THE LABOUR DONE BY WOMEN IN THE HOUSEHOLD—CALLED DOMESTIC LABOUR—HELPS TO SUSTAIN THE CAPITALIST SYSTEM.

(A) REARING CHILDREN;

(B) SUSTAINING HUSBANDS.

RESULT: BOTH CAPITALISTS AND INDIVIDUAL MEN BENEFIT FROM THE UNPAID AND PERSONAL SERVICE OF WOMEN IN THE HOME.

3) SOME SOCIALIST FEMINISTS ANALYZED THE INTERCONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE PUBLIC SPHERE OF CAPITALIST AND STATE RELATIONS AND THE PRIVATE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY/ HOUSEHOLD.

(A) CAPITALISM DONE AT FRACTION OF THE COST;

(B) THE APPEARANCE OF THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SUSTAINS THE UNEQUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN THROUGHOUT SOCIETY.

4) SOLUTION: OVERCOME THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SPLIT ===> FAMILY WAGE; DENIAL OF EDUCATION; NO SOCIAL SUPPORTS FOR CHILD CARE.

RADICAL FEMINIST

1) GENDER INEQUALITY IS ROOTED IN THE MATERIAL CONDITIONS OF MEN AND WOMEN. THE BIOLOGICAL FAMILY IS AN INHERENTLY UNEQUAL POWER DISTRIBUTION.

LIKE MARXISM WHICH CONTENDS: MONOGAMY WAS THE FIRES FORM OF THE FAMILY TO BE BASED NOT ON NATURAL CONDITIONS BUT ON ECONOMIC CONDITIONS: THE EXCLUSIVE AIMS OF MONOGAMOUS MARRIAGE WERE TO MAKE THE MAN SUPREME IN THE FAMILY AND TO PROPAGATE, AS THE FUTURE HEIRS TO HIS WEALTH, CHILDREN INDISPUTABLY HIS OWN.

2) THE SOLE PURPOSE OF MONOGAMOUS MARRIAGE IS TO SUBJUGATE THE FEMALE SEX TO THE MALE ===> THEY LOCATE MEN’S POWER OVER WOMEN IN THEIR ABILITY TO CONTROL WOMEN SEXUALLY AND TO DEVELOP THE INSTITUTIONS THAT ENSURE CONTINUING CONTROL.

WESTERN SOCIETIES ARE A FORM OF PATRIARCHY -- RULE OF MEN, MEN ARE THE MAIN BENEFICIARIES OF THESE SOCIETIES ====> IN A WORLD OF UNEQUAL POWER RELATIONS BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN, COMPULSORY HETEROSEXUALITY ENSURES NOT ONLY WOMEN’S SEXUAL DEPENDENCE UPON MEN BUT ALSO THEIR ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEPENDENCE.

3) THE SOLUTION: THE ELIMINATION OF MEN AND THE TRADITIONAL FAMILY FROM WOMEN'S LIVES -- "COMPULSORY HETEROSEXUALITY" IS THE KEY WAY WOMEN ARE SUBORDINATED AND ENSLAVED IN THIS SOCIETY ===> WOMEN SHOULD BUILD THEIR OWN INSTITUTIONS FROM HEALTH CLINICS AND WOMEN'S SHELTERS TO SMALL BUSINESSES, ART GALLERIES ETC.

[[[FLERAS: PP.132 "SOCIAL PROBLEMS" == LIBERAL FEMINISM (LEVELING THE PLATYING FIELD -- REMOVING DISCRIMINATORY BARRIERS) == MARXIST FEMINISM (WORKERS (WOMEN AND MEN) OF THE WORLD UNITE -- RESTRUCTURE SOCIETY TO ELIMINATE PRIVATE PROPERTY AT THE BASE OF EXPLOITATION) == RADICAL FEMINISM (HEY, HO, PATRIARCHY HAS TO GO -- ELIMINATE PATRIARCHY AND THE NUCLEAR FAMILY THAT SUPPORTS IT) == CULTURAL FEMINISM (CELEBRATE AND POLITICIZE WOMEN AS DIFFERENT AND VALUABLE) == RAINBOW FEMINISM (COATS OF MANY COLOURS -- WHITE FEMINIST AND FEMINIST OF COLOUR HAVE DIFFERENT AGENDAS WHERE ADDITIONAL PRESSURES RELATED TO RACISM AND ETHNICITY ARE SUPERIMPOSED ON AND INTERSECT GENDER AND CLASS, AMPLIFYING INEQUALITY) == CONSERVATIVE FEMINISM (THE GOOD OLD DAYS -- ESPOUSES A VIEW OF EQUALITY THAT ACKNOWLEDGES WOMEN IN TRADITIONAL, MATERNAL, DOMESTIC ROLES TO CURE THE BREAKDOWN IN THE FABRIC OF SOCIETY)]].

