For many years, gender and sex have been mistakenly substituted due to a common perception that they relate to one thing, something which is not true. Gender and sex are very distinct and cannot be used interchangeably to mean one thing. Sex is basically the biological makeup of living things and groups them as either male or female. On the other hand, gender refers to socially contracted behaviors. These behaviors can emanate from parental influence, education, personal experience as well as childhood upbringing which play a crucial role in gender classification.
In their work to explore the narrative of gender, Carlson and Sinclair simply referred to gender as psychological and sociological adaptation of human beings (112). It is possible to be a male in the society, but end up being classified as a female based on one’s behavior and the roles played in the society. This implies that there are gender sensitive roles and either sex is expected to pursue their roles lest they land into gender identity crises which Schneider explored in his theory of gender identity threat (39). He argues that gender identity threat results when an individual feels their social status is questioned by other members of the society based on their behavior and roles. This is common especially when one changes environment and finds a society which slightly does things differently from their culture.
Today, every society is fighting for gender equality as globalization and integration have brought diversified cultures together, making people see the disparity in the treatment of both males and females in the society. Societies as well as governments have embark on promoting gender equality from every action they undertake from the government appointments, tenders, education and games among other initiatives that will bring fairness to each and every member of the society without being sidelined based on their sexual orientation and gender stereotyping roles and behaviors. However, it is important to note that before globalization, every member of the society were comfortable about their position and roles assigned. The present gap witnessed has been brought by cultural differences which has made other society to abandon their old ways and accepted those championed by the majority as the best culture in the 21st century. The modern society accord both males and females equal opportunity both in education, leadership, business, family development and in the job market. Males and females have been freed from the yoke of gender sensitive roles and are free to do what they like most regardless of the attached behavior.
Works Cited
Carlsson, Rickard; Sinclair, Samantha. “What I will be when I grow up? The impact of
gender identity threat on adolescents’ occupational preferences”. Journal of Adolescence 36. (2013): 465-474. Print.
Schneider, David J. The Psychology of Stereotyping. New York: Guilford, 2005. Print.
