Completion of this assignment requires me to identify what gender identity is and how society may identify our gender identity as acquired or ascribed. I will use relative forms of information such as text books and the internet to discuss the macro and micro sociological views towards gender identity.
According to the Oxford Dictionary of English (2010) Gender is defined as the group in which an individual belongs to whether it being male or female and states that these definitions are identified through social and cultural differences, a male being identified as masculine and a female being identified as feminine. When referring to gender the term also correlates to the term ‘sex’ in which according to Stevenson (2010) ‘either of the two
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main categories (male and female) into which humans and most other living things are divided on the basis of their reproductive functions.’ This explains that we are given a biological status based on our reproductive systems. According to Stevenson (2010) the term identity is defined as ‘the fact of being who or what a person or thing is’ which explains that an individual knows what they are. The term gender identity as a whole explains the way in which an individual believes themselves to be either male or female whether it being what they are viewed as biologically or what they learn to view themselves as through social and cultural experiences. Some individuals may not deem their gender to be the same as their biological sex; in which case they may identify themselves as a transgender. According to Linton (1936) the term ascribed is described as something that you are born with or born into. Examples of such may be your sex, race and so forth. Linton (1936) also explained that ascribed status can be reversible and irreversible stating that you cannot always identify whether an individual’s status is ascribed or achieved, using the example of religion as an individual may be born into the religion of Christianity but later on in life may become a Muslim. When relating that to gender identity one can say that an individual’s identity cannot be chosen and they are male or female as they are born biologically with either male or female reproductive system, but when relating gender as reversible and irreversible an individual’s gender can change as they may have psychological changes over a period of time in their life and a male may view themselves as female and female view themselves as male. Linton (1936) also described the term achieved status which is also an acquired status. He states that achieved status is when an individual has made or chosen to get something themselves, for example in a positive light whereby a student works hard to become a doctor or possibly a negatively light whereby a thief goes to prison and is labelled as a criminal. In relation to gender identity one can say that an individual can choose the gender group which they belong to and that’s when they will be referred to as a transgender. There are numerous sociological perspectives that argue whether gender identity is ascribed or acquired. I will us the micro and macro sociological perspectives to argue this case. Micro theories focus on the relationship between individuals and how they process their interactions to form views on society, whereas macro theories focuses on the social aspects of an individual’s life and how society may have an impact on it. When looking at micro theories and how they relate to gender identity some may say that an individual’s gender identity is based solely on how an individual regards their face to face to face reactions. According to Blumer (1986) symbolic interactionism comes with three different factors • “Human beings act toward things on the basis of the meanings that the things have for them” (Blumer 1986:2)explaining that these things consist of all the things that are in one’s world which may vary from humans they come in contact with in their day to day life and various objects such as a bed, grass, swings , sofas and so forth. • “The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social interaction that one has with ones fellows” (Blumer 1986:2) Explaining that individuals gain their ideas of what consists within their society through their social interactions with other human beings. • “These meanings are handled in, and modified through, an interpretative process used by the person in dealing with the things he encounters.” (Blumer 1986:2) Explaining that individuals gain their understanding of what is within their society by going through a process of interpretation. When relating Blumer (1986) symbolic theory to whether gender identity is acquired or ascribed one may suggest that our gender is acquired as we have to go through a process of acknowledging aspects of our lives before we are able to interpret it. Goffman (1959) describes the term dramaturgy explaining that individuals live their lives within society as actors on a theatrical stage.
