Category: Free Essays

Today, the urban development is vulnerable to the growing impact of gentrification. At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that the process of gentrification emerges under the impact of multiple factors, including economic and social ones and the process of globalization, which stimulate consistent changes in urban development. At the same time, the process of urban development leads to socioeconomic and demographic changes, provoked by the gentrification. However, possible effects of gentrification are still under-researched and the debate on whether gentrification leads to positive or negative effects persists. Nevertheless, changes in the development of cities are significant and force policy makers either to support or to slow down the process of gentrification. However, any attempt of policy makers to regulate the process of gentrification and, therefore, urban development confronts the problem of the interference of state in the process of local economic development. In such a situation, policy makers should understand clearly whether gentrification has positive or negative effects and whether benefits of gentrification outweigh its disadvantages. In fact, the support of gentrification is essential only on the condition of the positive effect on the urban development but, in actuality, the risk of widening gaps between different social classes, namely between the rich and the poor, may widen that may lead to the exclusion of the poor and their marginalization. Therefore, the process of gentrification needs to be studied in details but policy makers should take into consideration the fact that gentrification has a considerable impact on the social, economic and demographic development of modern urban areas.

THE ESSENCE OF GENTRIFICATION
Definition of gentrification

Gentrification is a relatively new trend, although specialists (De Courcy Hinds, 1987) refer the origin of gentrification to the mid-20th century and the post-World War II period, when considerable changes in communities inhabited by representatives of lower- and working class had started. In this regard, it is possible to refer to the experience of Brooklyn, New York:

On November 22, 1966, a small group of city construction workers arrived at the corner of State and Nevins Street in Brooklyn with orders to raze an abandoned brownstone. Having recently gained possession of the dilapidated four-story building through non-payment of taxes, the city had become concerned that the empty townhouse was a gathering place for homeless men and drug users and decided to demolish it (Osman, 2011, 1).

However, it is only by the late 20th century, the trend to gentrification had become strong and today this is one of the most significant trends in the urban development.

At this point, specialists (McKenzie, 2006) define gentrification as the process of shift of the middle class population in low income and working class communities. As a rule, the native population of low-income and working class communities is steadily replaced by representatives of the upper-class and professionals, who settle in the area, whereas the share of the native population decreases substantially. The wealthier population moves to low-income and working class communities, settles their and starts developing local communities. In such a situation, the native population of these communities has to move to other areas and settle there.

Nevertheless, the process of gentrification is still under-researched and needs further studies because this process is quite complicated and relatively new. This is why researchers attempt to explore the process of gentrification in the context of urban development (Sassen, 1995). In such a way, it is possible to understand its effects on urban development. However, before studying effects of gentrification on urban development, it is necessary to dwell upon basic causes of gentrification. Causes of gentrification can help to understand the essence of this process and its effects in a long-run perspective.

Economic causes of gentrification

On analyzing causes of gentrification, specialists (Brandes Gratz, 1989) point out economic concerns as one of the major causes of gentrification. To put it more precisely, the economic development of large cities contributes to the fast progress and growth of the population along with the growth of needs and requirements of the population concerning residential areas, conveniences and environment. In such a situation, the younger generation of professionals and representatives of the middle class often prefers to move to low-income and working class communities, where they can afford purchasing a permanent lodging at a relatively low price and, thus, start living separately from their parents, owning their own lodging. The availability of lodging and its relatively low price attracts representatives of the middle class, who look for independence and affordable lodging.

In addition, many professionals are driven to low-income and working class communities by their professional concerns. For instance, if professionals work in the city, they feel more comfortable, when they live close to their work that allows them to save travel time as well as money. In such a situation, economic concerns become prior to representatives of the middle class and professionals, mainly young people, who move to low-income and working class communities from traditional areas of their living.

Social causes of gentrification

In actuality, social factors also play an important part in the emergence of gentrification in modern cities that affects consistently their development. In this regard, specialists (Ley, 1995) argue that artists, teachers and cultural administrators are in the avant-garde of gentrification because they seek for new place of residence, where they can settle being free of the dependence on automotive transportation and other issues emerging in the suburban areas, where representatives of the middle class normally live. In fact, young graduates, educators, artists and other representatives of the middle class prefer to settle closer to the city center to get access to basic conveniences, services and important city areas, including hospitals, trade centers and other areas. In such a way, they attempt to maintain the lifestyle they have used to while studying and get wider access to basic services they need at the moment. In addition, gentrification increases their independence from parents and automotive transport. In such a way, representatives of the middle class move to low-income and working class communities.

Economic globalization

At the same time, some specialists (Ley, 1986) point out that the process of gentrification is closely intertwined and is provoked by the process of globalization. In this regard, it is worth mentioning the fact that the process of globalization contributes to the free and fast movement of capital along with the migration of the population. The migration of the population and movement of capital being enhanced by the free movement of capital stimulates gentrification. Representatives of the middle class purchase houses in low-income and working class communities and they can repair and improve to match their standards of living. In this regard, immigrants with a relatively high level of income can also move to low-income and working class community, where they can purchase houses at a relatively low price and repair them respectively to their standards.

At the same time, globalization contributes to the emergence of banking and service activities which replace the traditional manufacturing core of the urban economy. In such a situation, professional working in the banking industry and professionals working in different industries providing services prefer to move to low-income and working class communities, where they can settle close to their workplace, whereas many professionals today work just at home that allow them to save time and money on transportation. At the same time, low-income and working class communities attract them due to the relatively low price and location close to the city center and respective conveniences and services being available to representatives of the middle class living in these communities.

THE EFFECTS OF GENTRIFICATION ON URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Economic effects of gentrification

In actuality, the process of gentrification leads to consistent changes in urban development and affects consistently the economic development of communities vulnerable to the impact of gentrification. In this regard, many specialists warn that the obvious problem being that the low income portion of the social fold is being disregardedaa‚¬”literally and figuratively (Whataa‚¬a„?s Up with Gentrification, 2007, 5). What is meant here is the fact that gentrification leads to the replacement of poor, working class population by representatives of the middle class. In such a situation, low-income families and representatives of the working class have to move from their communities to other ones, where the standards of living are even lower than that of their own communities inhabited by representatives of the middle class. Representatives of the middle class, in their turn, inhabit low-income and working class communities start consistent changes in local communities, where they settle. These changes lead to consistent raise in standards of living because they repair their houses and stimulate the development of commerce and different services, which are essential for the maintenance of their high standards of living. In such a way, representatives of the middle class invest substantial funds in the development of local communities to match them to their traditional standards of living, which are naturally consistently higher than standards of living for low-income families and representatives of the working class.

At the same time, the rise of standards of living, significant investments, the development of the local infrastructure, services and facilities increases substantially the price of real estate in the community as well as costs of living in the community. In such a situation, representatives of the middle class settling in low-income and working class community bring considerable investments but these investments lead to the increase of costs of living in communities making the life unaffordable for low-income and working class population.

As a result, the economic development of communities vulnerable to the impact of gentrification changes consistently. Specialists (McKenzie, 2006) argue that representatives of the middle class moving to low-income and working class communities boost their economic development that leads to the increase in housing prices and overall rise of costs of living. As a result, low-income and working class communities turn from poverty stricken communities into successful and rapidly progressing communities, where business activities emerge successfully.

At first glance, economic effects of gentrification are positive. However, specialists (Sassen, 1995) warn that such positive effects of gentrification can have extremely dangerous side-effects, especially in relation to low-income and working class. To put it more precisely, the low-income and working class population has to move from the communities, where people used to live before the arrival of representatives of the middle class. Often they have to move away from the areas located close to the city center and they should look for cheap lodging. However, as the process of gentrification emerges, they have substantial problems with finding cheap lodging, while they cannot afford constructing their own houses, which used to be the prerogative of representatives of the middle class. Representatives of the low-income and working class cannot afford purchasing their own homes as well. In such a situation, they are doomed to live in outskirts of large cities or other areas, where conditions of living deteriorate and become unbearable for the population. In contrast, representatives of the middle class improve conditions of living, stimulate the development of business activities. As a result, the poor are forced to live in communities suffering from economic stagnation, whereas the rich and middle class prosper. The economic disparity between classes deteriorates the economic development of low-income and working class. The disparity in economic development of different parts of cities leads to the backwardness of the parts inhabited by low-income and working class, whereas parts of cities inhabiting by middle class prosper.

The economic prosperity stimulated by gentrification improves the local infrastructure and opens new ways for the development of business activities. As a result, the wealth of the middle and upper-class increases and is accumulated in the hands of representatives of the middle and upper-class. In contrast, the poor grow poorer and cannot afford living within the city that leads to their marginalization.

Social effects of gentrification

At the same time, consistent economic changes affect the development of the social life of communities vulnerable to the impact of gentrification. At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that the deterioration of the economic situation in urban areas and the deterioration of the position of low-income and working class. Representatives of the middle class are also vulnerable to the impact of gentrification. However, the impact of gentrification is different in relation to low-income and working class and in relation to the middle class. Economic changes affect consistently the position of both classes that naturally contributes to consistent social changes.

In fact, the poor are vulnerable to the negative impact of gentrification. First of all, they have to move from their traditional residential areas to new ones, where they have to start a new life and where conditions of living are worse compared to the communities they used to live in. Representatives of the low-income and working class have to live in new communities and start a new life, which naturally evokes a number of social problems, among which it is necessary to develop basic infrastructure and positive relationships within the community.

Furthermore, as the poor have to move to a new residential area, they often have to change their workplace because they cannot always afford covering transportation costs or the schedule of their work makes their work impossible. As they change the workplace, they may face the problem of unemployment, especially because they have to move to areas with the poor business development and with stagnating economy.

In such a situation, representatives of the low-income and working class can face another problem aa‚¬” the problem of high crime rates in areas, where they settle after they have to move from their communities under the impact of gentrification. In fact, being in a desperate position and having no means for living, the poor are forced to commit crimes to earn for living and to afford living in a new community, where they move to from communities now inhabited by representatives of the middle class mainly. Representatives of the low-income and working class slip to criminal activities that naturally increase the social tension in poverty-stricken neighborhoods, where they live.

Another social problem representatives of the lower class face is the lack of access to education. In fact, as they are removed from traditional residential areas, where they used to live, the poor have to develop their life in new communities and areas, which are often underdeveloped. They cannot afford developing education organizations and education system in their new community on their own. The state and local authorities are not always capable and willing to support the population of local communities. As a result, new communities inhabiting by the poor either have insufficient capacities to provide access to education for students in these communities, or have no education organizations at all. Obviously, the lack of access to education will increase the social tension even more because without education individuals cannot get well-paid jobs and good career opportunities. In addition, children living in low-income communities with the high level of crime rates are vulnerable to the impact of their criminal environment. Therefore, the position of the poor will deteriorate, whereas social problems will increase over and over again.

