Japanese views on Gender - Essay Example

The post-war educational reforms in 1949 had opened all forms of higher education to women but the ‘gender-track’ in Japan continues (Amano, 1997). Higher education in Japan serves only two functions – general education and professional education and there is significant difference in the higher education of men and women. Women were given education enough for them to fulfill their assigned roles as women, which is why their education was limited to home sciences and humanities. Women are still confined to Junior colleges or women’s colleges or to some particular fields of specialization. The gender bias in education is related to their roles in the society. Women’s choices of higher education are influenced by cultural economic factors long before graduation from high school. Women’s employment opportunities are also affected by the restrictive attitude of the employers. Women however became conscious and entered the field of high education and started fighting for their rights as equals. With changes in education, legislation and work force, women’s attitudes and values changed (Stedham & Yamamura, 2004). This affected women’s self-concepts and perception of abilities. According to Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, Japan is a collectivist society, an extremely masculine country. Inequality and gender discrimination in Japanese society remains pervasive due to persisting assumptions about the sexual division of labour. Women have made progress in the education the business world but obstacles towards equality persist. While women’s consciousness has been stirred and they have also entered the field of politics, it is argued that gender issues should not be seen as a simple issue of improving the status of women (Takao, 2006). Women are becoming engaged in politics and standing for election. They have also been forming associations to act together on issues such as day-care, maternity leave, and sexual harassment policies but they encounter political constraints when it comes to decision making. Women are still not allowed to participate on the basis of their individual character but are constrained by socially and culturally formed distinctions. Sexual harassment is rampant at work places for women and this is what prompted the authorities to impose the Equal Employment Opportunities Law in which the employers are under a legal obligation to prevent sexual harassment. However, even though gender equality is stated in the Japanese Constitution, the social practices do not conform to such standards. Women became conscious that gender equality could be promoted by changing the mindset of the Japanese women first. While women have equal voting rights, their share of seats for local assemblies is still low. The Japanese women are equally willing as men to voice their opinions on the political processes but they have constraints. Independent-women representative in local assemblies however outnumber men. In the urban areas there have been significant changes at the local level but numerical increases of women in political institutions is not sufficient. Economic inequality continues due to gender-based differences in the society. Equal participation of women in public life is still to be achieved. While female employment has expanded, women managers in Japan are still rare (Yuasa, 2005). There is a significant gender wage gap as the women in top positions, as legislators, senior officials or managers comprise only 9 percent of the work force. Female workers earned only 66.5 percent of the male worker earnings in 2002. The assessment at work place constitutes of merit, performance and personality and this has serious consequences for female workers. Merit is assessed by the employee’s willingness to sacrifice their life for the company and since women give importance to their home and family, they do not receive the due credit. The entire process is an assessment of personal characteristics rather than job performance meant to undermine women and demonstrates a lack of objectivity. Promotions too are based on seniority where women seldom score. Investment in human capital also focuses on men rather than equally in all. Training is usually based on length of service and loyalty and because women take breaks for child-rearing they lose out on such benefits and opportunities. All of these ultimately impact their work records and performance. Japan is still a man’s society where the jobs for women are geared only to last till they are thirty-five (Pawasarat, 2002). This decision too is taken by the men. The glass-ceiling effect is still in place in Japan where women have been left behind in the use and knowledge of technology. The digital gender divide in Japan is prominent and women are seldom found in IT education or jobs. The Japanese women are not even aware that they can take part in IT. In the use of internet, the Japanese women make up a modest 38% against 50% in the US. Feminism and gay rights also exclude women from practices. Homosexuality in Japan has been prevalent for decades and came to the forefront in the 1960s. The difficulties faced by the lesbians and the gays are equal and there is no discrimination against women partners of the same sex against men same-sex partners. Japan does criminalize same sex sexual acts but at the same time, the Japanese law does not guarantee equality on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity (Global Rights, 2008). The law does not protect the same-sex couples against discrimination and abuses. Japan does not accept LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) and in fact are labeled as suffering from “gender identity disorder” (GID). Lesbian feminism is practically non-existent in Japan although there are a few feminist groups with lesbian members (All Academic, 2008). Overall there is no discrimination in Japanese law against women as far as same-sex partners are concerned. It can thus been seen that the society in Japan is still predominantly male dominated. Women have become conscious of their rights, and while they can be found in higher education, discrimination in wages, promotions and assessments continue at work place. They have become politically conscious but mostly they are at the local level. Gender discrimination can be found in every field – education, politics, and work place – except in the field of homosexuality – where the same rules and prohibitions are applicable. References All Acamedic, 2008, Queer Diasporic (Non) Identity: Japanese Lesbians Return Home, retrieved online July 15, 2009 from http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/1/0/9/2/9/pages109295/p109295-7.php Amano, S 1997, Women in Higher Education, Higher Education, vol. 34, pp. 215-235 Global Rights, 2008, The Violations of the Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Persons in JAPAN, retrieved online July 15, 2009 from http://www.globalrights.org/site/DocServer/Shadow_Report_Japan.pdf?docID=10043 Pawasarat, C 2002, Bridging the Digital Gender Divide, J@pan Inc, May 2002, Issue 31, p10, 3p (Business Source Premier). Stedham, YE & Yamamura, JH 2004, Measuring national culture: does gender matter?, Women in Management Review, vol. 19, no. 5, pp. 233-243 Takao, Y 2006,Japanese women in grassroots politics: building a gender-equal society from the bottom up, The Pacific Review, Vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 147–172 Yuasa, M 2005, Japanese Women in Management: Getting Closer to ‘Realities’ in Japan, Asia Pacific Business Review, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 195-211 Read More