CHARACTERISTICS AND DIFFERENCES IN THE WORLD OF WORK

THE GENDERED DIVISION OF LABOR IS A CENTRAL ASPECT OF THE GENDER INEQUALITY THAT EXISTS IN SOCIETY. THE FACTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

(1) IN CANADA TODAY, A SPLIT LABOR MARKET EXISTS, WITH WOMEN PRIMARILY IN JOBS THAT HAVE LOWER INCOMES AND LOWER STATUS. IN THE HOUSEHOLD, WOMEN DO THE MAJORITY OF THE WORK. MOST WOMEN WORK IN THE PAID LABOR FORCE OUT OF ECONOMIC NECESSITY.

(2) IN THE WORLD OF WORK, MEN AND WOMEN ARE NOT EQUAL. SINCE 1960S, WOMEN IN CANADA HAVE ENTERED THE PAID LABOR FORCE IN LARGE NUMBERS, WITH THEIR PARTICIPATION RATE NOW VERY CLOSE TO MEN

(3) IN TERMS OF EDUCATION, MORE WOMEN THAN MEN NOW EARN UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES. NONETHELESS, WOMEN HAVE NOT ENTERED THE PAID LABOR FORCE ON AN EQUAL FOOTING WITH MEN.

(4) IN FACT, THE WAGE GAP IS EVEN GREATER IN THE MORE PRESTIGIOUS OCCUPATIONS -- WOMEN AVERAGE ONLY 61% OF MALE EARNINGS.

(5) IN THE LOWER RANGE OCCUPATIONS, WOMEN ONLY EARN 73 PER CENT OF WHAT MEN EARN.

(6) THREE-QUARTERS OF THOSE IN THE TEN LOWEST-PAYING OCCUPATIONS ARE WOMEN.

(7) ALTHOUGH "GENDER-SEGREGATION" IS THE PRIMARY CAUSE OF LOWER WAGES, THE WAGE REMAINS LOWER THAN MAN'S EVEN WITHIN MALE-DOMINATED OCCUPATIONS.

(8) OF THE TEN HIGHEST-PAYING FULL-TIME, FULL-YEAR JOBS, ALL ARE MALE DOMINATED, WITH WOMEN ACCOUNTING FOR LESS THAN 20 PERCENT OF WORKERS IN THOSE OCCUPATIONS.

THE GENDER WAGE GAP

THE WAGE GAP REFERS TO THE DISPARITY BETWEEN WOMEN'S AND MEN'S EARNINGS. IT IS CALCULATED BY DIVIDING WOMEN'S EARNING'S BY MEN'S TO YIELD A PERCENTAGE - "EARNINGS RATIO".

MALE-FEMALE WAGE DIFFERENCES REVEAL THAT GENDER IS A MAJOR SOURCE OF INEQUALITY IN THE WORKFORCE.

WOMEN'S OVERALL PAY RELATIVE TO MEN'S HAS INCREASED BY ABOUT A PENNY A YEAR FOR THE PAST TEN YEARS, WHICH IS A SIGNIFICANT MOVE UPWARD - HOWEVER:

IN 1996, WOMEN WHO WORKED FULL TIME FOR THE WHOLE YEAR STILL EARNED ONLY 73 CENTS FOR EACH DOLLAR EARNED BY THEIR MALE COUNTERPARTS (STATS CANADA, 1999)

IN 1966, SINGLE WOMEN EARNED 93 CENTS FOR EVERY DOLLAR EARNED BY A MARRIED MAN. MARRIED WOMEN, ON THE OTHER HAND, EARNED ONLY 69 CENTS FOR EVERY DOLLAR EARNED BY A MARRIED MAN (STATS CANADA, 1998).

THE GENDER WAGE GAP EXISTS FOR ALL LEVELS OF EDUCATION. ALTHOUGH HIGHER EDUCATION CLEARLY NARROWS THE WAGE GAP BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN, A WOMAN WITH A UNIVERSITY DEGREE EARNS APPROXIMATELY $13,000 LESS THAN A MAN WITH A UNIVERSITY DEGREE - THE GAP IS ATTRIBUTABLE TO "OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION" - [THE MAJORITY OF FEMALE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ENROL IN DEGREE PROGRAMS IN EDUCATION, HEALTH PROFESSIONS, FINE ARTS, AND THE HUMANITIES, WHILE MALES CONTINUE TO DOMINATE IN FIELDS OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING.]

