Sexism, 

prejudice or discrimination based on sex or gender, especially against

women and girls. Although its origin is unclear, the term sexism emerged from
the “second-wave” feminism of the 1960s through the ’80s and was most likely
modeled on the civil rights movement’s term racism (prejudice
or discrimination based on race). Sexism can be a belief that one sex is
superior to or more valuable than another sex. It imposes limits on what men
and boys can and should do and what women and girls can and should do. The
concept of sexism was originally formulated to raise consciousness about the
oppression of girls and women, although by the early 21st century it had
sometimes been expanded to include the oppression of any sex, including men
and boys, intersexual people, and transgender people.

Sexism in a society is most commonly applied against women and girls. It

functions to maintain patriarchy, or male domination, through ideological and
material practices of individuals, collectives, and institutions that oppress
women and girls on the basis of sex or gender. Such oppression usually takes
the forms of economic exploitation and social domination. Sexist behaviours,
conditions, and attitudes perpetuate stereotypes of social (gender) roles based
on one’s biological sex. A common form of socialization that is based in sexist
concepts teaches particular narratives about traditional gender roles for males
and females. According to such a view, women and men are opposite, with
widely different and complementary roles: women are the weaker sex and less
capable than men, especially in the realm of logic and rational reasoning.
Women are relegated to the domestic realm of nurturance and emotions and,
therefore, according to that reasoning, cannot be good leaders in business,
politics, and academia. Although women are seen as naturally fit for domestic
work and are superb at being caretakers, their roles are devalued or not valued
at all when compared with men’s work.

The extreme form of sexist ideology is misogyny, the hatred of women. A

society in which misogyny is prevalent has high rates of brutality against
women—for example, in the forms of domestic violence, rape, and the
commodification of women and their bodies. Where they are seen as property
or as second-class citizens, women are often mistreated at the individual as
well as the institutional level. For example, a woman who is a victim of rape
(the individual or personal level) might be told by a judge and jury (the
institutional level) that she was culpable because of the way she was dressed.

Sexism And Feminism
A feminist study of gender in society needs concepts to differentiate and
analyze social inequalities between girls and boys and between women and
men that do not reduce differences to the notion of biology as destiny. The
concept of sexism explains that prejudice and discrimination based on sex or
gender, not biological inferiority, are the social barriers to women’s and girls’
success in various arenas. To overcome patriarchy in society is, then, to
dismantle sexism in society. The study of sexism has suggested that the
solution to gender inequity is in changing sexist culture and institutions.

The disentanglement of gender (and thus gender roles and gender identities)
from biological sex was an accomplishment in large part of feminism, which
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claimed that one’s sex does not predict anything about one’s ability,
intelligence, or personality. Extracting social behaviour from biological
determinism allowed greater freedom for women and girls from stereotypical
gender roles and expectations. Feminist scholarship was able to focus study on
ways in which the social world subordinated women by discriminating against
and limiting them on the basis of their biological sex or of sociocultural
gender-role expectations. The feminist movement fought for the abolishment
of sexism and the establishment of women’s rights as equal under the law. By
the remediation of sexism in institutions and culture, women would gain
equality in political representation, employment, education, domestic
disputes, and reproductive rights

DISCRIMINATION AND OPPRESSION Introduction Promoting equality, as we have seen,

involves countering discrimination and oppression. This chapter therefore examines: • the
relationship between discrimination and oppression; • the various processes by which
discrimination occurs; • the ways in which discrimination can be categorized; and • the forms
of oppression that arise as a result of the various categories of discrimination. These issues are
important in terms of both theory and practice. From a theoretical point of view, the questions
addressed in this chapter can help to develop our understanding of some of the complexities
surrounding inequality. In relation to practice, the issues discussed here have very significant
implications for practitioners seeking to promote equality. The relationship between
discrimination and oppression Many people use the term ‘anti-discriminatory practice’ in a
broad sense to refer to forms of practice that challenge discrimination and oppression while
others take a lead from Phillipson (1992) in drawing a distinction between anti-discriminatory
practice and anti-oppressive practice, reserving the former for a narrow, legalistic approach to
inequality. As Thomas and Pierson (1995) comment: Some writers have . . . begun to suggest
that anti-discriminatory practice might usefully be defined as work designed to address
specific, legally defined injustices. Anti-oppressive practice might then be agreed to mean
wider social analyses that begin to challenge structures and thereby help people challenge
individual aspects of oppression. These