In addition, it is worth mentioning the fact that health care services are not available to the poor, who have to move to new residential areas after representatives of the upper class have replaced them in their traditional residential areas. In fact, health care services are not available as education services. Today, health care services are very expensive and the poor cannot afford the development of health care organizations in their communities, whereas the state lacks funds for the provision of health care services to all people. In such a situation, the poor are deprived of basic opportunities to have access to basic health care services.

In contrast to the poor, representatives of the middle class can benefit from gentrification economically but they can hardly benefit from gentrification in social terms. What is meant here is the fact that representatives of the middle class exclude representatives of the lower class from the mainstream culture and benefits associated with the fast economic development of their communities. In fact, in social terms, gentrification leads to the growing tension between representatives of different social classes. To put it in simple words, representatives of the middle class improve their conditions of living, whereas the poor become poorer and suffer from a bunch of socio-economic problems. Moreover, the gap between the rich and the poor grows wider and specialists (Sassen, 1995) forecast serious conflicts between the two classes under the impact of gentrification because the problem will aggravate and the gap between the two classes will widen.

Demographic effects of gentrification

Along with numerous economic and social effects of gentrification, specialists (McKenzie, 2006) distinguish demographic effects. In this respect, it is important to place emphasis on the fact that the process of gentrification contributes to consistent demographic changes. In fact, representatives of the middle class purchasing houses in the low-income and working class communities tend to have a few children. At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that representatives of the middle class, who move to low-income and working class communities, are young people mainly. As a rule, they are not having children, when they move to low-income and working class communities. They need substantial financial resources to start a new life in low-income and working class communities. In such a situation, representatives of the middle class prefer to invest in the repair of their new houses and the development of low-income and working class communities to transform them into prosperous communities. In such a situation, the rise of taxes and costs of living decreases the capabilities of representatives of the middle class living in low-income and working class communities of having children. In a long-run perspective, gentrification leads to the aging of the population living in communities, where representatives of the middle class have moved to. The same trend can be traced in low-income and working class communities because they cannot afford maintaining large families. In such a situation, the risk of the demographic crisis emerges because both representatives of the middle and lower classes have a few children. Specialists (Brandes Gratz, 1989) argue that, in a long-run perspective, the demographic crisis provoked by gentrification can lead to the aging of the population. The latter may provoke the deterioration of the economic situation and provoke social problems.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF GENTRIFICATION
Advantages of gentrification

Obviously, gentrification has a number of advantages. First of all, gentrification stimulates the fast economic development of low-income and working class communities because representatives of the middle class invest substantial financial resources in the development of the communities. The investment and the development of local infrastructure increase housing prices in local areas. In such a situation, the housing taxes increase as the wealth of the community increases. Therefore, the economic development of communities under the impact of gentrification is accelerated. The development of communities stimulates the development of cities at large because cities benefit from the increased revenues obtained from taxation and accelerated economic development of would be low-income and working class communities. Representatives of the middle class obtain large opportunities for the further improvement of their standards of living. As a result, they benefit from gentrification.

Disadvantages of gentrification

On the other hand, gentrification brings a number of problems and has substantial disadvantages. First of all, Gentrification deteriorates the position of the poor, who have to move from low-income and working class communities, which are inhabited by representatives of the middle class. Their economic position becomes even worse as they have to move to new communities. In fact, the poverty breeds poverty being expelled from low-income and working class communities by representatives of the middle class.

In addition, representatives of the lower class have to move to new communities, where a bunch of socioeconomic problems emerge. Among the major problems of socioeconomic problems, it is worth mentioning unemployment, the lack of access of the poor to education and basic health care services, and other problems.

However, what is more important about gentrification is widening the gap between the rich and the poor. In fact, the poor become poorer, whereas representatives of the middle class improve their position. In such a situation, gentrification can undermine the foundation of modern cities because it raises unsurpassable barriers between the rich and the poor living in the cities but this antagonism can provoke serious social conflicts, including growing crime rates, which may affect not only poverty stricken communities but also other communities, including communities inhabited by representatives of the middle class and communities emerged in terms of gentrification.

CONCLUSION

Thus, taking into account all above mentioned, it is important to place emphasis on the fact that gentrification is quite a controversial process. In actuality, it is obvious that gentrification affects consistently the urban development. However, effects of gentrification can be highly controversial. On the one hand, gentrification stimulates the economic development of communities, where representatives of the middle class move to. However, economic benefits may be short-run, whereas, in a long-run perspective, gentrification can lead to the widening gap between the rich and the poor in cities. The latter problem will lead to the deterioration of the social stability within cities. Nevertheless, the full impact of gentrification on urban development should be studied further.

Scientists working on the genetic issues of inbreeding argued that autosomal recessive gene increases homozygosity and produce malformations which are a common cause of “cardiovascular, central nervous system, urogenital, ophthalmic, gastrointestinal, skeletal, cutaneous, and also multiple malformations” (5 page 14). Similarly, Bundey and Alam found postneonatal mortality and childhood morbidity in the offspring of consanguineous Pakistani parents (6). Ahmed, et al (1) identified hemoglobinopathies as a major genetic problem among Pakistani cousin couples. The research- team studied 15 families carrying hemoglobin and eight control families without the history of a hemoglobin disorders. The scientists in this study found that the cousin couples carry -thalassemia and 0.5 to 1 percent carry hemoglobin S or hemoglobin E. The infants of the cousin couples affected ratio is 1.3 per 1000 live births, and according to the study infants present -thalassemia. The ratio of genetic disorders among the children of the control couple was lower than the cousin marriages couple. Bullock and Khalid (4) found increased risk of low intelligence, mental instability, sickle-cell anaemia and cystic fibrosis among the children of the cousin couples. Bittles (2) argued that various types of genetic disorders have been reported to be more common among consanguineous children. For example congenital disorders including neural tube and congenital heart defects were reported. According to Bittles “Autosomal recessive hearing loss disorders and visual defects such as early-onset retinal dystrophies, primary congenital glaucoma and anophthalmos also are present at increased prevalence” (2 page 95) among the children of the consanguineous spouses. These inbreeding studies are conducted among the Pakistani ethnic diaspora communities living in the Western countries. However, there is a dearth of inbreeding studies within the Pakistani society.

However, second perspective (8, 9) argued that the chances of the genetic disorders are low and exaggerated. This perspective claimed that there are lower chances of the genetic disorders and that the media has stigmatized ethnic minority groups which alienated the community from mainstream Western society [1] .

Socio- Genetic Problems
Genetic Problems
Social Problems

Congenital malformations

Learning difficulties,

hearing impairment, infant mortality, morbidity, long term disability, increase birth prevalence, blindness

Cardiovascular disease

Asthma/ eczema

Single-gene disorders (neurological disorders)

Cerebral palsy

Down syndrome

Metabolic disorders

Spontaneous abortion or infertility

Cystic fibrosis

Urogenital

Ophthalmic

Gastrointestinal

Skeletal

Cutaneous

Hemoglobin

Thalassaemia

Fig 1 Genetic and social issues found in relevant literature

Hence, it is claimed (10) that the chances of a 4 % health risk are possible among the non-relative marriages. The chances of unrelated cousins are also high and there is nothing significant on cousin marriage offspring’s (11). Genetic effects appear in later age and are overtly emphasized on the basis of medical justification (9). Thus, it can be seen from the above debate on genetics that the problem exists and the main cause is the consanguineous marriages. This is accelerating debate among medical healers, geneticists and other health professionals within the Western countries about populations carrying genetic disorders and being stigmatized on medical grounds. However, this debate is nor prevalent within the countries where cousin marriages occur on a large scale.

1.2 Cultural traditions of the cousin marriages

Consanguineous marriages constitute from 20 to 60 % of all marriages (9, 12). Worldwide 8.5% of child births are from consanguineous couples (9,12 ). Ten percent of worldwide congenital and genetic disorders are due to these marriages. In the Middle East and parts of Japan, and South Asia the marriages are dominant. Nevertheless, the majority ratio is in the Middle East (30 %) and in Pakistan (40 %) (1). Such marriages are under criticism in Europe and America; get on common in Asia, Africa and Middle East (4, 7).

A number of factors are listed in favour of cousin marriages; for instance property preservation within the similar social group, socio-cultural concerns of the cousins, blood ties maintenance, purification of family and association among the similar group (5). The marriages are a closed network of relatives, and they form socio-political alliances. The marriages are a source of social welfare and strong ties between the cousins that forms a kinship structure (12, 13). This pattern of marriage is customary in the Middle East and pre-dominantly in Muslim societies, especially Pakistan. There is growing argument and debate over the issues, caused by the genetics problems which are originating mainly through cousin marriages. The perceptions of genetic problems are over- emphasized in the developed nations (due to the technology, medical treatment available and awareness of the genetic issues) and with less serious concern in the developing countries which could not afford the technology and cost of medicine. Therefore, there is a need to know, how and where the problem lies and what impact it has on child health care.

1.3 Cosmopolitanism and indigenous knowledge of cousin marriages

Cosmopolitanism is the notion that all human beings share a similar moral and scientific normative system (14, 15). The cosmopolitan knowledge is the common body of knowledge across the discipline and geographical boundaries. In this paper ‘cosmopolitan knowledge’ I used as scientific debate on the cousin marriages. The term ‘indigenous knowledge’ refers to ethnic and cultural perceptions of the people in a particular region which share origins and a common belief system. Cosmopolitan knowledge is a lesser debated issue among the common man in developing countries, like Pakistan, where cousin marriages prevail on a large scale. Does the cosmopolitan knowledge of congenital disorders undermine the indigenous perspectives of the belief system in the community of Kabirwala (Pakistan)? The study is aims to understand the genetic problems due to cousin marriages and the people’s perceptions of cousin marriages (daughter/ sister exchange for spouse selection) and the impact on congenital diseases. This is an effort to know how cosmopolitan knowledge differs with the indigenous perceptions of congenital diseases among the families who are living under a woman exchange system (among cousins) and how the system is affecting child health care and why health services are unable to handle the issue within the cultural context.

2. Research design

I was working on my research project “exchange marriage system” in Kabirwala, a town in Pakistan. During the fieldwork, I found the blind and disabled persons whose parents were married on the basis of the exchange marriage.

Fig 2 Respondents level of the education [2]

I conducted interviews in a village of Kabirwala with the spouses’ who were married with cousins, their children to know the issue of genetic and their perceptions about the issue. The data was analyzed in line with Grounded Theory Method. This method develops the categories from the data (19, 20, 21). I developed the concepts and categories from the interviews. I interpreted and elaborated the data relevant to genetic problems for understanding the issue and categorized the data according to the themes. Relevant reports, articles were used to strengthen the findings of the primary data (16, 17, 18).