EVEN WITHIN OCCUPATIONS THAT REQUIRE SPECIALIZED EDUCATIONAL CREDENTIALS, THE WAGE GAP DOES NOT DISAPPEAR - FOR EVERY DOLLAR EARNED BY MEN, WOMEN EARNED: 66 CENTS AS DENTISTS, 68 CENTS AS LAWYERS, AND 77 CENTS AS UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS (STATS CANADA, 1998).

GENDER RELATIONS

GENDER STRATIFICATION SYSTEM - MEANS THAT THERE ARE NOT ONLY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN - THERE ARE ALSO "STATUS ISSUES ATTACHED" TO THESE DIFFERENCES [THERE IS AN UP AND DOWN RANKING SCALE BASED ON GENDER].

1) WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF GENDER INEQUALITY IN CANADA?

GENDER INEQUALITY RESULTS FROM ECONOMIC, POLITICAL, AND EDUCATIONAL DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN. IN MOST WORKPLACES, JOBS ARE EITHER GENDER SEGREGATED OR THE MAJORITY OF EMPLOYEES ARE OF THE SAME GENDER. WHILE THE DEGREE OF GENDER SEGREGATION IN THE PROFESSIONAL WORKPLACE HAS DECLINED SINCE THE 1970S, RACIAL AND ETHNIC SEGREGATION REMAINS DEEPLY EMBEDDED.

2) HOW IS OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION RELATED TO THE PAY GAP?

MANY WOMEN WORK IN LOWER-PAYING, LESS PRESTIGIOUS JOBS THAN MEN. THIS OCCUPATIONAL SEGREGATION LEADS TO A DISPARITY, OR PAY GAP, BETWEEN WOMEN'S AND MEN'S EARNINGS. EVEN WHEN WOMEN ARE EMPLOYED IN THE SAME JOB AS MEN, ON AVERAGE THEY DO NOT RECEIVE THE SAME, OR COMPARABLE , PAY.

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GENDER AND CITY LIFE

DIFFERENT KINDS OF CITIES HAVE DIFFERENT "GENDER REGIMES" -- PREVAILING IDEOLOGIES OF HOW WOMEN AND MEN SHOULD THINK, FEEL, AND ACT; HOW ACCESS TO SOCIAL POSITIONS AND CONTROL OF RESOURCES SHOULD BE MANAGED; AND HOW RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN SHOULD BE CONDUCTED.

SOME MEN VIEW THE CITY AS "SEXUAL SPACE" -- WHERE WOMEN ARE CATEGORIZED AS: "PROSTITUTES", "LESBIANS", "TEMPTRESSES", OR "VIRTUOUS WOMEN IN NEED OF PROTECTION" -- BASED ON THEIR SEXUAL DESIRABILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY.

THIS PHENOMENON OF "SEXUAL STEREOTYPES ABOUT WOMEN AS SEXUAL OBJECTS" CONTRIBUTES TO A DISTORTED UNDERSTANDING IN EVERYDAY LIFE THAT ACTUALLY SETS THE STAGE FOR A VIOLENT MALE PATHOLOGY.

EG.: TORONTO'S DEMENTED SEXUAL PREDATORS -- BRANDED "THE WEST-END TRANSIT RAPIST" AND "THE EAST-END BREAK-IN RAPIST".

THE BIG CITY OFFERS A PARADOX FOR WOMEN:

(1) "VULNERABILITY" -- WHILE MODERN URBAN LIFE MAY PROVIDE GREATER FREEDOM AND A BROADER RANGE OF LIFESTYLE CHOICES THAN IN THE PAST, INCLUDING MORE OPPORTUNITIES IN TERMS OF PAID EMPLOYMENT OUTSIDE THE HOME, WOMEN MAY ALSO BE IN GREATER PHYSICAL DANGER, AND FEEL PARTICULARLY VULNERABLE IF THEY HAVE TO WALK ALONE AFTER DARK BECAUSE OF WORK OR SCHOOL.

ON THE OTHER HAND (POSITIVE):

(2) "FREEDOM" -- CITIES ARE MORE LIKELY THAN SUBURBS TO SUPPORT A SUBCULTURE(S) OF ECONOMICALLY INDEPENDENT FEMALES. THUS, CITIES MAY PROVIDE A FORUM FOR CHALLENGING PATRIARCHY?