may well be useful distinctions but they are not widely understood in this way and do not have
wide currency. (p. 19) This is not a distinction I shall be using here, as I do not find it a
particularly helpful one. A narrow, legalistic approach is unlikely to challenge discrimination
effectively and does not therefore merit the title ‘anti-discriminatory’. Due to the potential
confusion over terminology, it is necessary to be clear about how the terms are being used. I
shall therefore define discrimination as the process (or set of processes) by which people are
allocated to particular social categories with an unequal distribution of rights, resources,
opportunities and power. It is a process through which certain groups and individuals are
disadvantaged and oppressed. As such, it is a major obstacle to dignity, equality and social
justice. As was noted in Chapter 1, processes of discrimination occur at three separate but
interrelated levels: personal, cultural and structural. The interactions of these three levels
produce a very complex and dynamic matrix which attests to the need to develop an
understanding of discrimination at a higher level than a simple focus on personal prejudice or
bigotry. One of the main outcomes of discrimination is oppression. The relationship between
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discrimination and oppression can therefore be seen as largely a causal one: discrimination
gives rise to oppression. Consequently, in order to challenge oppression, it is necessary to
tackle discrimination. It is for this reason that I shall now move on to examine some of the
main processes that contribute to discrimination (Figure 3.1). I shall concentrate on themes
that apply across a range of different forms of discrimination, rather than on particular ones.
Processes of discrimination In order to develop a clearer and fuller picture of how
discrimination occurs I shall present an exposition of eight processes that are closely
associated with inequality, discrimination and oppression. This is by no means an exhaustive
list, nor are the processes discussed here necessarily mutually exclusive – indeed, there is a
very strong tendency for the processes to interact, combine and reinforce one another.
Stereotyping The processing of information is a complex matter, with an extensive literature
base of cognitive psychology.

MALE DOMINANCE SYSTEM

Patriarchy is a social system in which men hold primary power and predominate in

roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege and control of property.
Some patriarchal societies are also patrilineal, meaning that property and title are
inherited by the male lineage.

The term male dominance evolved in the twentieth century as a conceptual

label to characterize the unequal power relations between men as a group and
women as a group. This categorical approach to gender relations is part of a
long history of thought regarding the political relations of the sexes beginning
with the early Greeks. A correlative of this system of thought has been the
relative exclusion of Western women from the public sphere of economic,
occupational, and political opportunities compared with their male peers and a
tendency to value traits associated with masculinity over those defined as
feminine. The intellectual history of the theory and practice of male dominance
is summarized beginning with the misogyny of the early Greeks and ending
with the anthropological debate regarding the universality of male dominance.
Dissenting views are also discussed.

Fatherhood is a biological and social relationship and a cultural institution. Cross-

cultural research on fatherhood ideals and fathering practices are summarized and the
relationship between parenting and gender is discussed. Theories of social fatherhood,
the principle of legitimacy, male dominance, and the family as a property system are
introduced. The history of fatherhood is discussed in relation to the transition from a
household economy to a market economy and the development of an ideology of
separate spheres. Recent trends in fathering behaviors and child development are
summarized and evaluated. Approaches to the measurement of father involvement are
discussed and issues for further research identified.

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"Explanations" of Male Dominance

To explain the origins of female subordination we need a theory that accounts for the control of
women's work by men.

White-ground pyxis with a group of women performing domestic tasks.