3. Results

I categories the results into below categories:

2.1 Destiny and Luck: cousin marriages and congenital diseases

Mehboob [3] 57 year old male is married with his cousin Rubia, 42 years. Rubia has nominal education. The couple have 11 children (3 sons and 8 daughters), and one child (Rakha in Fig 3) died one month after birth. Among the 11 children, two (Tahir and Najma) are blind and one child (Mehwi) has a hearing problem. The couple called it a matter of taqdeer (destiny) and argued that two children are blind due to their sin and one had died because “us kay din poray ho gaye thay” (he has finished his life: means he has only this life given by God).

Fig 3 Family of Mehboob

When I asked, “was this not a genetic problem?”, the respondents replied that it was ‘God’s will’ and this was the reason for his son’s death. It is a matter of luck, destiny and genetics has minor role to play, explained the respondents.

2.2 Religious authority and genetic problems

Aslam, a 57- year old man has different views about the genetic issues and he argues that genetic issues are not real ones, and that the Prophet’s daughter was married with Ali (the cousin of Prophet Muhammad). He explains: “it is not possible that cousin marriage has problems and that the Prophet did not forbid it”. People believe that the religious interpretation is the real one, and it is Allah who gives and solves genetic problems.

The family has authority to arrange the marriages and enjoy in return obedience of the son/daughter. It encourages the elders to be conformist with the local traditions and follow the traditional norms to regulate cousin network. However, a 29-year, Kalsoom a female, argued that parents control the decision-making authority because they want to rule their offspring. She tells that religion has given authority to parents but they should use this authority in a careful manner. She explains that genetics has no link with cousin marriage. The respondent claimed it is God who does whatever HE wants. Nevertheless, Kabir, a 33- year male believes that cousin marriages are as a source of security, stability, strength and unity.

2.3 Consanguineous marriages and formation of social capital

Cousin marriages determined the level of the kinship involvement in the Kabirwala community. Marriage with nearest relative is preferred. The relationship between in-laws extends beyond the couple. If a marriage is successful, it will be followed by others between the two families. Fig 4 indicates the few ratios of alternatives.

Fig 4 Marriage patterns

Cousin links, formed through marriages persist and are reinforced through the generations. The foremost source of the marriage proposal is within the lineage (22). It is found in this study (see Fig 5).

Fig 5 Marriage trends

The cousin marriages form a kind of social capital because the relatives are responsible to provide for a person in need. These cousins help, support and maintain the social security of a person in Pakistan.

2.4 Public health problem: the gaps between knowledge and indigenous belief system

Akram, a 50- year male respondent elaborated his account and said, his children are more beautiful than his brothers because he was married with his cousin and his brother was married with someone other than cousins. He mentioned that it was due to his own genes that his (spouse) gave birth to beautiful children. However, Kalim a 30-year, male disagreed with the above argument and he said it was marriage of his cousins that has given a blind child. Akram is a single case so whose generalization is not possible. Some young and educated respondents have awareness about the cousin marriages and genetics problems. Rabia, 25 years, a single, female respondent mentioned that cousin marriages creates zahanat ki kami (less intellect), kamzori (physical-weakness), zahni bemari (abnormality), and apas main gharello jahgrey (domestic conflicts). Although there is evidence of blind and disabled children from cousin marriages. This appears to be with medical research on the subjects. There is nominal awareness among the people of the genetic issues. The community is not aware about role of the genetic disorders. If anybody in the community has knowledge they negate it due to the belief system.

Cultural opportunities and constraints
Opportunities
Constraints

Purification of the family

Family conflict, less knowledge of congenital disorders, lack of research, lack of awareness, lack of medical treatment & infrastructure availability in the community of Kabirwala, lack of counseling opportunities, paternal authority, superstitions

Strengthen kinship ties

Availability of the spouses within family

Support for woman status

Better relations with in-laws

Old age care

Stable marriages

Property preservation

Preservation of land fragmentation

Less stigma

Loosening ties brings social problems

Political alliances

Fig 6 Comparison of opportunities and constraints

2.5 Policy steps to handle the issue of consanguineous marriages

There is a dearth of the research in the community of Kabirwala with reference to the cousin marriages and the probability of genetic diseases. The scientists working in the field of inbreeding have an opportunity to study the community which has a chain of cross-cousin marriages from generations. The inbreeding scientists may be able to find some significant results about the chain of genetic diseases; the following policy steps are suggested.

1) Genetic problems are considered an important issue among the scientists and less concern among the people as the present study shows. The people in the community of Kabirwala believe that disease is a matter of destiny and luck. They do not know that there is a possibility of positive relationship between the genetic disorders and the marriages. It is possible to provide education to the people. It would be helpful to add the issue to the school syllabus.

2) The local imam (religious preacher) could spread awareness of the issue in their Friday-sermons. The imam is a person who may effectively convince the people, because the majority of the people could not read and write. The people believe the religious teachings. These illiterate people could be influenced through the cultural specific ways and means. This is an easy way for the health professional to convince the local imam about the possible inherited diseases so that he is a catalyst of social change. Short run measures are also possible to sensitize the people through media and stage-drama. However, these measure are likely not sustainable because the media is either restricted or without due credibility to spread such kind of information.

3) Counselling services create awareness if they can be delivered to the remote communities like Kabirwala. However, there is no counselling service available in the community of Kabirwala yet.

4) Legislation is a last step to ban the cousin marriages. But the ban on cousin marriage will be counter productive in this cultural context where breaking the law is considered as ‘fashion’ and ‘symbol of superiority’. Non-conformity indicates a high social status in this community.

3. Discussion and conclusion

Cosmopolitan knowledge has diagnosed two distinctive problems among the Pakistani cousin marriage couples, hemoglobin and thalassaemia. However, the hemoglobin is the main genetic trouble among Pakistani ethnic people (1, 4, 23, 25, 26). Human biological diseases are crucial one and need proper attention from health professionals and policy makers within the cultural and religious setting’. A significant factor of cousin marriage is protection of property, to avoid land fragmentation and to maintain the close family ties and reassurance of the bride (5 page 13). This is similar to work by Shaw (24) which argues that social environment and religious belief has affected the prenatal diagnosis.

Cousin marriages are stable and have a low divorce rate among first cousins (10) and have a strong socio-economic impact on the traditional family system in Pakistan. These traditional marriages are cousin, caste and endogamy marriages. The marriages form a single fabric, and if violated can harm marriage patterns with serious ‘moral-decay’ consequently emerging (5, 25, 26). Thus, the present debate has a strong affect on the exchange marriages, which are overwhelmingly cousin marriages and has a negative affect on the public health. In my data, despite of the fact that respondents have education they have less knowledge about this issue. The community is lacking lively debate on the problem. Genetically disorders, visible from the health conditions, are likely to happen among the community.

Cosmopolitan perspective
Indigenous perspective

Physical incapacity

Exaggerated issue, stigmatized issue, qismat (luck) and taqdeer (destiny), child beauty, children are integrated

Mental incapacity

Harmful

Chronic disorder

Fatwa (an authoritative ruling on a point of Islamic law)

Fig 7 Cosmopolitan and indigenous perspective

Contrary, indigenous belief and attitudes have pointed to a few concerns: less awareness of the genetic issues, knowledge and facilities availability. The people in the community of Kabirwala believe that genetics problems have a negative relationship with the cousin marriages. This is the issue of a Western society and has less validity in Pakistani society. It is matter of destiny and luck and not a medical concern. Kabir explains: does western medicine ever stop a person to dying? This indicates apathy towards the genetic phenomenon where has less validity in the community. Therefore, the study found the evidence that cosmopolitan knowledge has no relevance with the indigenous belief system based on the above data.

Culture centred techniques to cope with these problems reduce chances of cousin marriages. For example, if a local imam/ molvi or the school syllabus stresses these. There are chances to reduce the possibility of the cousin marriages in coming generations. However, this is the turning point to convince the community to tackle and handle the issue with proper strategy. This is an open choice for the public and the health professional able where with proper facilitation and information can attract the public effectively. A failure to tackle the issue in a culturally specific manner could betray the health professional.

The current study found that community knowledge, belief and indigenous practices are the main causes responsible for the prevalence of cousin marriages in Kabirwala. These factors are also the stumbling-blocks in making the indigenous knowledge compatible with the cosmopolitan knowledge. Therefore, there are few concerns among the Kabirwala community about the genetic problems which way occur. They feel protected by their system of beliefs. Notion of luck and destiny is dominant in indigenous knowledge.

Literature Review

2.1.Introduction

This chapter deals with the main theme which is ‘the Generation Gap’ and also analyses the general notion of Generation Gap. It will discover the causes of Generation Gap as well as revealing the analysis of the causes and the effects on the society in general.

2.2The concept of Generation Gap

‘Generation Gap’ is a term generally used to define the differences in culture, thought and behaviour between younger generations and their elders. It can be also described as the changes taking place when older and younger people are unable to comprehend each other because of their different experiences, attitudes, lifestyles and activities. A generation is “a select group born during the same years that experienced momentous events during significant development cycles” (Kupperschmidt, 2000). “Generation gap” was heavily researched in the 1960s and 1970s (Smith, 2000).

With the ongoing process of life, there will always be new generations. As society continues to progress and new technological innovations develop, a generation gap will continuously be predominant. “The old are completely convinced that the ideas they have had throughout their lives are the ultimate and ideal. They disregard certain vital issues that are no longer valid in the case of modernity’’ (Neff, 2011). The changes that occur as society evolves will never allow for complete agreement between generations. The Generation Gap is one of the perhaps most debatable issues of the era (Aliampi, 1969).

A generation is based on the range of birth years of a group of people. Generations may span several centuries from the time when people are individuals. Not all members of a generation demonstrate the same personalities. Generation differences were apparent in societal movements or changes (Brunswick, 1970). Generation gaps are unavoidable occurrences that take place in society. These changes in society arise because people become accustomed to an unstable environment. As our society progresses, people tends to change their likes and dislikes. These changes in society are important for development.

2.3History of the Generation Gap

Even though there has been changes between the generations all the time, until the twentieth century the drastic transformations that the term implies were not greatly in evidence. Previously during that era, society was not considerably mobile. Normally, young people were living in extended families. They were either working on their personal farm or in a relative business. With the introduction of TV and shows, the youngsters were exposed to traditional impacts unfamiliar to their own relatives and values (Adcox, 2015). The 1920s presented the younger generation to jazz melody and disco galleries, consequently constructing a gap between them and their seniors. But the actual reason behind the widening of the generation gap lies in the 1950s (Baby Boomers) when the soldiers had just come back from wars and started having kin. The veteran was actually a little harsh in nature and disliked the young who were greatly influenced by the arrival of the rock way of life. The generation gap of the 1960’s was because the older generation had severe values that the younger generation disagreed and they rebelled. Different diversions of pop culture were created, like Rock and Roll, Discos, and hippies. The following great gap was generated in 1980s that presented the MTV era (Pop, Rock, etc.) come from all parts covering the new generation completely different from their seniors. This gap begun widening enormously in the 1990s and now prolonged in leaps and bounds (The Generation Gap in India).

