UNIT I – INTRODUCTION TO GENDER AND SOCIETY

LESSON 1: GENDER TERMS AND CONCEPTS

Historically, sex and gender have been treated as synonyms. It was
1950s when American British psychologists, sociologists and other
professionals working on gender – related issues pushed to distinguished one
term from the other (Moi, 2005).
Sex is a biological dimension of your gender and sexuality.
 Also, referred to as biological sex or physical sex, the term generally
pertains to your identity depending on your sexual anatomy and
physiology - the parts of your body that are relevant to reproduction
and the function of its parts.
 Typically, determined by examining your genitals – these are the
organs that are associated with reproduction – the process or ability
to create offspring.
 It refers to categories that people are assigned to at birth based on
reproductive characteristics (Little et. al., 2012; Stevenson & Waite,
2011).
Sex Chromosomes are referred to as X and Y. Typically, all human female
egg cells only carry X chromosomes. A human male’s sperm carries either an
X chromosome or Y chromosome.
Hermaphroditism (From Greek, Hermes – male Greek god and Aphrodite –
female Greek goddess. In modern times, intersexuality is used to refer this
phenomenon.
Hermaphroditism or intersexuality is naturally occurring variation in
humans and animals (1 in 1500 births) according to American and
Psychological Association (APA, 2006).
 It is a physical condition where an organism has different variations of
the physical characteristics compared to a true male or a true female
of its kind (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2019).
Gender came from the Latin word genus meaning kind, type, or sort.
 It is a social construct specifying the socially and culturally prescribed
roles that men and women are to have.
 It changes over time.
 It is what we expect men and women do and behave.
 Range of characteristics pertaining to and differentiating between,
masculinity, and feminity.

Prepared by: Abdon M. Moleño Jr.

College of Arts and Sciences
GE EL 7 – Gender and Society
  Sexologist John Money introduced the terminological distinction
between biological sex and gender as a role in 1955.
 WHO (World Health Organization) - defines gender as the result of
socially constructed ideas about the behavior, actions, roles, and
relationships of and between groups of women and men.
 It varies from society to society, and it can be changed.
 It is the legal status differentiated through social roles, behaviors,
capabilities, emotional, intellectual, and social characteristics
attributed to a given culture to women and men (Eviota, 1994).

Sex Gender
Primarily refers to physical Is the composite attitude and
attributes – body characteristics behavior of men and women
notably sex organ which are distinct (masculinity or feminity)
in majority of individuals.
Is biologically determined by genes Is learned and perpetuated
and hormones, media; thus it primarily: the family, education,
religion (where dominant) and is an
acquired identity
Is relatively fixed/constant through Because it is socialized, it may be
time and across cultures variable through time and across
culture.

Gender Identity is the personal identification with a particular gender

and gender role in the society. Social identity refers to the common
identification with a collectively or social category that creates a common
culture among participants that are concerned. According to
Identification Theory, Inter-group relationships impact significantly
individual’s self-perception and behaviors. Group of people- provide
members with the definition of who they are and how they should behave
within their social sphere.

Gender Roles are learned behaviors in a given society, community, or other

social group. They condition activities, tasks, and responsibilities are
perceived as male or female. Gender roles are affected by age, class, race,
ethnicity and religion, and by geographical, economic and political
environment (Pavlic & Sam – Vargas, 2000).
 These are the social expectations comprising a range if behaviors and
attitudes considered acceptable and appropriate based on the
assigned sex (Levesque, 2011).

Prepared by: Abdon M. Moleño Jr.

College of Arts and Sciences
GE EL 7 – Gender and Society
  The term “gender role” was coined by John William Money in his
research on how intersex people expressed their being male or being
female (Carey, 2006).

Sex Roles refer to the rules and standards of behavior and practices often
related to person’s reproductive capacity.
 It is a function or role that a male or a female assumes for the simple
fact that it is a basic physiological difference between sexes.
 It is biologically determined role and can only be performed by a
specific sex.

Gender Roles Sex Roles

May differ from society to society.
Same in all societies: They are
universal, e.g it is only women who
give birth to children all over the
world.
Can change history. Never change with history.
Can be performed by both sexes. Can be performed by only one of
the sexes.
They are socially, and culturally They are biologically determined.
determined.

Gender Equality is equality of the sexes, a state of equal ease of access to

resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic
participation and decision-making. Furthermore, a state of valuing different
behaviors, aspirations and needs equally, regardless of gender. Gender
equality is strongly tied to women’s rights, and often requires policy changes.

Gender equality “means that women and men, and girls and boys, enjoy the
same rights, resources, opportunities and protections. It does not require
that girls and boys, or women and men, be the same, or that they be treated
exactly alike (UNICEF).

Gender inequality is an idea that men and women are not equal, and that
gender affects an individual’s living experience.

