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Answer: While sex and gender are related, they are not the same thing. Sex differences are biological, but gender encompasses all the traits that a culture assigns to and inculcates in males and females. Gender, in other words, refers to the cultural construction of whether one is female, male, or something else. For instance, in the United States there is the expression "boys don't cry." Although boys have the same biological capacity to cry as girls, American culture values boys who are tough and don't cry. Since sex is biologically determined, it is fixed. In contrast, as a cultural construction, gender varies from culture to culture, and over time within a particular group. Looking again at American society, the role of women has changed dramatically over the last 50 years. While the United States still lacks gender equality, women's roles are no longer restricted to the domestic sphere. Answer: In general, gender stratification is related to the degree to which females directly contribute to the economy. In foraging and horticultural societies where women contribute substantially to the economy, gender stratification is reduced. As women's contributions to the economy decrease, gender stratification increases. In most agricultural societies, women do not play a primary role as cultivators. Agricultural subsistence activities tend to be male dominated, as women's work is concentrated in the home. As a result, gender stratification tends to be more pronounced in agricultural societies than in foraging or horticultural ones. The "traditional" idea that "a woman's place is in the home" actually emerged in the United States as industrialism spread after 1900. At that time, European immigrants willing to work for wages lower than those of American-born workers moved into factory jobs that previously had gone to women. The notion that women were biologically unfit for factory work began to emerge. However, this notion faded during the world wars. Since World War II, a number of factors—including inflation, a culture of consumption, the baby boom, and industrial expansion—have encouraged increased female employment. Answer: Rules of descent and postmarital residence play key roles in determining the degree of gender stratification in a society. In matrilineal descent systems, descent group membership, succession to political office, allocation of land, and overall social identity all come through female links. As a result, gender stratification tends to be reduced in matrilineal societies. In contrast, gender stratification tends to be greater in patrilineal societies largely because descent group membership, succession to political office, allocation of land, and overall social identity are passed through male links. Matrilocality disperses related males and guarantees that women remain connected with their supportive kin networks. This reduces the frequency of domestic violence against women. Patrilocality isolates women from their supportive kin networks, rendering them less protected and more likely to be the victims of domestic violence. Gender stratification tends to be least pronounced in matrilineal-matrilocal societies and most pronounced in patrilineal-patrilocal societies. Answer: Recently in the United States there has been a tendency to see sexual orientation as fixed and biologically based. Yet, there is not enough information at this time to determine the exact extent to which sexual orientation is based on biology. What we can say is that all human activities and preferences, including erotic expression, are at least culturally constructed. |