THE HIGHER THE DENSITY AND GREATER DIVERSITY FOUND IN CENTRAL CITIES SERVES AS A CHALLENGE TO THE PATRIARCHY [FOUND IN THE HOME AND WORKPLACE IN LOWER-DENSITY, HOMOGENEOUS AREAS SUCH AS SUBURBS AND RURAL AREAS.] == RESIDENCE WHO DIFFER IN MARITAL STATUS, PATERNITY, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, CLASS AND/OR RACE/ETHNICITY TEND TO LIVE IN CLOSE PROXIMITY, AND SHARE THE COMMON BELIEF THAT PATRIARCHY SHOULD BE ELIMINATED.

[UPSHOT] SOCIAL PROBLEM: CITY OFFERS THE ULTIMATE GENDER PARADOX - IT CAN BE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT PUTS WOMEN AT EXTREME RISK; OR IT COULD BE THE VEHICLE FOR LIBERATION - HOW WOULD YOU ENSURE THE LATTER?

EX: URBAN PLANNING (SAFE NEIGHBORHOODS); LEGALLY (SEVER SANCTIONS AGAINST GENDER VIOLENCE) ETC.

MANAGING DIVERSITY IN THE WORKPLACE

MANAGE DIVERSITY SHOULD AIM TO BUILD THE FOLLOWING CHARACTERISTICS INTO A NEW "DIVERSITY CENTRIC" CULTURE:

A) AN ACCEPTANCE (LED BY MANAGEMENT) OF A WORKFORCE THAT WILL "EMBODY DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES AND APPROACHES TO WORK."

(B) VALUING A VARIETY OF OPINIONS AND CONTRIBUTIONS.

(D) A STRUCTURE THAT STIMULATES PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT.

(E) AND FINALLY, A SYSTEM OF COMMUNICATION THAT IS FLUID AND OPEN, WHERE WORKERS ARE MADE TO FEEL VALUED FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS.

HARD BUSINESS RESULTS: TAKING A LOOK AT EACH OF THE COMPONENTS THAT BUILD A DIVERSE CORPORATE CULTURE BEGINS BY LOOKING AT HOW A COMPANY CAN VALUE DIFFERING PERSPECTIVES AND APPROACHES TO WORK. SIMPLY PUT "THERE IS MORE THAN ONE RIGHT WAY TO GET POSITIVE RESULTS."

AND BY RECOGNIZING THE STRENGTHS OF PEOPLE, WHICH MAY VARY DEPENDING UPON A PERSON'S RACIAL, ETHNIC, RELIGIOUS OR CULTURAL BACKGROUND, A COMPANY WILL FIND THAT THEY MAY BE BETTER ABLE TO BUILD STRONG COHESIVE WORK TEAMS MADE UP OF PEOPLE, WHO ARE DIFFERENT, AND WHO COMPREHENSIVELY FILL, COMPLEMENT AND COMPLETE THE SKILL SETS OF OTHERS IN EACH GROUP.

CRASHING THROUGH THE TRADITIONAL ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE, IN FAVOUR OF A NEW, MORE EGALITARIAN, NON-BUREAUCRATIC STRUCTURE THAT "PROMOTES THE EXCHANGE OF IDEAS AND WELCOMES CONSTRUCTIVE CHALLENGES".

THIS TYPE OF CULTURE "INSTILLS A HIGH TOLERANCE FOR DEBATE" AND SUPPORTS CONSTRUCTIVE CONFLICT ON WORK-RELATED MATTERS ALLOWING FOR DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES TO BE INTRODUCED AND VALUED, THUS PROMOTING A COMFORTABLE WORK ENVIRONMENT WHERE EMPLOYEES DO FEEL THAT THEIR OPINIONS ARE ENCOURAGED AND SUPPORTED.

[SOFT BUSINESS RESULTS - SUCH AS INCREASED EMPLOYEE MORALE, INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY PER EMPLOYEE, DECREASED EMPLOYEE TURNOVER AND ABSENTEEISM, AND OVERALL, AND INCREASED SENSE OF ORGANIZATION, AND THESE SUCCESSES ALLOW A DIVERSE COMPANY TO "GO BEYOND FINANCIAL MEASURES TO ENCOMPASS LEARNING, CREATIVITY, FLEXIBILITY, ORGANIZATIONAL AND INDIVIDUAL GROWTH, AND THE ABILITY OF A COMPANY TO ADJUST RAPIDLY AND SUCCESSFULLY TO MARKET CHANGES;" PLACING THE DIVERSE COMPANY IN A MUCH MORE FAVOURABLE POSITION, RELATIVE TO ITS COMPETITORS.