Male Dominance
A system that grants greater power, value, authority, and access to resources to men. Most often, in systems of male dominance, men’s authority is reinforced throughout society and it’s social, political, religious, cultural, and economic institutions. Male dominance is sometimes reffered to as patriarchy, although this term can sometimes be controversial.
Interplanetary Theory
A theory of gender difference referring to the idea that men are from mars and women are from venus. That men and women are opposites who exhibit complete and universal gender differences
Biological Determinism
the view that the behavior and character of an organism, group, or system are determined by biological factors. Most careful scientists shun true determinism, but determinist tendencies can be found both among scientists and in popular culture
Differential Socialization
Associated with the ‘nurture’ side of the nature nurture debate, this perspective asserts that men and women are different because they are socialized differently from birth, thus acquiring ‘masculine’ or ‘feminine’ traits, behaviours, and attitudes
Sex Differences
chromosomal, anatomical, and hormonal differences between females and males; to be considered sex differences, these distinctions must be biologically rather than culturally derived
Sex
refers to the biological apparatus
Gender
meanings that are attached to the biological apparatus in a culture
Social Constructionism Approach
the theoretical organization that sees the expression and organization of gender not as the outcome of biology, but as the result of historical and cultural change, the socialization of individuals, and the continuous interplay between gendered individuals and gendered institutions. Social constructionists view human nature as much more malleable and variable than do biological determinists.
Racialized People
Seen in terms of and subjected to the application of meaning on the basis of race. Racialization as a concept, recognizes that the attribution of ‘race’ and the consequences of that attribution are a process rather than the outcome of an immutable and obvious characteristic; and that race is a cultural category and idea rather than a biological one. Racialization also recognizes that in terms of experience and identity, one may be made aware of ones race in certain contexts or locations but not in others
Privelege
The advantages that come from being a member of a dominant group (based on gender, race, class, ability, or sexuality), the principal of which may be the presumption of normalcy and universality
The Invisibility of Privilege
the idea that those who are dominant in a society may not be aware of their dominance or special status, but can see themselves as ‘universal’ human beings or citizens. Because of the invisibility of privilege, people may not be aware of the extent of discrimination and may become angry when confronted with evidence of assertions of racism or sexism.
Hegemonic
Something that is upheld as the model; hegemonic ideals may be contested, but cannot be ignored because of their cultural power and ubiquity
Hegemonic Masculinity
a theory developed in the 1980’s, most notably by R. W. Connell, to explain male gender ideology. There may be many versions of masculinity operating in a culture, but only one is ‘culturally honoured’ or hegemonic, and other masculinities are organized under it in a hierarchal fashion. This theory emphasizes competition among men for power and dominance within systems of gender inequality or patriarchy.
Emphasized femininity.
R. W. Connell’s model of female gender ideology, which asserts that femininity is displayed as compliance with gender inequality and is ‘oriented to accommodating the interests and desires of men’
Deceptive Distinctions
Differences between men and women that appear to be gender differences, but may be the result of different positions within society
Mean differences
differences in the average scores of men and women on standardized tests, which may be taken as representative of absolute differences between the sexes
Gendered Society
Any society in which social institutions reproduce and reinforce dominant definitions of gender and ‘discipline’ those who deviate from these definitions
Institutional Gender Neutrality
The idea that while people have gender, institutions are gender neutral. Can obscure the importance of gender within them.
Social Darwinism
only thinly associated with the theories and work of charles darwin, this philosophy applies the theory of natural selection to differences, competition, and inequality among races, nations, families, and between men and women.
Eugenics
The theory that natural selection can be assisted through conscious efforts to improve human populations, either by preventing the production of the ‘unfit’ or by increasing the health and fitness of reproductive populations
Sociobiology
The study of the biological basis of behavior in all organisms, including human beings.
Parental Investment
In evolutionary theory, the investment of time, energy, etc. made by a parenting organism that might otherwise be directed toward the fitness of the organism itself. The often heavier investment by female organisms in parenting is thought to lead to greater mating selectivity.
Evolutionary Psychology
the field of study that studies and explains human psychology and mind as the result of evolutionary adaptation. Like sociobiology, evolutionary psychology uses studies of animal behavior to understand human psychology
Estrus
In most female mammals, the reproductive cycle that produces periods of sexual receptivity that coincide with ovulation; generally these periods of estrus are accompanied by external signals (visual, olfactory)