The factors that influence gender roles gender identity and gender stereotypes

Hire Writer The hormone MIH controls the Mullarian system, which influences the development of the female internal genitalia; Androgens, particularly Testosterone, control the Wolffian system which influences the development of male internal genitalia Corning, The external genitalia develop from a common structure that consists of labial-scrotal swelling, the urogenital fold, the urogenital groove and the glans. Unless instructed by the relevant process to become a male, these structures become the external and internal labia, the bottom two thirds of the vagina and the clitoris.

All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files. Abstract Background Early adolescence ages 10—14 is a period of increased expectations for boys and girls to adhere to socially constructed and often stereotypical norms that perpetuate gender inequalities.

Objectives To explore factors that shape gender attitudes in early adolescence across different cultural settings globally. Methods A mixed-methods systematic review was conducted of the peer-reviewed literature in 12 databases from — Four reviewers screened the titles and abstracts of articles and reviewed full text articles in duplicate.

Data extraction and quality assessments were conducted using standardized templates by study design. Results Eighty-two studies 46 quantitative, 31 qualitative, 5 mixed-methods spanning 29 countries were included.

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Ninety percent of studies were from North America or Western Europe. The role of community factors e. Conclusions The findings from this review suggest that young adolescents in different cultural settings commonly endorse norms that perpetuate gender inequalities, and that parents and peers are especially central in shaping such attitudes.

Programs to promote equitable gender attitudes thus need to move beyond a focus on individuals to target their interpersonal relationships and wider social environments.

Such programs need to start early and be tailored to the unique needs of sub-populations of boys and girls. Longitudinal studies, particularly from low-and middle-income countries, are needed to better understand how gender attitudes unfold in adolescence and to identify the key points for intervention.

Introduction Adolescence 10—19 years is a critical period of rapid physical and psychosocial changes, exposing adolescents to sexual and reproductive health risks and opportunities [ 1 — 3 ].

It is also during adolescence that sex-differential mortality and morbidity patterns begin to emerge [ 14 ]. Girls are also more likely than boys to be married as children [ 5 ] and to experience forced sexual initiation [ 6 ]. In many societies, boys also engage in more health harming behaviors than girls such as early and heavy smoking, alcohol and illicit drug use [ 5 ] and are more likely than girls to engage in early and unprotected sexual behaviors [ 8 ].

While there are many factors that explain sex differentials in mortality and morbidity, a key determinant is gender inequality.

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Gender inequalities manifest in different ways, such as unequal access to resources, power, education and discriminatory socio-cultural practices [ 9 ]. While gender inequalities affect the lives of both boys and girls, generally they disproportionately disadvantage girls.

At the root of many gender inequalities are gender norms that prescribe different status, power and opportunities to girls and boys according to culturally appropriate versions of masculinities and femininities [ 10 ]. We refer to these as inequitable, unequal or harmful stereotypical gender norms and use the terms interchangeably as defined further below.

These gender norms shape the way adolescents interact, form relationships, and engage in sexual and reproductive practices as well as most all social behaviors.

For example, population-based surveys in low- and middle-income countries LMICs indicate that over half of boys and girls aged 15—19 years justify wife beating under certain conditions [ 5 ].

Studies conducted with young men from LMICs further reflect the complexity of gender attitudes where some might eschew harmful gender discriminatory practices but at the same time endorse unequal gender division of labor in the household or other inequitable gender norms [ 1314 ].

Gender attitudes that endorse norms that perpetuate gender inequality are thought to be harmful to both boys and girls. Among young men, endorsement of stereotypical masculinity norms prescribing male dominance and toughness have been associated with substance use, violence and delinquency [ 15 — 17 ], lower male engagement in caregiving and household chores, unsafe sexual behaviors, multiple sexual partners [ 181920 ], higher fertility aspirations, lower rates of male sexual satisfaction, and perpetration of intimate partner violence [ 21 — 25 ].

Conversely, young women and girls are often under pressure to conform to stereotypical norms of female subordination, thus restricting their voice, opportunities and social and sexual decision-making [ 22 ].

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While gender socialization starts at birth, early adolescence ages 10—14 is a critical point of intensification in personal gender attitudes as puberty reshapes male and female self-perceptions, as well as social expectations from others e.

Even where it is not socially sanctioned, romantic and sexual feelings begin to emerge and gender roles play out as young people begin to negotiate intimate relationships [ 28 ]. Early adolescence is thus seen as a unique opportunity to address gender attitudes before they become more solidified [ 42729 — 31 ].

However, there has yet to be a synthesis of factors that influence gender attitudes during this stage of life. Such knowledge can enable the design and implementation of programs and policies that address harmful stereotypical norms or promote equitable gender norms and in turn improve adolescent sexual and reproductive and other health outcomes.

We applied a mixed-methods approach, guided by two key research questions: What factors appear to be associated with gender attitudes in early adolescence? Quantitative studies How do young adolescents learn about and construct gender attitudes in relation to their social environments?

Qualitative studies We used the Blum et al [ 4 ] conceptual framework for early adolescence to organize, analyze and present the findings.

Defining gender attitudes In the current review gender is viewed as the social and cultural construction of masculine and feminine identities, roles, norms and relationships, rather than an immutable personality trait grounded in biological sex [ 916173334 ].

We thus view children and adolescents as actively involved with defining or challenging the social constructions of masculinity and femininity through interactions with their social and cultural environments.

We refer to gender norms as the widely accepted social rules about roles, traits, behaviors status and power associated with masculinity and femininity in a given culture [ 10 ]. In this review, we focus on personal gender attitudes, which we define as the individual perceptions, beliefs or endorsement of gender norms [ 10 ] e.

It is important to note that not all gender norms and attitudes are harmful. While what is considered as typical or dominant norms about masculinities and femininities vary both within and across time and settings [ 15 — 17 ], in this paper we are particularly interested in the factors related to attitudes that perpetuate unequal power relation between men and women or that stigmatize those who do not ascribe to culturally defined norms e.The role of sex stereotypes and gender roles in the sex differences observed in sport and exercise has been extensively investigated in sport psychology, past studies showing that stereotypes are internalized into the self during the socialization process.

There are ways to challenge these stereotypes to help everyone — no matter their gender or gender identity — feel equal and valued as people. Point it out — Magazines, TV, film, and the Internet are full of negative gender stereotypes. Hormonal Factors Influencing Gender Identity Biological factors play a huge role in shaping children's physical development.

For instance, boys and girls are born with distinctive sexual organs, and become further differentiated when secondary sexual characteristics emerge upon puberty.

Gender roles can influence all kinds of behaviors, and Zimmerman consider gender an individual production that reflects and constructs interactional and institutional gender expectations.

Biological factors Gender stereotypes and roles can also be supported implicitly. It’s common for people to confuse sex, gender, and gender identity.

But they’re actually all different things. Sex is a label — male or female — that you’re assigned by a doctor at birth based on the genitals you’re born with and the chromosomes you have. Gender Identity Introduction This paper will discuss issues dealing with the roles of biological factors, (nature), and environmental influences, (nurture), on sexual differentiation and gender identity.