Goffman (1959) dramaturgical theory explains that the ‘Self’ is formed based on our surroundings for example when we are at home with our parents we may be very well mannered and calm as well as collected but when we are at school amongst our friends we may be loud and hyper. Goffman (1959) dramaturgy theory relates with Mead (2009) whereby Mead explains that an individual has a ‘Self’ which consists of the ‘Me’ and the ‘I’. The ‘Me’ being what an individual takes in from society such as behaviour, what is expected of individuals within society and so forth and the ‘I’ is when an individual takes in their interactions within society and uses it to form their character based on how they believe they are meant to behave. Mead (2009) also explains that an individual’s concepts of ‘Self’ are formed through interactions they obtain within society and explains that our ‘Self’ does not exist from birth rather it is formed over the years in our life as we go through social …show more content…
interactions. Mead (2009) also explain that in order to find one’s self we must undergo three fundamental factors which are ‘Language’ which helps to develop the self through words, gestures, signs and forth which enables an individual to have an understanding of other people’s feelings.
The second factor is ‘Play’ which is essential in helping to form ones ‘Self’ by understanding that one has to conform to rules and regulations within society in order to reach their goals, an example being when an individual goes to work, they will work hard and not be lazy to impress their boss in order to get a promotion whereby they might be lazy at home because they know their mother will clean up after them.
When relating whether gender identity is acquired or ascribed one can say that acquired as we are not born to know whether we are male or female, rather, through social interactions we are able to form an identity of the ‘Self’. Some individuals whether being male or female may say that their gender identity is different to what society views them as. A female that has grown up being the only female amongst six children may view themselves as male as their social interactions have mainly been with
males.
The creation of an identity involves the child's understanding of the public disposition of the gender normalities, and the certain gender categories that
The information acquired over the semester, whether through text or visual media, vividly brought the importance of knowing how one’s gender is identified and developed.
Gender is not about the biological differences between men and women but rather the behavioral, cultural and psychological traits typically associated with one sex. Gender is socially constructed meaning it 's culturally specific, it 's learned and shared through gender socialization. What it means to be a woman or man is going to differ based on the culture, geographical location, and time. What it meant to be a woman in the US in the 19th century is different than what it means to be a woman in the 21st century. As cultures evolve over time so are the ideals of what it means to be man or woman.
While sex refers the biological characteristics that make up a person, their gender is determined by the behaviors and attitudes considered “proper” by society according to their sex.
The word gender refers to a general classification of human beings into male and female with socially and culturally constructed characteristics, behaviors, attributes and roles preconceived and labelled as appropriate for each class. The society and culture today have placed human beings in a box which to a large extent dictates how we act in the world.
Mead and Goffman, although alike in there understanding of the self, the main basis of the orgin of the self differs between them. Mead takes the stance that the self develops through education and social exposure, wheras Goffman took the view that in given situations we learn to act out socially prescribed roles, using the anology of the ‘theature’. The use of an anology enables further
In both perspectives, acting solely for the sake of acting is not possible. All actions are social performances that give off impressions of “self” to other actors in society based upon past experiences and typifications. Berger and Luckmann offer a treatise on the social construction of reality that outlines how we formulate the idea of the “self” in social society and how reality itself is socially constructed. “Knowledge must always be knowledge from a certain position.” It is our social position that guides our perceptions of reality and allows us to embrace our idea of “self” within reality.
In today’s society, it can be argued that the choice of being male or female is up to others more than you. A child’s appearance, beliefs and emotions are controlled until they have completely understood what they were “born to be.” In the article Learning to Be Gendered, Penelope Eckert and Sally McConnell- Ginet speaks out on how we are influenced to differentiate ourselves through gender. It starts with our parents, creating our appearances, names and behaviors and distinguishing them into a male or female thing. Eventually, we grow to continue this action on our own by watching our peers. From personal experience, a child cannot freely choose the gender that suits them best unless our society approves.
Gender refers to psychological and emotional characteristics that cause people to assume, masculine, feminine or androgynous (having a combination of both feminine and masculine traits) roles. Your gender is learned and socially reinforced by others, as well as by your life experiences and g...