2.4Types of Generations

2.4.1Generation 1 (1900s – 1920s)

The generation of the 1900s – 1920s had a life expectancy of 47 years. Families were outsized during that time and infant death was high. Around a fifth of women were losing their lives in childbirth. Delivery was done at home itself. They were doing teamwork, accepting the hierarchical chain of command and performing all the task without complaining (Codrington, 2008). Tradition and history guided their attitudes and beliefs. Individuals of this generation were “past oriented and history absorbed” (Zemke et al., 2000, p.39). This generation were loyal and patriotic (Smith, 2011). People of this generation were unlikely to make complaints regarding conditions in which they sense uncomfortable (Zemke et al., 2000).

2.4.2Silent Generation (1920s – 1945s)

The Silent Generation valued family and patriotism. They had a parent remaining at home to look after the offspring, favoured dependability, and remained with one company over time (Allen, 2004). They were brought up in serious intervals when everybody were obliged to work. They were conventional and working hard as they hated getting into debts. They considered that by entire hard work, they could achieve success (Codrington, 2008).

2.4.3Baby Boomers (1946s – 1960s)

Baby boomers have been identified as being good at relationships. They respected others rights and did not find mistakes on others (Rath, 1999 and Zemke et al., 2000). Baby Boomers “may not agree with stands and opinions of every part of the cohort group or exhibit the same behaviour in the same situations, but they do, in their hearts, understand one another” (Zemke et al., 2000, p.72). They are individuals who work to earn their living and willing to sacrifice to attain success (Kerstein, 2014). They like adventure and tend to take risks. They are the primary generation to realise lifetime unemployment no longer exist, so job security means nothing to them, but they consider job satisfaction. They are the first generation to divorce in a large extent and at a younger age than the prior generations (Soroptimist, 2010).

2.4.4Generation X (1960s – 1989s)

The generation X raised up undergoing an era of crises. Generation x is often considered as the “lost or overlooked generation” (Ware et al., 2007, p.59). They were the first offspring in the olden times that mothers could take pills not to have. Throughout the turbulent era of the 1970s, majority of the generation X grew up (Smith, 2011). They work to have a life not live to work, they struggle to have balance in their lives. They are spiritual explorers who have faith in supernatural (Codrington, 2008). They are independent and are determined to be responsible and in control. They focus on their goals and solve problems (Soroptimist, 2010).

2.4.5Generation Y (1989s – 2000s)

Generation Y are spoilt by computers and intense technological advances. One of the foremost features of this generation is their relaxation with technology and being good at it (Kersten, 2002 and Niemiec, 2000). They are the first generation to grow up with internet and they are dependent on technology (Soroptimist, 2010). They are born with a micro-chip in the mouth instead of a golden or silver spoon. This generation considers that because of technology, task can be done everywhere (Smith, 2011). They are self-confident and egotistical as well (Codrington, 2008). A majority of generation Y were familiar with “divorce, drugs, sex, AIDS, gangs and guns” (Zemke et. al., 2000, p.136). This generation committed to work in group for development and this has also been an indicative of their workplace conducts (Zemke et al., 2000).

2.5.The Notion of Generation Gap

Generation gap has been considered as an unavoidable obstacle for the communications between the young and the old ones. These conflicts are normally arise as a result of urbanization, industrial development and family mobility (Bengtson and Achenbaum, 1993). The physical separation of the youngsters and the elders has led to a lack of consistent intergenerational connection and a rise in misperceptions and misunderstanding between the young and old generation (Newman, 1997).

Becker (2000) stated that “distinct generations emerge as a result of the effects of discontinuous macro-social change on individual behaviour during the formative period of the life course. As soon as a new generation has developed, the development of its members before and after the formative period can be studied together with research on institutions related to the new generation” (p. 117). Mead (1970) stressed on the fact that, “Adults today know more about change than any previous generations. So we are set apart both from earlier generations and from the young who have rejected the past and all that their elders are making of the present” (p. 79). Gutman (1985) contended that in the modern society “the present younger generation had been socialized into believing that ‘young is beautiful, old is ugly’ in retaliation to if ‘the young knew and the old could’ (Jefferys 1997, p. 82).

Chow (2001) pointed that youngsters care and give attention to their parents as well as accepting and obeying their preferences in the form of showing respect them. He also suggested that, “children nowadays are not as keen to consult their parents as in the past” in both side on marriage and job seeking. The social circumstance have evolved in such a way that they have often made the guidance of parents irrelevant and in appropriate (Chow, 2001). Children failed in fulfilling parents hopes on obedience when making their lifetime choices. Thus, this is one of the key issues in the reoccurrence of the ‘generation gap’.

2.6.The Causes of Generation Gap

Generation gap has developed in society presently from numerous factors such as technological innovations, fashion, the evolution of the media, gifts, communication, attitudes, and sex. These aspects cause people to change in different ways that changes human opinion of what is right and generally acceptable, or to make a distinction between good and bad. These factors may cause discrepancies between generations, but they overall lead to positive development in society.

2.6.1Technological innovation

At an early age, the younger generation starts making the use of technology and they never overwhelmed by it (Kelty, 2000). As the youth have grown up with technology and developed flexible skill, they are now considered as ‘digital natives’ (Courtois et al., 2009). The younger generation ‘know what to do’ with different updated technologies as they make the use of them more often with the pre-existing technology (Facer et al., 2001). Older generation find it difficult to learn how to use technology unlike the younger generation (Kelty, 2000). They have the feeling of sore when there are advancement in technology. Throughout the previous three eras, the degree and speed of technological advancement has brought new interest in generational differences (Clark. 2009 and Livingstone, 2003).

2.6.2.Television

One of the most important creations that has influenced the younger generation is the Television. Nowadays, television is superb compared to the television that the older generation. The television that the older generation remembers is dissimilar, it contained fewer channels and were available mostly in black and white and it was much smaller (Neff, 2011). Because of these changes, a big generation gap has developed concerning entertainment and the ethics resulted from it. Televisions turned to be more predominant in children’s bedrooms (Jordan et al., 2010). Video game strategies are no more restricted to comforts that assign to televisions as it was long ago, however they are now accessible in the form of handheld devices as cellular phones (Vaterlaus, 2012). The multi-uses of television have widen the gap between the generations. The T.V remote control has become too complex for the old person who used to on/off button. The old may not necessarily be uneducated but they are not a tech-savvy as their children and grand-children. The same goes for the other gadgets such as video games, smart phones, iPad and iPhone.

2.6.3.Internet

The Internet has had the major influence of widening the generation gap. It is the foremost persuasive technological innovation in the world nowadays with its multiple uses (Neff, 2011). The technology used to reach the internet has also advanced. The private desktop computer transformed into the laptops, and tablets. The internet can be currently reached on strategies as small as iPods and cell phones anytime and anywhere. Cell phones that permit internet access are referred to as “Smartphones” (Vaterlaus, 2012). A technology revolution has been produced by the internet in the younger generation.

Internet is used by the younger generation every day and it also permit children to develop a sense of freedom. These changes in ethics have been prominent as main differences between generations (Neff, 2011). Consequently, these technological inventions lead to a rise in the width of the generation gap in the world nowadays. The internet is currently used “to play video games, view movies, watch television shows, and download music” (Jones, 2009). Juveniles who make use of the internet are no more restricted to view media, however they may communicate informally with others across the globe (Courtois, Mechant, De Marez and Verleye, 2009). Email, social-networking, chat rooms, and video chat permit communication to be immediate and even face-to-face (Jones, 2009).

2.6.4.Evolution of the Media

Changes in media is another feature that causes generation gap to develop. Music, due to the increasing in technology is changing fast and new melodies are continuously released. The primary foremost apparent change among the two generations is the introduction of CD and MP3 player. Older generations grew up with records and record players. Music was not something that was freely accessible. Nowadays children have the facility of downloading songs and within minutes can listen to it in the earphones anywhere they want. This definitely ease causes the generation gap to widen. Not only have the types of melodies changed but the forms of genres also. For the older generation, the melodies of nowadays are basically noise for them, there are lack of beat and softer songs of the historical. “People are obsessed on the tune of their early life, the tastes keep on varying and it is inevitable and can’t be stopped”. The two generations will certainly disagree on what is noble music. Because of this, a generation gap is unavoidable. With the on-going changes in art and music, the gap will only continue to widen (Neff, 2011).

2.6.5.Fashion

The way youngsters dress and appear are some of the most apparent, yet main factors in widening the generation gap. Appearances frequently reveal how one feels and their way of behaving. When the older generation was younger, they were more traditional, and it was revealed in their way of dressing. They dressed in a manner that was generally suitable at that time. The advancement of outfit displays a deliberate change from a traditional to liberal attitude. The film star heartened a movement into liberal dressing that certainly helps widening the existing generation gap. This particular change identifies a fashion choice that usually the young embrace and the old deprecate. This was the final step into varying the standards of dress. Women’s evolution into freedom permitted for changes in the societal approval of this revealing show. As these values have transformed, the generation gap has only grown (Neff, 2011).

2.6.6.Attitudes

The two generations adopted different attitudes. Most parents accept a straight forward expression and do not display their emotional state while interacting with their offspring. Moreover, they yell at their children more often or even give them physical punishment. These are due to the traditional practice. On the contrary, children dislike to obey their parents’ instructions as they consider that there are no reasons to support why parents’ opinions are correct. Furthermore, youngsters do not want their parents to treat them as little kids. They believe that they are grown-ups and they want to be free from parent’s control and refuse their guidelines. This helps them to achieve more self-esteem. Overall, both parents and their children do not perceive things from the same perspectives. As a result, misinterpretation is a great cause for the formation of generation gap (Kwok, 2010).

2.6.7.Communication

The generation gap is considered to be one of the greatest communication failure (Aliampi, 1969). There is lack of time for communication. A majority of the parents spend less time to communicate with and listen to their children. Parents are unable to balance their time between work and family due to work overload. On the other hand, children are not sharing their day to day activities with their parents (Kwok. 2010). Social communication is moving with the fast paced nature of technological improvement (Vaterlaus, 2012). Communication channels offered by the internet are developing rapidly. Cell phone features comprise of speaking and texting which have convert into a consistent means of social communication for adolescents (Jones, 2009). Cell phone communication has become a family affair (Vaterlaus, 2012). There are less face to face conversation between parents and children, thus this causes the gap to widen.