Made in Attica, c. 460-450BC. via British Museum.

Published in 1986, Women's Work, Men's Property: The Origins of Gender and Class, edited
by Stephanie Coontz and Peta Henderson, comprises five essays by a group of French and
American feminist historians and anthropologists, in search of the sociohistorical basis of
gender inequality. The editors' introduction, reproduced below, surveys previous efforts —
anthropological, sociobiological, psychological, and historical — to exhume the origin of male
dominance before outlining the conclusions of their own study. 

Male dominance is one of the earliest known and most widespread forms of inequality
in human history. To some, the very idea of a book on the origins of sexual inequality is
absurd. Male dominance seems to them a universal, if not inevitable, relationship that
has been with us since the dawn of our species. A growing body of evidence and
theory, however, suggests that this is not the case, and a number of scholars have
begun to address the issue of male dominance as a historical phenomenon, grounded
in a specific set of circumstances rather than flowing from some universal aspect of
human nature or culture. The essays in this volume offer differing perspectives on the
development of sex role differentiation and sexual inequality (the two are by no means
identical), but share a belief that these phenomena did have origins, and that these
must be sought in sociohistorical events and processes. Before turning to these
theories, we would like critically to review some of the alternative explanations of
sexual inequality. A starting point for many theories of gender inequality is the
assumption that biology is destiny: the roles men and women play in society, and the
different privileges attached to these roles, are said to be fundamentally determined by
our genes, which are in turn the product of natural selection. One common approach
within this general framework of biological reductionism is to explain human sex role
patterns and inequalities by reference to our primate heritage. The most popular model
for this approach is the baboon. The scenario is as follows: Male baboons are twice as
large as females; this sexual dimorphism (differentiation in secondary physical
characteristics) is related to differences in both function and status; male size, strength,
and aggression are adaptive traits for defending the troop and maintaining order
within it, and a tight male dominance hierarchy also reproduces this aggression, the
most dominant/ aggressive animal being the one that gets the greatest access to
receptive females and to food. With minor differences in emphasis and use of evidence,
a whole series of authors imply that male aggression and dominance (with their
necessary accompaniment, female passivity or dependence) are therefore part of our

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genetic primate heritage. Male aggressive instincts are also said to have served early
humans well in their role as "predators."

How does gender socialization impact society?

Gender stereotypes can be a result of gender socialization. Girls and boys are expected to act
in certain ways, and these ways are socialized from birth by many parents (and society). ... As
children get older, gender stereotypes become more apparent in styles of dress and choice of
leisure activities.

How the gender role has been influenced by the process of socialization?
Gender socialization is the process through which children learn about the social expectations,
attitudes and behaviours typically associated with boys and girls. This topic looks at
this socialization process and the factors that influence gender development in children.

Key Points

 Gender socialization begins even before a baby is born.

 Gender is socialized through media messages, school instruction, family expectations, and
experiences in the workplace.
 The process of gender socialization continues as adolescents enter the workforce.
Research has found that adolescents encounter stereotypes of gendered performance in
their first jobs.

Key Terms

 gender: The socio-cultural phenomenon of the division of people into various categories
such as male and female, with each having associated roles, expectations, stereotypes, etc.

Differences Between Men and Women

People in relationships often have strong expectations that their partner will be just like they
are: exhibit the same attitudes, values,  perceptions and behaviors.  However, we know that
you will not change your partner’s attitudes and behaviors unless they themselves are
motivated to do so.  You are even less likely to change their basic gender characteristics.  So
it is very important to educate yourself as to the basic gender differences which exist between
men and women, and accept the fact that the differences are there, they are real, and they
are not going away.  In this way you can learn to use the differences as a way to enrich your
relationship rather than to damage it.
Are Men and Women really different?   Let’s look at the evidence in a variety of areas of life. 
Note that these findings are generalizations and summaries that apply to most men or
women, but not to all men or all women.

1. PHYSIOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES

 Girls develop right side of brain faster than boys: leads to talking, vocabulary,
pronunciation, reading earlier, better memory.
 Boys develop left side faster than girls: visual-spatial-logical skills, perceptual skills,
better at math, problem solving, building and figuring out puzzles.
 Girls more interested in toys with faces than boys are; play with stuffed animals and
dolls more; boys drawn to blocks or anything that can be manipulated.
 Women use both hemispheres of brain; corpus callosum thicker in women.
2. SOCIAL INFLUENCES

Studies of infants:

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  Both men and women speak louder to boys than girl infants; they are softer and
express more “cooing” with girls. Boys are rarely told they are sweet, pretty, little doll;
boys are told they are a pumpkin head or “Hey big guy”.
 Boys handled more physically and robustly than girls, bounced around more .
 Girls are caressed and stroked more than boys.
 Up to age 2, mothers tend to talk to and look at their daughters significantly more than
than they do with their sons, and make more eye contact with the daughters as well.
 Mothers show a wider range of emotional response to girls than boys. When girls
showed anger, mothers faces showed greater facial disapproval than when boys
showed anger. May influence why girls grow up smiling more, more social, and better
able to interpret emotions than boys.
 Fathers use “Command terms” with boys more than girls; and more than mothers gave.

Developmental Differences Between Boys and Girls:

 Nursery rhymes, books and cartoons perpetuate stereotypes,which often promote

damsel in distress, frumpy housewife, helpless senior citizen, sexy heroine and
swooning cheerleader.
 Girls use more terms of endearment than boys.
 Boys get away with more aggressive antisocial behavior in school and home than girls.
 Girls who act as tomboys are accepted; boys who act like girls are severely
reprimanded (“don’t cry” “Don’t be a sissy”).
 Girls tend to talk about other people; secrets in order to bond friendships; and school,
wishes and needs.
 Boys talk about things and activities. What they are doing and who is best at the
activity.
 Teenage girls talk about boys, clothes and weight.
 Teenage boys talk about sports, mechanics, and function of things.
 age 12-18: biggest event for girls: have a boyfriend
 are 12-18: boys are equally interested in the following: sex, cars and sports.
 This carries into adulthood when women talk about relationships, people, diet, clothing,
physical appearance. Men talk about sports, work, money, cars, news, politics, and the
mechanics of things.
3. VALUES AND SELF ESTEEM AS ADULTS

MEN

 A man’s sense of self is defined through his ability to achieve results, through success
and accomplishment. Achieve goals and prove his competence and feel good about
himself.
 To feel good about himself, men must achieve goals by themselves.
 For men, doing things by themselves is a symbol of efficiency, power and competence.
 In general, men are more interested in objects and things rather than people and
feelings.
 Men rarely talk about their problems unless they are seeking “expert” advice; asking for
help when you can do something yourself is a sign of weakness.
 Men are more aggressive than women; more combative and territorial.
 Men’s self esteem is more career-related.
 Men feel devastated by failure and financial setbacks; they tend to obsess about money
much more than women
 Men hate to ask for information because it shows they are a failure.

WOMEN:

 Women value love, communication, beauty and relationships.

 A woman’s sense of self is defined through their feelings and the quality of their
relationships. They spend much time supporting, nurturing and helping each other.
They experience fulfillment through sharing and relating.

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 Personal expression, in clothes and feelings, is very important. Communication is
important. Talking, sharing and relating is how a woman feels good about herself.
 For women, offering help is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength; it is a sign of
caring to give support.
 Women are very concerned about issues relating to physical attractiveness; changes in
this area can be as difficult for women as changes in a man’s financial status.
 When men are preoccupied with work or money, women interpret it as rejection.
4. OTHER DIFFERENCES

 Men are more logical, analytical, rational.