How we perceive ourselves and how others perceive us. Throughout the interview I knew that the way I interacted within the group would determine whether or not I would be able to study as a student nurse. Subsequently, I wanted to appear socially desirable. Therefore, I believe there was a distortion of self-image because the interview was very important to me. Using Goffman 's theory of self (1959), the 'social mask ' I put on during the interview, could be seen as 'performance ', '...the term ‘performance’ refers to all activity of an individual in front of a particular set of observers, or audience... ' , I wasn 't my: bubbly, hyper self, I felt I had to keep this hidden as I was in a professional environment. Therefore, Johari 's window demonstrates mundane realism, because my self-image did change. My bubbly, hyper personality which is usually 'open/public ' was now 'Hidden/private '. However, Johari 's window see 's self-awareness constructed by the individual alone, which makes the theory over –simplified and not interactionist as it only considers 'nurture ' factors impacting on an individual’s self-awareness, when in reality it’s a combination of biological/genetic and social factors (nature nurture). Therefore the theory is reductionist as it over simplifies human behaviour. Although Johari 's window doesn 't give a holistic reflection for my own self-awareness and communication, the fact I can identify this as a result of using Gibb’s model means that I have a rounded analysis of my interviewing
As a child grows and conforms to the world around them they go through various stages, one of the most important and detrimental stages in childhood development is gender identity. The development of the meaning of a child’s sex and gender can form the whole future of that child’s identity as a person. This decision whether accidental or genetic can effect that child’s life style views and social interactions for the rest of their lives. Ranging from making friends in school all the way to intimate relationships later on in life, gender identity can become an important aspect to ones future endeavors.
"Social life" is the set of relationships and interactions which a society leads us to have with each other. The sociologist Ervin Goffman suggests in The presentation of self in everyday life that social life is a stage where social actors are performers. By considering social life as a never-ending play, Goffman implies that since the moment we are born, we are thrown onto a stage where we learn how to play our assigned roles from and for other people through everyday social interactions. In order to acquire the necessary skills to perform as a functioning member of their society, human infants will internalize the specific norms and values of this society through the complex process of socialization.
Sex and gender are terms that are mixed up from day to day and seen as similarities rather than differences. Sex is what distinguishes people from being either male or female. It is the natural or biological variations between males and females (Browne, 1998). Some of these variations are genitals, body hair and internal and external organs. It is the make-up of chromosomes, men have one X and one Y chromosome and women have two X chromosomes, these are responsible for primary characteristics (Fulcher and Scott, 2003). Gender on the other hand refers to the sociological differences between male and female. This is teaching males and females to behave in various ways due to socialisation (Browne, 1998). Example: masculinity and femininity. Girls are supposed to show their femininity by being non-competitive, sensitive, dependent, attractive and placid. If and when some girls don’t succeed in keeping this image they will be referred to as a tomboy. On the other hand, boys show their masculinity through aggression, physical strength...
From the youngest age I can remember, everything I had seen in the media, altered my perception on gender - what it was, what it meant, and what society saw as fit. Gender has often been confused with having to do with biology, when in fact, gender is a social construct. In today’s society, gender has mixed up the construction of masculinity and femininity. This plays an important role in many individuals lives because they define themselves through gender over other identities such as sexual, ethnic, or social class. Identity is shaped by everyday communications, such as what we see through the media, therefore as society continues to evolve, so does the way we perceive identities and select our own.
“I am who I think others think I am”. Charles Horton Cooley created the looking glass self, stating that people grow from their perceptions of other people. There are three steps to his concept: imagining how we appear to others; are we funny or dull? What do people really think about me? The next step is imagining the judgment other people think of us; do they like us funny or dull? The third step is developing the self-concept or feeling about the situation. Dramaturgy is when you feel like your life is a drama or play. In this, we have an idea of what how we want others to think of us as. We put on a performance or a presentation self to the people we want to think we are similar. Conformity is what we do every day; we are meant to go to wake up, go to school, then make dinner and go to bed. We go along with whatever group we feel we want to belong to or already belong to. The true definition is “behavior in accordance with socially accepted conventions or standards”. Conformity could be even