Gender differences - Research Paper Example

Gender Differences In a number of societies around the world as soon as a baby is born, his or her roles are defined on the basis of the gender he or she belongs to. These roles and the rigidity with which they are followed depends on how traditional the society is. Gender roles aren't an uncommon feature and most of us accept them knowingly or sometimes unknowingly. 'This is how a man does it or this is what a women should do' aren't comments we are unfamiliar with . The society and culture does subconsciously label these roles which in turn defines our behaviour .

Culture defines how we behave The behavioural pattern of every individual is to a lot of extend dependent of the surroundings he or she grows up in. A child who grows up in a family filled with domestic violence shows more aggression in the way he deals with individuals than a child who has grown up in a harmonious environment. Girls are supposed to be gentle and boys are supposed to be ruff and tough .This are the thoughts which are ingrained into the little minds of children since the time they start understanding things.

Never does an advertisement of Barbie feature a boys playing with the dolls and never does a GIO commercial feature girls playing with the warrior dolls . A couple breakup because the male ego couldn't handle the fact that the wife was earning more than him . His ego was hurt because all his life it was drilled into him that he was the man of the house and so how could he now let his wife be the head. All these are example we come across in our everyday lives which indicate that its not only the biological aspect which governs an individual's behaviour but also the laws which a society lays down .

Resistance in accepting role reversals A number of people especially the male community though know, may not agree with this prospective of what governs their actions within a society .One of the main reasons could be that they themselves are bound by such social laws and don't want to show their helplessness. Another very evident example of gender defined role is the resistance of role reversal between a male and a female . From the cave man's time the male is the head of the family and the bread winner too and the female is supposed to look after the children and home .

The same is the scenario today . In majority of the cases where there is one member working , it is the male member . This could be due to the lower status that a female get in a society as compared to the male which makes a male feel degraded incase asked to perform the role of the opposite sex. Traditions like the "Parda system" in the Hindu and Muslim society very clear indicate the point that the female counterpart is of a lower status. Is the strongest opposition from men or women The male feels threatened incase he finds a female at par with him.

He fear of losing authority and power which he has had over the centuries due to social norms makes him feel vulnerable . He would oppose and try to remove any circumstance or situation which in anyway shows his female counter part as superior to him. Conclusion Thus we could conclude that our surroundings and culture play a great role in developing our behavioural patter and that just being born a male or female does not necessarily mean that an individual would behave like on. References Haggstrom Angie.

Does biology or society have a stronger influence on the development of our gender identity. Debate posted on http://www.helium.com/debates/86859-does-biology-or-society-have-a-stronger-influence-on-the-development-gender