2.6.8.Sex

Sex has always been an issue on which the generations vary intensely. There are different conceptions of sex between the two generations. The way they think how to conceive are unlike. For the older generation, sex is a taboo. The young should not talk about sex and they cannot fall in love and have sex before marriage, punishment was very severe long ago. Marriage was being broken in the past because of virginity. On the contrary, for the younger generation sex is a normal activity. Sex before marriage is no more a sin for the young. This is shocking for the older generation. Teenage pregnancy was very rare before and now because of no sexual education, sex is reaching the youngsters. There is a big gap between the two generations. That gap has narrowed, but not all the time because younger generation have become more and more permissive (Smith, 2004).

2.6.9.Gifts

Gifts play a key role in widening the gap between older and younger generation. The older generation were used to the custom of giving monetary gifts to the young (Nguyen, 2008). But today there is a big gap, gifts should be offered according to the demand of the young, they prefer gadgets. Younger generations of nowadays expect IPhone, IPad, mobile phones and laptops (Waterlow, 2012). When older generations are unable to accomplish the desires of the young, they have a sense of unfulfilment because the gift is not according to the social norm. The difference in utility value of a gift is enormous. The older generation’s concept of utility is quite opposed to the young. The older generation views utility of gift in terms of time associated to solidity and absolutism. The young has been brought up to consider gifts as something which are passing fads.

2.7.Summary

This chapter has dealt with the idea of generation gap which is a universal phenomenon existing since time immemorial. Each period of human history has witness the causes of generation gap and tried to explain today we are perhaps most up to bring a clear explanation and have a better understanding about Generation Gap.

Stereotype refers to the cognition aspect of feeling towards a given group of people. It is the picture that most people engulf in their minds about other people. However the picture painted by people with regard to other people is not necessarily a true depiction of the reality. Stereotypes hold the fixed view that people of a certain community or group exhibit specific character traits, which influence their behavior in general. Stereotypes as regards gender, refer to certain traits presumably adhered to males and females in the society, that define and distinguish these genders. According to Mynhardt, the two genders (males and females) portray traits which are both negative and positive. Gender stereotypes have far reaching consequences and cannot be taken only on face value. The issue of gender stereotyping is deeply entrenched in our society, that it has gone to an extent of defining the status of people and the positions people hold depending on gender. For instance, the character traits associated with women are regarded to be unfit for positions of a higher stature. This kind of attitude is not new even in the developed world. For instance at the height of campaigns in the United States, there were numerous debates on and off the media on whether America was ready for a woman president. This certainly illustrates the biased perceptions that more often than not prevent women from reaching the positions at the highest level, simply because of the gender.

There are certain aspects of everyday life that are traditionally attributed to males and females in the society. The manner in which the men and women carry themselves around is fundamental to the definition and distinction of gender in general. There are acts both of omission and commission that are associated with each gender. However as days go by, the society undergoes transformation and so do the traditions and cultures that shape and influence the society as whole. In the family set up for example, the different roles are distributed depending on gender. There are also perceptions relating to the behavior of people that distinguish what are expected and what is not expected from people of a given gender. For example sensitivity, dependence and expression of emotions are considered feminine in nature. The men on the other hand are expected to exhibit traits such are bravery, independence, assertiveness and none of those traits that are associated with the women. However these cultures that build perceptions continue to fade with each passing day. As a result, there are many incidences of deviation from gender roles prescribed by society. The violation of these gender role stereotypes are accompanied by consequences largely due to the perceptions held by the society.

Violation of gender role stereotypes

The reception to those who deviate from the normal traits associated to their respective genders is no bed of Roses. The manner in which the violators are treated is no doubt unfavorable in most aspects. The reception however differs depending on the environmental set up and more so whether the person is male or female. In the event that males and females deviate from the roles prescribed by society as regards their gender, the males are more likely to receive a hostile reception. The women on the other hand, will most likely receive little attention. This all has to do with the issue of status in social aspects. There is the general perception that the masculine traits occupy a higher stature than feminine traits. Looking at the issue of sexual orientation, for woman behaving in a masculine way, it does not raise eyebrows, however if a man were to behave like a woman, this will no doubt be a big deal. The man will most certainly be referred to as a homosexual. In the work place however it is the women on the receiving end in the event of deviation. A woman who is charge of a given organization will most likely receive an unfavorable evaluation compared to a man, if she acts in a manner that violates the perceived traits of women and takes the route of a leader which is authority and commanding results in the work place.

Social perception of males and females who violate gender role stereotypes

There are numerous perceptions as regards the question of gender role violation. However according to Sirin, Selcuk R., McCreary, Donald R., Mahalik, and James R. authors of the journal of menaˆ™s studies, the notable social perceptions revolve around social status, sexual orientation and the dissimilarity of value. The perceptions exhibited are most of the time firmly in the grip of culture and are subsequently fuelled and driven by the traditions of the people in the society. The issue of culture and tradition set aside, expectations also play a significant role. There is a general expectation from both genders on the manner in which the other gender should behave. One thing cut across the divide and this is the fact that women anchor the expectation that men should display masculinity. The same is anticipated by men who are of the view that women should be feminine. Any sort of trait that does not meet the above expectations, it is considered a violation of gender role stereotype, which is accompanied by negative perceptions.

For a long time, gender has maintained a significant influence in the manner in which people conduct themselves in the society. The issue of status as regards the males and the females is what dictates the way in which males and females are regarded in the event that they violate the prescribed code of conduct that is attributed to their respective genders. According to Feinman, in relation to the social status model, he writes that the men have a status that is superior to that of women. Going by the model on social status, then men will more often than not face an unfavorable evaluation, should they violate the prescribed code of conduct for their gender this is because, the violation means that they lose class when they deviate from a status of a higher nature to a status that is low. For women whenever they deviate from perceived traits are assumed to be transforming from a lower status to a higher status. Hence the social perception with regard to the violation of gender role stereotypes is positive to a large extent. This is no doubt something that is rife in the society, as a matter of common societal law, to whom much is given a lot, is expected. For instance woman who dresses and behaves like a man will most likely go unnoticed or may even command respect from people around. This however is not the case in men. A man who dresses and behaves like a woman will most likely be despised. To a large extent this is all attributed to the distinction of the social status between the men and women. According to Feinman the male role is more valuable than that of the female. He further writes that it is acceptable for women to adopt the roles of men rather than men take up the roles of women.

Violation of the gender role stereotype has consequences for both the males and the females. However there is no denying the fact that, the reception received by the males as regards their transgressions is more hostile compared to the women. If anything the women may in some instances be perceived in a positive way. The issue of desire is the other frontier for the perceptions of gender stereotypes. According to Sadalla, Kenrick, and Vershure (1987), men who show traits of not being dominant are deemed to be undesirable. This perception is however not just directly related only to the dominance aspects, but to all traits in general. There is the general perception that, men who exhibit traits that are a deviation from the known male traits are not desirable especially from the womenaˆ™s point of view.

The other perception that is anchored in the minds of the people is the issue of respect in the society. This directly affects men in a negative way and does not have any negative impact on women who violate the gender role stereotype. It is perceived that, men who deviate from the normal societal norms loose respect from their peers and even the society in general. For women on the contrary, the perception is that, they will command respect and admiration from their peers in the event that they deviate from the prescribed societal code for the female gender.

The perceptions on women who violate the gender role stereotype is not at all constant, it keeps changing depending on the environmental set up. For the men however, the perceptions when they deviate from the gender role stereotype are the same and fixed, at no time will the transgression committed by men receive a positive evaluation.

Conclusion

The gender stereotypes and overall stereotyping continues to not only shape but also influence the behavior of all people regardless of the environmental setup. As illustrated above, the burden to conform to societal norms associated with gender is more often than not rested on men to shoulder it. This is not to say that women do shoulder any negative perceptions, the women too have their fair share of tribulations that arise from the gender role stereotype. Even so, regardless of the environmental set up, the perception is that the men will always get a hostile reception when they violate the gender role stereotypes compared to women.

In view of the increasing role of women in public life and the efforts of the government in the direction of universalisation of education, the question of gender sensitization has assumed greater importance. Most Schools have become co-educational these days where boys and girls interact with students and teachers of the opposite sex. The physical proximity of the girls and boys has made interaction free and unrestrained. Reports of gender discrimination, sexual harassment, and other forms of sexually objectionable behaviour are quite common in Indian educational institutions. Numerous reasons can be forwarded behind such behaviour. We have to see the larger picture if we want to address this issue. Gender discrimination cannot be treated in isolation as it has its roots in deeper problems, which plague our society.

The Indian society is still in the process of modernisation where sections of the population continue to have traditional mindsets. The traditional Indian thinking considers males as superior to females and there are plenty of examples to show that young girls are discriminated against at home. Statistical evidence shows that boys in India have three times greater possibility of being taken to the hospital in case of a serious ailment. In many poor Indian houses males are fed first and the left – overs are eaten by the females. The dropout rate in Schools is much higher in case of girls. The scenario is even more grim in rural India where parents prefer to send the boy child to school and keep the girl child at home to assist in household work or to work in any other income-generating activity. This discrimination at home weakens the personality of women in general and they look upon themselves as inferior to men right from childhood. At the same time, boys are made to believe that they are inherently superior to females. Most boys and girls attend schools loaded with this mental baggage. The indoctrination received at home compounded by the already existing social differentiation between males and females give rise to attitudes in the male folk, which are far from egalitarian.

Though our constitution clearly proclaims equality of men and women in all spheres of public and private life yet it is not so in practice. Among the vast sections of the population groveling in illiteracy, concepts like gender equality are unheard of. Even in the so-called modern and affluent Indian houses gender discrimination may be discernible in some form or the other. Unless the economic standard of the country improves, girls may continue to be considered as burden of the family and gender sensitization may remain elusive. However, greater stress on education of females especially in rural India will definitely reduce the gender gap as education equips a person with courage to fight against discrimination.

The general moral debasement of our society is also responsible for disrespect for women. If the morality of the child improves then he will display greater respect for women and cases of sexual abuse or assault in educational institutions will reduce. In the modern times, earning money has become the prime motive of man and the child is imbued with the same zeal. Teachers, guardians and educational institutions are geared at academic advancement as it is considered as a sure way to success in life. Success in life is equated with earning money. When the primary goal of education becomes moneymaking then moral values definitely take a back seat in schools and colleges. Cases of sexual misconduct in schools are a direct result of the failure of guardians and teachers in inculcating moral values in children. Though, students are taught moral values as part of the curriculum yet it is done in a perfunctory manner. Inculcation of moral values in children has to be done in a very systematic manner by narration of stories with moral overtones. Such narration should be done to students at a very young age by a conscientious teacher. This needs to be followed up even in the middle and senior levels in schools. Moral uprightness should be lauded so that the seeds of moral values planted in children at a young age take firm roots. Teachers and guardians have to take a joint responsibility in this regard. They must understand that they can act as catalysts in bringing about a change in children’s mindsets and in society in general. The behaviour of teachers cannot be considered to be above board and they are often found to be behaving immorally. Sadly, enough schools are also not very careful in the recruitment of teachers. Most private schools operate as business houses and the sole concern is to earn money. Thus, the noble motive of imparting man-making education is lost.

