Sex Roles

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Menstuff® has compiled the following information on Sex Roles. This is a label for which there would be no concept if there were not sexism. Sex role refers to proper or customary behavior from a person because of their assigned part in a play whose script was written by others. "Let's talk straight facts. Boys have pee-pee tails; girls have woo-woos. When they grow up, the boys want to stick their pee-pee tails in the girls' woo-woos and the girls let them. There is nothing else in this life you need to know. Everything that takes place upon the world's stage emanates from this irrefutable fact." - Susan Day, 1984.

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Images of Men & Masculinity in Film & TV - 28:26 minutes
What are the personal pronouns and why do they matter?
Those Claiming Sexism can only be Perpetrated Against Women
That Kind of Sexism is Sexist
Gender Sameness

Women Stare Too - "Is it a righty or lefty?

Gender Difference

• Social Development
• Moral Development
• Intellectual Development

Social masculinity vs. natural masculinity

Reclaiming Natural Masculinity
Male gender roles

• What are some of the important male gender roles?
• Are these gender roles natural?
• Do these roles harm men?
• The race for social manhood

Male sexual roles

• What are the male sexual roles?
• The harm of sexual roles
• Breaking men from men

How are these roles enforced on men?

• Role of the media
• Peer pressure
• How to tackle peer pressure

Mechanism of male oppression

• Rewards offered by society
• Punishments given by society
• Shaming men: A major instrument of oppression
• Heterosexualisation of society

Other traditional mechanisms of oppression:

• Proving one's masculinity
• The concept of honour
• Enforcing silence on male issues
• Self-control
• The myth of sex power
• Invisible power of women

Understanding Natural Masculinity

• What is masculine behaviour and what is feminine behaviour?
• Sexual interest in women
• Sexual interest in men
• What is true masculinity?
• Who is a real namard?

Men and Femininity

• Embracing femininity
• The two-spirited people
• The Third Sex in detail
• Respecting women's rights

Reclaiming and Celebrating Natural Masculinity

• Reclaiming one's emotions
• Accepting and sharing one's weaknesses and vulnerabilities
• Creating a safe environment
• Developing inner strength
• Conquering one's ego
• Giving up fake power
• Bonding with other boys/men
• Healing inner pain and hurt
• Developing one's positive masculine qualities
• Developing one's physical masculinity
• Bonding with nature
• Changing the rules, changing society

Related Issues: A Real Man, Manliness, If Women Ran the World, Sexism
Books: Sexism, Sex Roles

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Those Claiming Sexism can only be Perpetrated Against Women

Mary Anne Warren, 1980: Behavior, policy, language, or other action of men or women which expresses the institutionalized, systematic, comprehensive, or consistent view that women are inferior. The term probably was an analogy with the term racism. Both terms reflect a rising social awareness of the oppression suffered in our culture by those who are not white males. Sexism and racism discriminate and define individuals as inferior, limits their opinions, and subjects them to exploitation and demeaning treatment, on the basis of their membership in some general class.(Here are how some define sexism:

Linda Phelps, 1975: A social relationship in which males have authority over females.

Susan Sands, 1970: Is an unconscious philosophy based on the premise that men must have first choice in everything.

Dale Spender, 1982: Is no bias which can be eliminated but (is) the foundation stone of learning and education in our male controlled society.

Liz Stanley and Sue Wise, 1983: Is the name of the problem addressed by feminism.

Sonia Johnson, 1984: The polite term for the war on women. It is the model for racism, classism, ageism.

That Kind of Sexism is Sexist

While Sexism has often been defined as only affecting women, that, in itself, is sexist. A few more liberal definitions that leave open the possibility that sexism may also impact men directly when used to separate.

Sara Delamont, 1980: Is stereotyping people by sex; just as racism is stereotyping people by race.

Nelle Morton: A way of ordering life by gender "that robs people of their humanness and aborts the Spirit moving in the communities of which we are a part."

Angela Davis, 1982: Can never be seen in isolation. It has to be placed in the context of its interconnections with racism, and especially with class exploitation. (Ed. Homophobia might be a good one to add.)

Gender Sameness

We strongly endorse Cathy Young's statement (made as a chapter title) in Ceasefire!: "Men Are from Earth, Women Are from Earth." The similarities between the genders far out weigh any differences. Specifically, loving your children and nurturing are not simply female traits, but human. That men do not express themselves the same way as women should never be taken as lack of feeling, commitment, or love.

