SOC403 Official Handouts

Lecture 01 · GENDER STUDIES: AN INTRODUCTION · Topic: 01-04 · Topic 01: Gender Studies: an introduction

It is a discipline which discusses the many ways in which the gender of people affects / may affect their status in society; how people’s health, education, economy, social treatment, and access to resources may vary with their gender.

Sex versus Gender

Sex refers to the biological characteristics distinguishing male and female. Distinction made in terms of chromosomes, anatomy, hormones, reproductive systems, and other physiological components. It refers to the social, cultural, and psychological traits associated with men and women; males and females. Sex is a fixed category whereas gender is fluid. Sex is ascribed, gender is achieved, taught, and learnt. Social context is important. Sex means being male or female. Gender means being masculine or feminine.

Topic 02: Gender Studies: Nature and Scope

Gender Studies is a social science with a wide scope. It emerged as a separate discipline out of women’s struggle across the globe. Concern for women’s rights and the consequent struggle paved way for the development of this discipline. In the early 20th century, women were struggling for their rights. Feminist movement was behind this struggle. Struggle for political rights, suffrage, was a distinct feature. Women were successful in this struggle. There had been a growing consciousness that women and men had been treated differently. After attaining right to political participation there was a realization that women could attain equality with men in all spheres of life which in turn would change their status in the society. Feminist movement became intense over decades.

In the 1960s, when the second wave of Feminist Movement was intense, there was a strong realization that the traditional curriculum needed to be revisited and changed. Women perspective was to be added. There had been a demand for adding Women Studies to the curriculum. Subsequently, programs in Women Studies were introduced. Mary Ritter Beard is said to have developed perhaps the first such course In 1934. The course "A Changing Political Economy as it Affects Women” was designed by her. She developed a 54-page syllabus for this purpose. The course could not be formally used for teaching. The first formal program in Women Studies in the US was approved in 1970 by San Diego State University. The first milestones were followed by many other universities by introducing programs and departments of Women Studies across the globe. In Pakistan, the first department of Women Studies was established in 1989 in Karachi by the Ministry of Women Development. Gender Studies has a wide scope and it covers a broader horizon of topics of interest. It discusses issues, from a gender perspective, involving Psychology, Sociology, Health, Religion, Politics, Art and Literature, Environment, Law, Economic Development, Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and much more. A student having studied Gender Studies can go into research, teaching, GOs or NGOs.

Topic 03: The international and Pakistani perspective

For many years the programs in Women Studies focused on different aspects of women’s life alone. Courses like Psychology of Women, Women’s Health, Women’s Political Participation, Women and Religious Perspective, Women in Art and Literature and similar courses were taught. Women Studies or Feminist Studies was the in thing. Men’s Studies, Men and Masculinity, Men’s Movement were generally not considered for teaching. With the growing influence of the third wave Feminism changes in perception were taking place.

Women Studies to Gender Studies

In the 1980s there was an awareness and realization that ‘Gender’ rather than ‘Women’ needed to be focused on. The agenda of Gender Equality can not be attained unless all the gender categories are kept in view. There was a growing use of terms like ‘Gender and Development’ by international agencies like the UN. Gradually, more departments and programs in Gender Studies and Gender and Development Studies began to be established. However, programs in Women Studies are still present.

Topic 04: Multidisciplinary nature of Gender Studies

Gender Studies has a multi-disciplinary approach. Gender specialists working in gender related spheres are not necessarily degree holders in Gender Studies alone. Anthropologists, Psychologists, Sociologists, Lawyers and other experts with a back ground of gender research are also contributing. We may be carrying out research on social phenomena, psychological issues, legal matters, health problems, and/or cultural practices from a gender perspective. Research on art, literature, movies, theater, electronic media can be done using a gender lens. Gender Studies is often offered as a foundation course in many programs. Similarly, in a program in Gender Studies the commonly taught courses include Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology, Politics, Media, and Law.

Significance of Gender Studies for students of Sociology

Sociology is one of the disciplines most closely related with Gender Studies. Sociology studies social institutions. Social institutions affect socialization and socialization is related with learning of gender roles and development of gender identities. Sociology equips us with an understanding, know how, and skill to identify gender issues, to examine them, and to analyze them.

Lecture 02 · SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE ON GENDER · Topic: 05-07 · Topic 05: Sociological perspective on gender

Theoretical perspectives refer to “general ways of understanding social reality that guide the research process and provide a means for interpreting the data” (Lindsey, 2011).

Sociological perspectives may operate at two levels of analysis:

Macro-sociological

Focus on information or data on large scale social phenomena. Large scale social phenomena: health, education, industry, politics, economy etc.

Micro-sociological

Focus on information gathered from small groups and details of gender related interaction between individuals or small group members. Small groups and details of interaction: family, spouses, close friends and their interaction.

Topic 06: Basic Sociological Concepts

All societies are structured around relatively stable patterns that establish how social interaction will be carried out. One of the most important social structures that organizes social interaction is status—a category or position a person occupies that is a significant determinant of how she or he will be defined and treated. We acquire statuses by achievement, through our own efforts, or by ascription, being born into them or attaining them involuntarily at some other point in the life cycle. We occupy a number of statuses simultaneously, referred to as a status set, such as mother, daughter, attorney, patient, employee, and passenger. Compared to achieved statuses occurring later in life, ascribed statuses immediately impact virtually every aspect of our lives. The most important ascribed statuses are gender, race, and social class. Because a status is simply a position within a social system, it should not be confused with rank or prestige. There are high-prestige statuses as well as low-prestige statuses. In the United States, for example, a physician occupies a status ranked higher in prestige than a secretary. All societies categorize members by status and then rank these statuses in some fashion, thereby creating a system of social stratification. People whose status sets are comprised of low-ranked ascribed statuses more than high-ranked achieved statuses are near the bottom of the social stratification system and are vulnerable to social stigma, prejudice, and discrimination. To date, there is no known society in which the status of female is consistently ranked higher than that of male.

A role is the expected behavior associated with a status. Roles are performed according to social norms, shared rules that guide people’s behavior in specific situations. Social norms determine the privileges and responsibilities a status possesses. Females and males, mothers and fathers, and daughters and sons are all statuses with different normative role requirements attached to them. The status of mother calls for expected roles involving love, nurturing, self-