Schools have to be more vigilant and careful in providing good-quality education and should provide proper care to the child. Only then can we expect children to grow strong academically, physically and morally. Schools should provide sufficient scope for engaging the child’s mind in various pursuits beyond the pale of academics so that their abundant energies may be diverted in creative activities. This would naturally curb the negative tendencies in children who are likely to develop a more positive attitude towards others. Students should be involved in-group activities involving both the sexes so that the curiosity and inhibitions regarding the opposite sex end. Cases of sexual misconduct within the school should be identified and dealt with strictly. The guilty, have to be counseled or punished depending on the severity of the case. The students including both boys and girls should be enlightened about the essential equality of all human beings irrespective of caste, creed, race or gender. Teachers should treat the students in a humane manner so that the students also behave likewise while dealing with their peers. Right attitudes have to be developed in the students so that they abstain from any kind of objectionable behaviour . Students can also act in groups helping each other to thwart the attempt of any abuser.

Teachers in schools should be ready to act as aids in helping students deal with such situations. Guidance by NGOs engaged in this field can also help to train children in tackling such situations. The schools should act in close collaboration with the guardians as the students receive the first impressions of life at home itself and ideas formed at the formative stages of life continue to linger in the later stages also.

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Gender Sensitization in Schools
By Moushumi Ghoshal
Motilal Nehru School of Sports
Rai, Sonipat

The issue of gender sensitization has taken gargantuan proportions due to a national crisis which shook the nation to its core at the beginning of the year. The incident which was referred to as the ‘Delhi Gang rape’ left the issue of women’s safety split wide open, putting a question-mark over the attitude of the average Indian male in terms of his behavior with the opposite sex. Educational institutions must accept their share of the responsibility since the issue at hand is largely ignored, and often swept under the carpet, by private and govt. schools alike. Govt. policy on this issue too is vague and reactionary, leaving schools with no clear directives as to what is expected of them.

The first major concern of the society should be the formulation of clear cut laws which ensure women of a gender-sensitive environment in their workplace. The primary step taken, it then must ensure that schools are made the chosen vehicle to spread the message so that the society does not only have to take punitive measures, rather the desired aim is inculcated in the youth. Gender sensitization must be made part of the teacher-training programme so that all the aspects are well-ingrained in the teachers to pass on to the students.

More than at the senior or college level, gender related issues must be addressed at the primary level, so that young children growing up together may look upon each other as friends and partners rather than persons with whom no interaction was acceptable. Making children sit in small mixed groups and encouraging pair work/group work/project and activities in which there is a judicious mix of both boys and girls would make the children look on each other as just another student, rather than feeling shy of each other, which may lead to embarrassment, in articulation, a sense inadequacy in dealing with them and a feeling that they are “different”.

Another important step would be to make community service a vital part of the school curriculum. This would become the basis for moving towards a kinder and more compassionate society which reacts to gender issues with sensitivity and understanding. Community service helps to hone the finer qualities of a human being while also highlighting the joys of helping and working together.

One important aspect which must not be ignored is the treatment meted out to those who flout the accepted norms of gender-sensitive behavior. Keeping in view the fact that we are dealing with children at the formative age, it is vital that we do not alienate the offender; rather we try to bring him into the mainstream by counseling and an assurance of continued support in his guest to improve upon his behavior. Censure, public ridicule and a harsh punishment such as expulsion may bring about an entirely opposite result, further alienating the child. It must be assumed that certain children will take a long time to overcome gender issues, given the chauvinistic environment in most Indian homes. The key would be to press on resolutely rather than crack the whip.

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Gender Sensitization in Schools

Kavitha Nair

Senior Secondary Teachers

Muljibhai Mehta International School

Gokul Township, Virar (W)

Gender sensitization refers to mental process of an individual when he or she comes in contact with individual of opposite gender. The thought process of an individual is always different for each gender.”Gender sensitization” the word evoke a mixed reaction in the mind depending where you are from ‘cities’ or ‘villages’ .The city bred youth think that girls are being given more than their due and from the village they are so insensitive to the need of a girl child that it is natural for them to think that a girl is subservient to a boy.

The significance of gender sensitizing, gender equality to the development is widely recognized globally accounting the various efforts by governments, civil society and development agencies in the holistic development. For the past few days all our mainline news channels and news papers have been reporting the growing atrocities against women across India .The ever existing issues of low sex ratio, female infanticide, denial of education to girls, dowry and the likes haunt us everyday .Crime against women are increasing at an alarming rate. It is surprising that ‘educated’ young men commit a lot of these crimes.

Nevertheless wherever you are from the need of being sensitive to the need of a girl is imperative and important. That does not mean that you should be insensitive to the needs of a boy but a girl requires a little more care as after the age of thirteen .She undergoes a lot of change physically as well as emotionally .When the kids are young that is before the age of ten, both boys and girls play with each other with no thought about gender differentiation .But as they start reaching adolescence parents , teachers ,friends and society keeps reminding them about gender differences. This creates the first seed of gender discrimination. A girl start with her menstrual cycle and a boy has certain changes in his body that he ‘starts’ becoming aware a girl as a ‘girl’. Boys and girls both show the traits of rowdiness, jealousy, camaraderie and infatuation in certain cases.

To Educate A Child Holistically (TEACH) is why a teacher is needed. A teacher is the best person to explain to the child various topics to the adolescent like the need of gender sensitization so as to be aware of the needs of each other.

How can a Teacher / school be helpful?

Many governments have achieved significant levels of success in reducing the gender gap in enrollment by increasing the enrolment of girls. Various programmes were included for the improvement of girls access, retention and performance like:-

Building schools close to the homes to provide safety and security for girls.

Flexible time table for subsistent activities.

Establishing community libraries.

Provision for separate toilets for boys and girls including proper bathroom facilities, sanitary ware and privacy related to management of menstruation for girls.

Proper rules against sexual harassment and sexual violence.

These issues can be dealt in the school level by using a very effective tool for gender sensitization like:

School to provide a value based approach in handling one’s sensuality.

For gender sensitization the ideal age group should be 12 to 15 years as in this age the children learn to differentiate a good touch and a bad touch.

Senior teachers, doctors, psychiatrist and child psychologist are ideal teachers because they know how to convey the point.

The delivery of a good gender sensitizing programmes can be more effective if interactive learning methodologies like debates, discussions, games, role play included in the session.

Over the years on the need of gender responsive teaching and learning materials, textbooks have many examples of gender stereotypes. As a matter of fact the teachers who were using these textbooks were not aware that there was anything wrong in the textbook. For curriculum setting teacher’s contribution is essential.

Well researched interesting audio video content on gender sensitization can reach out to the children, either through computer lab or through audio visual rooms.

Proper language should be used by the teachers in the class rooms. A healthy teacher student interaction should be carried.

As we are all social animals it is the responsibility of each and every individual to realize the duties with respect to the problems pertaining to the gender sensitization .Even after 6 decades of independence one frequently read about bride burning and dowry death. Therefore it is the prime responsibility of our education system to teach the child to discuss his thoughts, action and deeds. Education should help him or her to take right decisions in the right direction.

Teacher training must be necessary including training skills for children otherwise attainment of quality education and achievement of MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENTS GOALS and for gender equality for education as a whole will for a long time remain an illusion.

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Gender Sensitization

Mrs Rukhsar Tanveer .Shaikh

Pre Primary section.

D.A.V Public school, Airoli

Till December 16, I had assumed that I am living in a state where sweet river flows, birds chirp, a cool air blows swiftly, nature around me is so beautiful and I am like an independent human being, where I have my self-esteem, dignity, respect and an identity as a woman. In a fraction of second, everything has got shattered, shaken and uprooted as if a tsunami, Katrina or torrential rain swept away. I was in a state of shock; I was not able to express my anger, frustration, sadness, pain. Now my soul is lost and only my body remains. Now I am scared, yes, it’s true because I am woman and above all I am blessed with a beautiful daughter Damini.

I get shivers as this name is given to that brave girl who has fought for her life till her last breath. I can feel a pain. Suddenly I became an educator because I have started educating every child and of course I can’t forget my own daughter. I have observed that adolescents are still not aware what has happened and if we, as a part of society will not take a drastic step to educate them, our soul will be lost for ever.

Every one of us is playing a vital role in our field. But we need to sow a seed by educating not only girl or boy but every citizen of our country. As a parent if I am guiding only my child, is that enough? Will crime stop forever? We should not forget the root. Each and every member of the society must be aware, educated, enlightened and imbibed with the roles, duties and responsibilities.

First of all we have to understand that in our journey we have to go to different stages i.e. infant, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age. As a teacher I have an opportunity to interact with kids. I am nurturing the age group of 3.5 to 5.5 years. That doesn’t mean that I can’t inculcate values at this age.

I have taken initiative by making children aware of what good touch is and what bad touch is. And they must not allow any stranger or an unknown person in a society, bus, school, and road or on any occasion or festivals to misbehave. As a teacher we can narrow the bridge by making strong bond of friendships. Children either speak out to their parents or a teacher who is very close to their heart. With kids, also we need to orient parents to keep an eagle eye on their kids when they are playing in the society, mall, or school. Guide them through stories, discussions questioning and dramatization or puppets.

To inculcate values in adolescence is the next step by giving our students responsibility, awareness, alertness, by taking precautions and self defense.

Positive Attitude We all go through some bad phases. Children at this age, when are frustrated at home,. they tend to get isolated and get involved in bad company, bad habits and make hell of their life. If we sow a seed of positive thinking through seminars, workshops, or half an hour talk we can overcome negative feeling and help them lead a positive life. We can make a difference and we can make them a positive human being. A positive human being with a positive mind will never do wrong and will never encourage wrong deeds, because he is aware of the consequences and understands what is right or wrong.

Awareness adolescence goes through many stages. But life has its own turmoil. A child goes through many crises. Some parents are separated, some have financial problem, some have drunken father who beats his/her mother daily. Some do not have even the basic necessities of life. We teachers as moderators must encourage them to read news paper. And not just the headlines. It is our duty to help children read, understand and give their opinion. Through a healthy discussion between a teacher and a student, it is the role of a teacher to identify if there is any negativity and talk to the child. We can also take guidance from school counselor. Make them aware by involving them through street play, through workshop, of their responsibility. While talking there shouldn’t be any gender bias but equal respect and responsibilities. And help them understand to deal with crises.

