Unraveling the Impact of Gender Stereotypes

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Stereotype refers to the cognition aspect of feeling towards a given group of people. It is the picture that most people engulf in their minds about other people. However the picture painted by people with regard to other people is not necessarily a true depiction of the reality. Stereotypes hold the fixed view that people of a certain community or group exhibit specific character traits, which influence their behavior in general. Stereotypes as regards gender, refer to certain traits presumably adhered to males and females in the society, that define and distinguish these genders. According to Mynhardt, the two genders (males and females) portray traits which are both negative and positive. Gender stereotypes have far reaching consequences …show more content…

However there is no denying the fact that, the reception received by the males as regards their transgressions is more hostile compared to the women. If anything the women may in some instances be perceived in a positive way. The issue of desire is the other frontier for the perceptions of gender stereotypes. According to Sadalla, Kenrick, and Vershure (1987), men who show traits of not being dominant are deemed to be undesirable. This perception is however not just directly related only to the dominance aspects, but to all traits in general. There is the general perception that, men who exhibit traits that are a deviation from the known male traits are not desirable especially from the women’s point of view.

The other perception that is anchored in the minds of the people is the issue of respect in the society. This directly affects men in a negative way and does not have any negative impact on women who violate the gender role stereotype. It is perceived that, men who deviate from the normal societal norms loose respect from their peers and even the society in general. For women on the contrary, the perception is that, they will command respect and admiration from their peers in the event that they deviate from the prescribed societal code for the female

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