We have seen that social learning is an important influence on the formation of gender identity early in life, so that even by the age of 2 or 3 years, most children have no doubt about whether they are boys or girls. This influence continues throughout our lives, because we are influenced by gender roles—that is, behaviors that are considered appropriate and normal for men and women in a society.
The ascribing of gender roles leads naturally to certain assumptions about how people will behave. For example, men in North American society have traditionally been expected to be independent and aggressive, whereas women were supposed to be
SPOTLIGHT ON
RESEARCH
chapter 5
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The Religious Right Embraces Traditional Gender Roles |
traditional masculine norms of aggression and violence, power over women, and selfreliance (Backus & Mahalik, 2011).
The religious right in America has consistently espoused traditional gender roles as described in the box, "The Religious Right Embraces Traditional Gender Roles."
In recent years there has been a trend away from strict adherence to gender-typed behavior, especially among younger people (Ben-David & Schneider, 2005; Lindberg et al., 2008). Research suggests that women are less entrenched than men in rigid gender-role stereotypes and are more inclined to embrace positions of equality with men (Ben-David & Schneider, 2005). In spite of these positive changes in American culture, stereotypical gender roles still pervade our society. Indeed, many individuals are comfortable fulfilling a traditional masculine or feminine role, and we do not wish to demean or question the validity of their lifestyles. Rather, we are concerned with finding out why gender roles are so prevalent in society. We turn to this question next.