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Babies and Babes. Gender socialization. Women are made, not born. Sex vs. Sexuality vs. Gender Social Construction Gender: women & femininity Sex: female. Sex. The biological aspects of a person; male or female Does biology determine behavior?
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Babies and Babes Gender socialization
Women are made, not born • Sex vs. Sexuality vs. Gender • Social Construction • Gender: women & femininity • Sex: female
Sex • The biological aspects of a person; male or female • Does biology determine behavior? • The way we understand sex is socially constructed
Sexuality • biological, behavioral and political components involved in personal attraction • Complex and changes over lifetime
Gender • The socially learned & observable behaviors and expectations associated with male and female • masculinity and femininity • Gender “performance” changes throughout time & culture • Race, class and sexual orientation all impact one’s gender performance
Socialization • The process by which we learn the norms of the culture and acquire a sense of self or personality • How we learn to perform masculinity and femininity
Gender Status Sex Category Naming, dress,activities Social Construction of Gender • Process by which the expectations associated with being male and female are passed on through society
Gender Identity • Gendered sense of self • Gender is the most important thing we feel we need to determine about a person
Gender Ranking • The basis for sexism • The valuation of one gender over another • Male over Female • The valuation of one performance of a specific gender over another • Madonna over whore • Young over old • White angel over black mammy
Femininity & Women • The social environment places constraints on individuals’ bodies & behaviors • Femininity is based on binary aspects that create a narrow path for appropriate behavior • Current definitions of femininity emphasize “superwoman”, which leaves majority with feelings of inferiority
The Social Construction of Sex How many sexes and genders do exist? How can we discuss gender and sexual diversity when all the mechanisms of legal and extralegal render transgendered and intersexed lives invisible?
Atypical Gender Differentiation • Variables of gender • Chromosomal gender • Prenatal hormonal gender • Prenatal and neonatal brain hormonalization • Internal organs • External genital appearance • Pubertal hormonal gender • Assigned gender • Gender identity
Brain Differentiation • Evidence indicates that differences exist between human male and female brains • Shape • Functioning • These differences may develop after birth rather than prenatally • “Embodiment” • Environment HormonesOrgansBeing
Variability Within Gender Is Larger Than Mean Difference Between Genders.