Alertness we must help them understand that they have to be alert all the time. And for that they should not use mobiles, or listen to music by putting earplugs while they are out of school or while walking. They have to be alert while interacting with strangers at home or in society. And if they feel wrong gestures, they must immediately report to teacher or parents. Children must be updated and made aware of all the numbers i.e. of ambulance, police station, of parents, relatives and neighbours.

Self defense Help them learn the art of self defense. And remember every martial art has a rule to follow and we should use it when in trouble and not to trouble others.

Same conditions are applied for adulthood and old age. A worse situation can be faced by any one of us. But if we are aware, alert, with positive feeling and self defense we can make this world a better place to live in

I believe in ”practice what you preach”. All these are within my reach. I am doing my bit. Have you done yours?

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Gender Sebsitisation in Schools
Shikha Sharma,
Lecturer,
Dept. Of Education,
C.C.S. University Campus,
Meerut
INTRODUCTION –

Around the world gender is the primary division between people. Gender consists of whatever traits a group considers proper for its males and females. Gender stratification means males and females unequal access to power, prestige, property on the basis of sex. No matter what we attain in life we are labelled as male or female. These labels carry images and expectations about how we should act. From birth right till death gender has a hand in shaping human feelings , thoughts and actions. Children quickly learn that society defines males and females as different kinds of people by the age of three. Gender affects how we think of ourselves , also it teaches us to act in a normative way. Gender roles are attitudes and activities that a society links to each sex. You learn your gender as you are socialized into the behavior and attitudes thought appropriate for your sex. The sociological significance of gender is that it is a device by which society controls its members.

Society expects males to be ambitious and competitive ,play sports and assume positions of leaderships. Females are expected to be deferential, emotional, supportive helpers and quick to cry. We expect them to be passive and emotional while males are expected to be independent and active. This perception of parents, communities and even policy makers is the root cause of social discrimination of girls. In most of societies girls and women are considered to be inferior to men. Girls are treated as a liability. Education of girls is a waste of scarce resources. This is because our social norms are built around the belief that girls only have a domestic role in the household economy. She does not provide for the family but only is a consumer. Her use is only as a potential child bearer and rearer . Parents believe that –

-Girls education has no relevance for her future life

-If girls are educated they get ideas of equality.

-When they invest in a girl’s education there are no returns.

Discrimination against women began centuries ago. This discrimination begins at home when a girl is born and in some cases even before she is born resulting in female foeticide. There are dietary insufficiencies both qualitative as well as quantitative. Girls are more often undernourished than boys. Everywhere there is male patriarchy where male dominates females. Throughout the modern world the portrayal of women and the image associated with them is that of a docile, beautiful creation in need of protection and care. This impression has been passed on from generation to generation through social norms. Women are expected to be submissive, obedient and humble individuals who have to play multiple roles of daughter, sister, wife , mother , daughter-in-law etc with perfection. An ideal women is one who does not raise voice or go against the wishes of the male members of the family. From early childhood she is trained to lead a life dependent on others and if she does not do so she is considered bold, immoral and therefore should be punished. This is evident from the rise in violence against women who have dared to challenge male domination.

ROLE OF SOCITEY-

Gender consiousness starts very early in life with the kind of roles one is expected to play. Girls help their mothers in household work and boys help by doing odd jobs outside. Girls are taught that their whole life revolves around their home. This image is further strengthened when an ideal gift for girl’s is dolls and cars and guns for boys. This carries forward the role society expects each one of them to play. Girls should remain at home caring and looking after every need of the family members whereas boys should be more aggressive and outgoing. Major and healthy portion of the food is kept for the male members of the family. In case of scarce resources it is the girl who has to make all the sacrifices. This is the price she has to pay for the security she is assured of by the male members which is the basic spirit behind various festivals like Raksha bandhan.

SCHOOLS-

This gender consiousness unfortunately is further strengthened in schools when we quickly label a boy who is crying as sissy or acting like a girl. Even in subject selection this consiousness is so overpowering that girls usually opt for fine arts, home science or biology. Maths is generally for boys. Girls going in for medical profession usually specialize in Gynecology, Paediatrics or physiotherapy; rarely do we find female cardiologist or oncologists. This biasness is found in every field – in Engineering it is computers and electronics for girls , Civil and mechanical is for boys. In M.B.A. girls usually go in for Marketing and HRD whereas Sales is for boys. Tradition fosters gender aspirations in their students by encouraging females to choose occupations in consonant with future husbands and children. Our society still defines high paying profession and the drive & competitiveness needed to succeed in them as masculine.

Again when we look at the world of sports here also feminine and less aggressive games are for girls like badminton ,tennis, swimming or athletics .Sports like Cricket, football are more popular with boys although female teams for such sports exist but they are not so popular. Girls usually are left for cheerleading to boost and motivate their male counterparts. Although there are exceptions like Alka Tomar, Mary Kom who have made a mark for themselves in such allegedly manly sports like wrestling and boxing. This discrimination in the field of sports is a world wide phenomena. This creates a prejudiced image on the impressionable young minds and which they carry with themselves for the rest of their lives. Whenever they encounter an image which clashes with their established views there is conflict which we are witnessing in the varied forms of violence and atrocities on women these days.

MEASURES –

Thus, gender sensitization is needed in every sphere of our lives be it schools, society, peer groups etc. This stereotyped image needs a complete overhaul especially the one depicted in our movies. But it should begin at the very grass root levels when the young mind begins to take shape i.e. at school. Because school is the second home of the child .It should begin from the very basic. They should be taught that girls or boys are not different .They are just two separate individuals who might be physically different but this physical difference should not guide their behaviour. Children should be taught to respect each others feelings and accept each others capabilities.

Image associated with what types of games one can play should also be broken. Girls should be encouraged to take up subjects for which they have aptitudes and which they want to pursue even if it goes against conventions. Stereotypes must be broken and children should be encouraged to do what their heart desire and not be deterred by the dictates of the society. Choice of a career should be their own decision and it should not be affected by what the society expects them to do.

Gender sensitivity should be made a part of the curriculum. The students should be made aware about the contribution of the females in the development of the society and how the two sexes can co-exist. Merely worshipping her as a goddess is not sufficient; she should be treated with respect and as a thinking individual. The society has to realize the immense potential they are wasting by denying equal status and opportunities to girls.

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Gender Sensitization in Schools

Charul Mahendru

PGT (English)

DPS Rohini

Rohini, Sector 24 Delhi-110085

Wherever women are honored, there the gods are pleased – The Code of Manu (Manuscripts)

We live in an advanced society. Having enslaved even the most dangerous animals, we proudly live in the territories that once belonged to these ‘wild beasts.’ We have invented machines to make our lives easier and work faster. The world has shrunk and we plan to set up colonies on the moon! We have become more advanced as compared to our ‘barbaric ancestors.’ Man surely has come a long way from his hunter gathering stage.

However the position of women in society has changed little. Every day, newspapers are replete with the news of rape, molestation, domestic-violence or any other such crime against women. Girl students have the highest dropout rate in the rural areas, there is discrimination related to the salary earned by women especially in the rural areas. Women are subjected to discrimination at every stage in their life.

Statistics reveal that there are 65.5% literate women in India as compared to 82.1% males. 26.1% of women form the workforce in rural India as compared to 54.7% of men. The average salary of women in rural areas in 2009-10 was Rs.155.87 and that of the men was Rs.249.15. A total of 24,270 cases of crime against women were reported in India in 2011. The recent rape case of Nirbhaya has yet again revealed the sorry state of women in our modern society.

Is it the same India where women are worshipped as goddesses? In our culture the figure of Ardhnarishwara or half man and half woman is revered and worshipped. The Ardhnarishwara, in a way is a symbol of equality of the sexes, of the fact that both sexes are equally significant and none is less than the other. This is our culture that treats both sexes as equals. However, we, who take pride in our rich heritage and in the culture of revering womanhood, are slipping into the morass of depravity. All doesn’t seem well in man’s paradise.

This wasn’t the case in the hunter gathering society. There was no male supremacy over women as there was almost a division of labour between the sexes. Men did most of the hunting and women did most of the gathering. (Chris Harman: A People’s History of the World). Industrialization brought with it new ways of production which created new relations between the sexes. The man strengthened his position as the bread earner and the role of women was reduced to child bearing and rearing of the family. Gradually women were thrust into a position of dependence and subordination to men. This led to the great divide and women were no longer treated as equals.

In order to bring women at par with their male counterparts, the need of the hour is to instill ender Sensitization among the youth. Gender Sensitization can be defined as the modification of behavior and instilling empathy into the views that we hold about our own and the other sex. It helps people in examining their personal attitudes and beliefs and questioning the realities they thought they know. Since home and school influence a child’s development the most, it becomes imperative that such training begins from here to nip the problem in the bud.

There are several ways in which we can instill gender sensitivity among our students. Morning assemblies can be organized to promote gender equality. Skits, debates, street plays and panel discussions can also be conducted to sensitize the students to this issue of national importance. Not only this, the subject of gender equality could be integrated with the subjects. Students can be asked to carry out surveys to assess the prevalence of gender inequality, for eg. students can be asked to find out the names of some famous Indian women physicists/ mathematicians. Apart from this, value education classes can also act as a handy tool to motivate students to respect everyone irrespective of sex. A meeting with parents can be organized by the Principal in order

Children learn from their parents and society the conception of

“feminine” and “masculine.” Much about these conceptions is not biological at

all but cultural. The way we tend to think about men and women and their gender

roles in society constitute the prevailing paradigm that influences out thinking.

Riane Eisler points out that the prevailing paradigm makes it difficult for us

to analyze properly the roles of men and women in prehistory “we have a cultural

bias that we bring to the effort and that colors our decision-making processes.”

Sexism is the result of that bias imposed by our process of acculturation.

Gender roles in Western societies have been changing rapidly in recent

years, with the changes created both by evolutionary changes in society,

including economic shifts which have altered the way people work and indeed

which people work as more and more women enter the workforce, and by perhaps

pressure brought to make changes because of the perception that the traditional

social structure was inequitable. Gender relations are a part of the

socialization process, the initiation given the young by society, teaching them

certain values and creating in them certain behavior patterns acceptable to

their social roles. These roles have been in a state of flux in American

society in recent years, and men and women today can be seen as having expanded

their roles in society, with women entering formerly male dominions and men

finding new ways to relate to and function in the family unit.