This page cites scientific studies from among the vast body of research on fatherhood.. One of America's leading researchers who has a website is Richard Warshak, Ph.D., which provides numerous supporting papers. His book, The Custody Revolution (New York: Poseidon Press, 1992) and Ross Parke's Throwaway Dads (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1999; Prof. Parke also a leading researcher into fatherhood) contributed greatly to the construction of this page.

• Infants form close attachments to their fathers (bonding) as readily and deeply as, and at the same time as, their mothers. Role of the Father, Michael Lamb, pp 1 - 63; Michael Lamb, "Father-Infant and Mother-Infant Interaction in the First Year of Life," Child Development, vol. 48 (1977), PP 167 - 181.
• Fathers are as excited as mothers over their newborns, and bond to them at the same time and pace. Fathers hold and rock more than mothers, and equal mothers in talking, kissing and imitating. Greenberg & Morris, "Engrossment: The Newborn's Impact upon the Father," American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, vol 44 (1974), p 526; Parke & O'Leary, "Father-Mother-Infant Interaction in the Newborn Period," The Developing Individual in a Changing World, vol 2, Riegal & Meacham, eds. (The Hague: Mounton, 1976), pp 653 - 663.
• Fathers are as sensitive as mothers to their baby's signals, and as competent as caregivers. Ross Parke and Douglas Sawin, "The Father's Role in Infancy: A Re-Evaluation," Family Coordinator, vol 25 (1976), pp 365 - 371
• Even male college students are as sensitive as women to infant crying patterns. Frodi, Lamb, Leavitt, Donovan, Neff, & Sherry, "Fathers' and Mothers' Responses to the Faces and Cries of Normal and Premature Infants," Developmental Psychology, vol. 13 (1978), pp 490-498. See also Ross Parke's book, Fathers
• "We know for certain that men can be competent, capable, creative caretakers of newborns. This is all the more remarkable given that most men are typically raised with an understanding that they are destined through some natural law to be ineffective nurturers. . . . The research on the subject, some of it now decades old, says this assumption is just not so. And it says it over and over again, in data from many different discipliners." Pruett, Nurturing Father, p. 30.
• Men's hormone levels change on the birth of their children. Gubenick, Worthman, & Stallings, "Hormonal Correlates of Fatherhood in Men: A Preliminary Study," unpublished paper, Emory University, 1994. Cited in Throwaway Dads, Ross Parke & Armin Brott, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1999.

Gender Difference

But denying the however subtle differences between the genders is equal folly. Each gender has things about which to take pride, and in which the other should equally rejoice. Fathers have been found to be particularly important in developing social skills, independence, a strong moral sense, and intellectual skills:

Social Development

• ". . . high paternal expectations derived from a context of a warm father-daughter relationship are conductive to the development of autonomy, independence, achievement, and creativity among females." Biller & Shalter, Father Loss, p. 351.
• Among the women who credit their fathers with inspiring their achievements: anthropologist Margaret Mead, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, psychoanalyst Anna Freud, Congressman Shirley Chisholm, opera star Beverly Sills, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
• "In general, girls who have a warm relationship with their father and feel accepted by them are more likely to feel comfortable and confident when relating to the opposite sex. . . . During the teen years and later, a girl who has not had a rewarding relationship with her father is apt to feel insecure around males. She may feel unattractive as a woman, doubt that any man could love her for herself, and distrust men in general." Richard Warshack, The Custody Revolution, p. 44 - 45.
• Even at five months, the boys who have more contact with their father are more sociable with a stranger. Milton Kotelchuck, "The Infant's Relationship to the Father: Experimental Evidence," Lamb, ed., Role of the Father, pp. 329 - 344.
• "When fathers are away for long periods of time, as in the case of sailors at sea, their boys are less popular with classmates and do not enjoy friendships as much as do boys who have more contact with their fathers." Richard Warshack, The Custody Revolution, p. 41.
• Fathers do more physical play. When two-and-a-half-year-olds want to play, more than two thirds of the time they will choose their father over their mother. Clarke-Stewart, "And Daddy Makes Three: The Father's Impact on Mother and Young Child," Child Development Vol. 49 (1978), pp. 466 - 478.
• A lot of physical father play corresponds to better, deeper friendships with peers among children. Children learn self control, how to manage and express their emotions and recognize others' cues. MacDonald & Parke, "Bridging the Gap: Parent-Child Play Interaction and Peer Interactive Competence," Child Development vol 55 (1985), pp1265 - 1277; Youngblade & Belsky, "Parent-Child Antecedent of 5-Year-Olds' Close Friendships: A Longitudinal Analysis," Developmental Psychology Vol. 28 (1992), pp. 700 - 713; Snarey, How Fathers Care for the Next Generation (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press), pp. 35 - 36; Gottman, The Heart of Parenting (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997), p. 171.
• Girls whose fathers play with them a lot tend to be more popular with peers and more assertive in their interpersonal relationships throughout their lives. Parke et al, "Family-Peer Systems: In Search of the Linkages," Kreppner & Lerner, eds,. Family Systems and Life Span Development (Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, 1989), pp. 65 - 92. As cited in Parke & Brott Throwaway Dads (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1999).
• Men and women who have had warm paternal relationships have better, longer marriages and engage in more recreation. Franz, McClelland, & Weinberger, "Childhood Antecedents of Conventional Social Accomplishments in Midlife Adults: A 36-Year Prospective Study," Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Vol. 60 (1991), pp. 586 - 595.