 Women are more intuitive, holistic, creative, integrative.
 Men have a much more difficult time relating to their own feelings, and may feel very
threatened by the expression of feelings in their presence. This may cause them to
react by withdrawing or attempting to control the situation through a display of control
and/or power.
 Men are actually more vulnerable and dependent on relationships than women are and
are more devastated by the ending, since they have fewer friends and sources of
emotional support.
 Men are more at ease with their own angry feelings than women are.
 Women are in touch with a much wider range of feelings than men, and the intensity of
those feelings is usually much greater for women than men. As a result of this, many
man perceive that women’s feelings appear to change quickly; men may find this
irrational and difficult to understand.
 Men tend to be more functional in approaching problem-solving; women are
aesthetically-oriented in addition to being functional.
 Women tend to be much more sensitive to sounds and smells than men are; and
women as such tend to place a greater emphasis on “atmosphere”.
5. CONFLICTS WHICH ARISE DUE TO BASIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEN AND
WOMEN

 The most frequent complain men have about women:  Women are always trying to
change them.
 The most frequent complaint women have about men: Men don’t listen.
 Women want empathy, yet men usually offer solutions.
 When a woman tries to change or improve or correct or give advice to a man, men hear
that they are being told that they aren’t competent or don’t know how to do something
or that they can’t do something on their own.
 Men often feel responsible or to blame for women’s problems.
 Men always assume women want advice and solutions to problems, that that is the
best way to be helpful and to show love; women often just want someone to sincerely
listen to them.
 Housework: men avoid it, try to get others to do it at all costs, feel demeaned by doing
it. For women, cleanliness of house is a manifestation of warm, homey nest. Men and
women have different thresholds for cleanliness and dirt.
 Men often try to change a woman’s mood when she is upset by offering solutions to her
problems, which she interprets as discounting and invalidating her feelings.
 Women try to change men’s behavior by offering unsolicited advice and criticism and
becoming a home-improvement committee.
6. HOW TO WORK WITH THESE DIFFERENCES

 When women are upset, it is not the time to offer solutions, though that may be
appropriate at a future time when she is calmed down.
 A man appreciates advice and criticism when it is requested. Men want to make
improvements when they feel they are being approached as a solution to a problem
rather than as the problem itself.
 Men have great needs for status and independence (emphasis on separate and
different); women have needs for intimacy and connection (emphasis on close and
same).

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  Women need to receive caring, understanding, respect, devotion, validation, and
reassurance.
 Women are motivated when they feel special or cherished.
 Men need to receive trust, acceptance, appreciation, admiration, approval,
encouragement.
 Men are motivated when they feel needed.   A man’s deepest fear is that he is not good
enough or not competent enough, though he may never express this.
7. SUMMARY

 There are major, significant differences between men and women.

 The differences are different, NOT better or worse.  Do not judge the differences.  Do
not try to change the differences.   Do not try to make them go away.
 These are generalizations! Individual differences exist; we all have some of these
qualities.
 To get along, you MUST accept, expect and respect these differences.
 Be sure to remember these differences when communicationg about anything
important, when expressing care and concern, and when solving conflicts.

How does the link of thinking of a woman differ from that of a man?
Numerous studies show subtle differences in male and female behaviour and in cognitive
functions, too. Men tend to be more aggressive and outperform women on mental tasks involving
spatial skills such as mental rotation, whereas women tend to be more empathetic and perform
better on verbal memory and language tasks.

When did the concept of gender begin?

The term gender had been associated with grammar for most of history and only started to move
towards it being a malleable cultural construct in the 1950s and 1960s. Sexologist John Money
introduced the terminological distinction between biological sex and gender as a role in 1955.

Where did the word man and woman come from?

In Old English the word for Man (male) was “wer” or “wǣpmann”, but it disappeared around 13th
century and the word “man” took over, although it still could be used in gender neutral sense
and did so all the way to the twentieth century. Old English word for woman was “wif” or
“wīfmann”.17 Jul 2017

Where did traditional gender roles come from?