Gender Equity means fairness treatment for women and men, according to
their respective needs. This may include equal treatment or treatment that is
different, but which is considered equivalent in terms of rights, benefits,
obligations, and opportunities.

Prepared by: Abdon M. Moleño Jr.

College of Arts and Sciences
GE EL 7 – Gender and Society
Gender Mainstreaming a gender perspective is the process of assessing
the implications for women and men of any planned action, including
legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels. It is a
strategy for making women’s as well as men’s concerns and experiences an
integral dimension of the design implementation, monitoring, and evaluation
of policies and programmes in all political, economic, and societal spheres so
that women and men benefit equally, and inequality is not perpetuated.

Gender Violence also known as Gender - Based Violence is a term used

to refer to harm done unto a person or groups of people due to their gender
(Bloom, 2008).

Forms of Gender – Based Violence

1. Physical Violence – any act or use of force to cause physical harm.
Physical violence includes among other battering, assault, female
genital mutilation, “honor” crimes, and/or manslaughter.
2. Sexual Violence – any sexual act performed without consent. This could
be rape, sexual assault, sexual trafficking, and/or sexual exploitation.
3. Psychological Violence – any act that causes harm to the mind and
emotions of a person or groups of people. Psychological violence could
be verbal assault, insults, ‘harassment, defamation, coercion, and/or
illegal detention.
4. Economic Violence – any act that causes harm to an individual’s productivity.
For example, property damage, restricting access to financial resources,
depriving education, prevents the person from getting hired, and/or not
complying with economic responsibilities (i.e., child support).
5. Technology – facilitated gender – based violence – the use of
technology to cause harm to an individual because of their gender. This
type of violence could be anything related to the Internet, especially
social media.

Gender Stereotypes is a generalized view or preconception about

attributes or characteristics, or the roles that are or ought to be possessed
by, or performed by, women and men. A gender stereotype is harmful when
it limits women’s and men’s capacity to develop their personal abilities,
pursue their professional careers and/or make choices about their lives.

Basic Kinds of Gender Stereotypes

Prepared by: Abdon M. Moleño Jr.

College of Arts and Sciences
GE EL 7 – Gender and Society
 1. Personality Traits. Women are often expected to be accommodating
and emotional while men are usually assumed to be self – confident
and aggressive.
2. Domestic Behaviors. Some people presume that women will cook,
clean the home, and take care of their children, while men take care of
their finances, work on the car, and do the home repairs.
3. Occupations. Some people are quick to assume that teachers and
nurses are women, and that pilot, doctors, and engineers are men.
4. Physical Appearance. Women are expected to be thin and graceful,
while men are supposed to be tall and muscular. Men and women are
also supposed to dress and prepare in ways that stereotypical to their
gender (e.g. men wearing pants and has short hairstyles, women
wearing dresses and has make up).

Gender Dysphoria is a term applies to the discontent with the physical or

social aspects of a person’s sex.

Gender Discrimination is the systematic, unfavorable treatment of

individuals by their gender, which denies those rights, opportunities, and
discrimination.

Gender Sensitivity is about recognizing the issues and problems in how

society perceives gender.

According to United Nation, the best practices or strategies to be more

gender inclusive in using the English language are the following:
1. Using non – discriminatory language
a. Use pronouns that the person identifies with.
b. In using Ms. (Miss) or Mrs. (Missus), use Ms. To address a woman
when the preference is not known. Ms. is more inclusive and can
refer to any woman regardless of marital status.
c. Avoid gender – biased expressions.
2. Make gender visible only when it is relevant for communication.
a. Use the feminine and masculine pronouns to explicitly make both
men and women visible in the message. This strategy is cale
pairing.
b. However, pairing must not be overused because it would become
distracting and confusing.
c. Avoid using s/he or (s)he in written communication. The proper way
to indicate both women and men is to spell out the words, such as
“she and he” or “he and she”.
3. Do not make gender visible when it is not relevant. 8

Prepared by: Abdon M. Moleño Jr.

College of Arts and Sciences
GE EL 7 – Gender and Society
 a. Use gender neutral words.
b. Use plural pronouns/adjectives.
c. Ditch the gendered pronouns to avoid overusing the pairing
strategy.

References

Peralta et. al., 2019, A Course Module for Gender and Society: A Human
Ecological Approach, Rex Bookstore, Inc. pp 1- 5

Tolibas et. al., 2020, Gender and Society, Mutya Publishing Housse, Inc. pp 1
- 21

https://www.ohchr.org/en/women/genderstereotyping#:~:text=A%20gender
%20stereotype%20is%20a,personal%20abilities%2C%20pursue%20their
%20professional

Prepared by: Abdon M. Moleño Jr.

College of Arts and Sciences
GE EL 7 – Gender and Society