Moral Development

• The best predictor of empathy in adult men and women is the amount of time spent with their father while growing up. Koestner, Franz, & Weinberger, "The Family Origins of Empathic Concern: A 26-year Longitudinal Study," Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 58 (1990), pp. 709 - 717.
• For boys, there is a very strong positive co-relation between moral development (sense of right and wrong) and a positive father relationship comprised of validating feelings and encouragement. Santrock, "Father Absence, Perceived Maternal Behaviour, and Moral Development in Boys," Child Development, Vol. 43 (1975), pp. 455 - 469; Hoffman, "Father Absence and Conscience Development," Developmental Psychology, vol. 4 (1971), pp. 400 - 404; Hoffman, "Identification and Conscience Development," Child Development, Vol. 42 (1971), pp. 1071 - 1082.
• Boys and girls with an involved father accept responsibility for their own behaviour, and behave more responsibly. They are less likely to blame others or "bad luck," and have a greater sense of their own potency. Biller, Paternal Deprivation: Family, School, Sexuality and Society (Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1974); Biller & Solomon, Child Maltreatment and Paternal Deprivation: A Manifesto for Research, Treatment and Prevention (Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1986).

Intellectual Development

• Children whose fathers spend the most time with them consistently score higher on SAT, verbal skills, and problem-solving tests, and perform above their grade level in school. Blanchard & Biller, "Father Availability and Academic Performance Among Third-Grade Boys," Developmental Psychology, Vol. 4 (1971), pp. 301 - 305; Radin, "The Influence of Fathers upon Sons and Daughters and Implications for School Social Work," Social Work in Education Vol. 8 (1986), pp. 77 - 92; Radin, "Primary Caregiving Fathers in Intact Families," Gottfried & Gottfried eds., Redefining Family (New York: Plenum Press, 1994), pp. 11 - 54.
• Baby boys who have frequent father contact have more precocious mental skills and curiosity than those with less contact. Pederse, Rubinstein, & Yarrow, "Infant Development in Father-absent Families," Journal of Genetic Psychology, Vol. 135 (1979), pp. 51 - 61.
• Girls' intellectual development is enhanced if their father provides much verbal stimulation and responds to her overtures for social contact. Clarke-Stewart, "And Daddy Makes Three. The Father's Impact on Mother and Young Child." Child Development, Vol. 49 (1978), pp. 466 - 478.
• A strong father-child relationship, even in infancy, facilitates intellectual competence. Biller & Salter, "Father Loss, Cognitive and Personality Functioning," The Problem of Loss in Mourning: Psychoanalytic Perspectives, Dietrich & Shabad, eds. (Madison, CT: International Universities Press, 1989), p. 347.

Source: www.harbpress.com/fm_wheresdaddy/FatherMOREness.htm

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The dogma of women's complete historical subjection to men must be rated as one of the most fantastic myths ever created by the human mind. - Mary Ritter Beard

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