Historically, gender roles have been largely attributed to biological differences in men and
women. Although research indicates that biology plays a role in gendered behavior, the extent of
its effects on gender roles is less clear. One hypothesis attributes differences in gender roles to
evolution.

#5….Gender stereotypes are common on daytime soap operas as well; women often are
shown as hopeless individuals, unable to solve problems without assistance (Basow, 1992).
Children frequently watch these programs after school, reinforcing notions of women as
subordinate, passive, and indecisive.

In commercials for children's programs, boys are shown more frequently and in more
active roles; girls' behavior is much more likely to be passive (O'Connor, 1989). Advertisers
indicate that using male models generates more product sales to children of both sexes
than using female models (Schneider, 1987). It also has been suggested that girls watch
male-dominated programs and commercials simply because that is what is available. Given
the option, however, girls will become loyal to programming that is more gender-neutral
(Schneider, 1987).

8
Children without television have been shown to be less stereotyped in their gender role
attitudes (Kimball, 1986). Furthermore, children who view programs with non-traditional
gender roles tend to have non-traditional gender role perceptions (Rosenwasser,
Lingenfelter, & Harrington, 1989). Because children model the behavior they see on
television, they are likely to perpetuate gender stereotypes they view (Basow, 1992;
Strasburger, 1995).

SUMMARYResearch indicates that television has a socializing influence on children

regarding their attitudes toward gender roles. Gender role stereotypes seen on television
are, in turn, reinforced by parents, friends, and school, contributing to the child's sense of
what it means to be male or female in society. Television sends forceful and compelling
messages about societally approved gender roles, which are often stereotyped, biased,
and outdated. As children continue to develop and grow, they are exposed to more and
more examples of such gender biases and stereotypes.

Traditional gender roles, wherein men are encouraged to be decisive and to show
leadership qualities while women are encouraged to be deferential and dependent, do not
benefit anyone, particularly women. Traditional gender roles discourage the full range of
expression and accomplishment. Children should be allowed to develop a sense of self in a
gender-fair environment that encourages everyone to fully feel a part of society.

How are gender roles taught?

Gender roles are influenced by the media, family, environment, and society. ... In addition to
biological maturation, children develop within a set of gender-specific social and
behavioral norms embedded in family structure, natural play patterns, close friendships, and the
teeming social jungle of school life
.
How do teachers influence gender roles?
Teachers and peers directly influence gender differentiation by providing boys and girls with
different learning opportunities and feedback. Teachers and peers are also sources of learning
about gender. ... Children internalize gender stereotypes and prejudices, which in turn guide
their own preferences and behaviours.

How do we learn our perception of male and female roles?

Gender socialization begins at birth and occurs through four major agents of socialization: family,
education, peer groups, and mass media. Repeated socialization over time leads men and
women into a false sense that they are acting naturally, rather than following a socially
constructed role.

What are female personality traits?

Traits such as nurturance, sensitivity, sweetness, supportiveness, gentleness, warmth, passivity,
cooperativeness, expressiveness, modesty, humility, empathy, affection, tenderness, and being
emotional, kind, helpful, devoted, and understanding have been cited as stereotypically feminine.

What are male traits?

Traits traditionally viewed as masculine in Western society include
strength, courage, independence, leadership, and assertiveness.

What are positive masculine traits?

There are many positive qualities that have historically been defined as
either masculine (leadership, strength, courage) or feminine (nurturing, compassion, caring). In
reality, people are individuals with a unique combination of attributes.

Who is more emotional male or female?

Most researchers agree that women are more emotionally expressive, but not that they
experience more emotions than men do. Some studies have shown that women are more likely
to produce inauthentic smiles than men do, while others have shown the opposite.

9
 How do you develop healthy masculinity?
Talk about healthy masculinity.
1. Express a full range of emotion and feel validated.
2. Be vulnerable and seek help when necessary.
3. Treat people equally and respectfully.
4. Listen to and value women and girls.
5. Serve as role models for their male peers.

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