Gender Role And Parenthood
According to Loretta Sonnabend children are exposed to different environments that shape their character. As such the character of a person is not entirely dependent on the parental responsibilities rather from a multiplicity of factors since even in the presence of both parents, the burden of raising the children has been left predominantly as a role of the mothers. The character is therefore a reflection of the social attitudes developed over time and not whether a child has been raised by a single or both parents. The defining factor is therefore the way of thinking that the society has adopted. With regard to the forgoing therefore, children raised in single parent environment do not grow differently from those raised by both parents with respect to gender roles which are usually societal rather than parental (Greenberg, 2011, 297).
Gender role and Stereotypes
The behavior of each gender as has been ably put in the post, depend on the attitude of the society in which a child is raised. There exists certain believes societies of how a boy or a girl should conduct him/herself. As such there are certain roles that are generally accepted in the society since time immemorial. These include believes that boys are better than girls in certain tasks and vice versa. The societal perceptions though they may be debatable, they are also of great help in terms of influencing young and fellow teenagers. I would influence my children and fellow teenagers through making them understand their gender strengths and weaknesses. This would in turn allow the each gender to respect the other taking into consideration that they are neither superior nor inferior to other gender (Greenberg, 2011, 295).
References
Greenberg, S. , Bruess, E. & Conklin, C., (2011). Exploring the dimensions of human sexuality:
Massachusetts: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.