How Do We Learn Gender Roles?

You have probably heard the argument that behavioral differences between men and women are biologically determined, at least to some degree. Men cannot bear or nurse children. Likewise, biological differences in hormones, muscle mass, and brain struc­ture and function can influence some aspects of behavior. However, most theorists explain gender roles as largely a product of socialization—that is, the process by which individuals learn, and adopt, society’s expectations for behavior. In the following Sexu­ality and Diversity discussion, we see how cultural and ethnic groups within a society have varying expectations of men’s and women’s behavior.