When I was growing up a woman was never heard of having a job other than

a school teacher or seamstress. Our(women’s)job was to take care

of the house. We had a big garden out back from which we got most

of our vegetablesaa‚¬¦A garden is a lot of work you knowaa‚¬¦We also had to

make clothes when there were none to be had(hand-me- downs)

Gender can be defined as a social identity consisting of the role a

person is to play because of his or her sex. There is a diversity in male and

female roles, making it impossible to define gender in terms of narrow male and

female roles. Gender is culturally defined, with significant differences from

culture to culture. These differences are studied by anthropologists to

ascertain the range of behaviors that have developed to define gender and on the

forces at work in the creation of these roles. The role of women in American

society was conditioned by religious attitudes and by the conditions of life

that prevailed through much of American history. The culture of Europe and

America was based for centuries on a patriarchal system in which exclusive

ownership of the female by a given male was considered important, with the

result that women were regulated to the role of property with no voice in their

own fate. The girl-child was trained from birth to fit the role awaiting her,

and as long as compensations were adequate, women were relatively content:

“For Example, if in return for being a man’s property a woman receives

economic security, a full emotional life centering around husband and children,

and an opportunity to express her capacities in the management of her home, she

has little cause for discontent.”

While this statement is arguable in the way it assumes that women are

not discontented under such circumstances, it is clear that for most of history

women were expected to be content with this sort of life and were trained for

that purpose. Clearly, circumstances of family life have changed in the modern

era. Industry has been taken out of the home, and large families are no longer

economically possible or socially desired. The home is no longer the center of

the husband’s life, and for the traditional wife there is only a narrowing of

interests and possibilities for development: “Increasingly, the woman finds

herself without an occupation and with an unsatisfactory emotional life.” The

change in sex roles that can be discerned in society is closely tied with

changes in the structure of the family. Changes in both family structure and

sex roles over the last century have produced the ferment we still see today,

and one of the problems with the changing role of women is the degree to which

society perceives this is causing unwanted changes in the family, though it is

just as true that changes in the family have altered the roles of women.

As women entered the early 1990s, they faced a number of problems.

Most of these problems have been around for some time, and women have challenged

them and even alleviated them without solving them completely. They are

encountered in the workplace, in the home, in every facet of life. Women have

made advances toward the equality they seek only to encounter a backlash in the

form of religious fundamentalism, claims of reverse discrimination by males, and

hostility from a public that thinks the women’s movement has won everything it

wanted and should thus now be silent. Both the needs of women today and the

backlash that has developed derive from the changes in social and sexual roles

that have taken place in the period since World War II. These changes involve

the new ability of women to break out of the gender roles created for them by a

patriarchal society.

The desperation women feel has been fed throughout history by the

practice of keeping women in their place by limiting their options. This was

accomplished on one level by preventing women from gaining their the sort of

education offered to men, and while this has changed to a great extent, there

are still inequalities in the opportunities offered to men as opposed to women.

Susan Brownmiller writes:

The sad history of prohibitions on women’s learning is too well known to

be recorded here. . . In much of the world women are barred from advanced

knowledge and technical training

Yet opening the world of business with new opportunities for women does not

dissipate much of this frustration because both men and women continue to be

ruled by their early training, by the acculturation process which decides for

them what sort of existence they will have. This can result in feelings of

guilt when their reality and the image they have been taught from childhood do

not mesh.

It would be a mistake to see changing gender roles in society as

threatening only to males who dominate that society. Such changes also threaten

many women who have accepted more traditional roles and see change as a threat.

“I don’t know how your mother does it all. . . I think time are harder for women

these days. . . so many choices.” This response is not new. When women first

united for the right to vote at the beginning of this century, they were opposed

by women’s groups who wanted things to remain as they were. Many of these women

were ladies of means and social position in society:

The main burden of their argument was that woman suffrage placed an

additional and unbearable burden on women, whose place was in the home. . .

These arguments are heard today from religious fundamentalists who believe that

the women’s movement is a threat to the family. The fact is that the family has

changed and that the traditional family structure of homemaker, husband as

breadwinner, and children bow constitutes only 10 percent of families. The role

for women has expanded with more women in the workplace and with a variety of

family structures with new roles for all members of the family. Business has

been slow to change and to acknowledge the new family, and for all the

complaints about the women’s movement as anti-family, the movement has instead

followed the trend of placing the family in the forefront of addressing family

issues as vital to women.

There is much evidence that boys and girls are treated differently form

birth, and this fact has been noted in every world culture:

It may never be possible to separate out the precise effects of

physiology and cultural conditioning on human beings. Not only do they

individually influence people but they interact with each other and with each

person’s unique essence to affect human behavior. To accord with the reality of

this complex interplay of factors, and to accord with an increasingly complex

external world, feminists ask simply for options in life styles.

Those stuck in sexism, however, cannot grant even the simple request to ask why

women are inferior. The reason sexism exists at all is because of an

acculturation process which subtly creates it, and it is perpetuated in part for

that reason and also because perceived changes in the roles and status of women

create a backlash based on fear of change.

Surveys have shown that identical resumes or scholarly articles are

rated lower if the applicant is though to be a woman rather than a man: “Man’s

success is more likely to be attributed to ability and woman’s to luck.” While

advances have been made over the last decade, the challenge remains for the next,

and “as long as women constitute small minorities in nontraditional employment

contexts, substantial obstacles will remain.” The women in the workplace must

work harder to succeed than their male counterparts, and once they have

succeeded they have to deal with the envy and anxiety this arouses. Women who

do not advance only confirm the stereotype for others:

The perception remains that women can’t make it by conventional

standards, or are less committed to doing so. In either event, they do

not seem to warrant the same investment in training, assistance,

and promotion opportunities as their male counterparts.

Feminist theorists have been calling for some time for a change in the

political climate. They want more than just more women in office and the

political arena; they want a new type of political thinking, one that empowers

people rather than government and that addresses the issues that are of

importance to men and women:

If we can eliminate the false polarities and appreciate the limits and

true potential of women’s power, we will be able to join with men

–follow or leadaa‚¬”in the new human politics that must emerge beyond

reaction. This new human liberation will enable us to take back the

day and the night, and use the precious and limited resources of our

earth and the limitless resources of our human capital to erect new kinds of

homes for all our dreams. . .

The perception the public has had on the role of men and women is

outdated and has been for some time, but public attitudes change slowly even in

the face of overwhelming evidence. More than 40 years ago, anthropologist

Margaret Mead noted the way the West had developed its concept of male and

female:

There has long been a habit in Western civilization of men to have

a picture of womanhood to which women reluctantly conformed,

and for women to make demands on man to which men adjusted

even more reluctantly. This has been a accurate picture of the way in

which we have structured our society, with women as keepers of the

house who insist that the man wipe their feet on the door-mat, and men

as keepers of women in the house who insist that their wives

should stay modestly indoors.

Today, people are far less willing to accept these artificial roles even

reluctantly, and this includes the provision keeping women in the home and out

of the public arena. To have more women in office it is necessary to have more

women run.

As noted, public views change more slowly than the reality of gender

roles. They will continue to change slowly as long as we continue acculturating

children with the same sexual stereotypes that have so long prevailed. It is

necessary that we address this issue from early childhood, with parents

demonstrating a different view of gender and sexual roles just as the school and

church should take a part in eliminating the old stereotypes in favor of a more

reasonable and equitable way to view both men and women.

The discussion of the results is presented in this chapter. More specifically, it presents, the demographic data gathered, the male nurse’s point of view in choosing to be in the nursing profession, their experiences as male nurses, and the stereotyping regarding males experienced in the profession. Most importantly, this chapter of the thesis presents relevant literature that supported and disputed the results found by the research. Also, the strengths and limitations of the study are discussed.

5.2 Demographic data

The thesis results showed, in relation to the demographic data, that the majority, 28 nurses, or 80.7% of the male nurses were between the ages of 20 to 35 years old and that 32.2% worked for less than five years. This data conformed to the data collected from a qualitative study of Lou et. al., (2009), where 83.8% of the participants were under the age of 35 years, and 49.4% had been working for less than five years.

The present results revealed that a greater part of the male nurse population was diploma holders (59%) and 26% baccalaureate graduates. These results are similar to Lou’s et. al., (2009), studies conducted in Taiwan where 47.1% of male nurses were in the possession of an undergraduate degree The thesis results showed that male nurses usually worked in male wards (58%) and mixed wards (42%) and never (0%) in female wards. These mixed or male wards included the emergency department, operating room, pediatric area, psychiatry, medical area, and intensive care unit (LaRocco, 2007).

Similarly, in Norway and other Western countries, male nurses usually worked within the health sector’s limited parts such as the psychiatry and acute medicine ward and administration (Bakken 2001). In terms of “speciality, 24% worked in the operating rooms (Lou, et.al. 2009, p 905)”. In fact, psychiatry is one of the most common fields where 15% of all male nurses transfer to (Abrahamsen, 2004). Furthermore, Dassen et.al. (1990) found that in The Netherlands, men were dominating” technical wards, and critical care units”(p.367). It seems that they wanted to be involved in less feminine aspect of nursing. As Evans argues (1997), to compromise his reputation in patriarchal society, men in nursing develop different strategies as to occupy administrative and elite specialty positions in order to protect themselves from the feminine image of nursing .The latest results from UK reveal that “one third of the almost 100,000 nurses who have a mental health qualification are men” (Torjensen & Waters, 2010, p.21).

In the 1960s, men were not allowed to enter the delivery room and this still remains until today. Even though inequity is diminishing, situations like these in areas such as the obstetrics and gynecology departments continue (Chung, 2006). This may then be attributed as the primary reason why the study results found that 0% of the responses worked in female wards. However, it is worth mentioning that in Malta, up to the 1960’s female nurses were excluded from the male wards (Camilleri, 1964).

5.3 Challenges that male nurses encounter at work

The present findings indicated that approximately half of male nurses were aware of opportunities in the nursing profession. With increased postgraduate qualifications, pursuance of managerial positions is fast paced (O’Lynn & Tranberger, 2006, Marsland, et al, 2003) among the male nurse respondents, and their propensity to earn more is improved (Hader, 2005). Also, studies found that it is easier or quicker for males to acquire top managerial positions than their female counterparts (Kvande 1998, Hoel 1995). Similarly, Abrahamsen (2002), findings showed that 70% of male nurses after twenty years from graduation were in leadership position, and away from somatic wards. Furthermore, Yang (2004) found that the male nurses’ future development has more potential because their careers would not be disrupted by a maternity leave. In addition, an interview done by LaRocco (2007), confirms as one man stated that “being a male in a predominantly female profession sets you up to be recognized” (p.127).

In contrast, most of the respondents in this survey, or 61% disagreed that men in nursing are promoted quickly, which is not in the agreement with the statement of Williams (1992), that men in nursing are privileged minority which enables them to move out of female dominated profession by the “glass escalator” to the most rewarded and respected jobs reserved only for men in this patriarchal society.

In relation to this, LaRocco’s (2007), study showed that one man revealed his income to be “below $50,000, while three indicated that theirs was greater than $100,000 per year (p.123)”. However, the findings of Stoltenberg et.al.,(2008), suggest that” nursing needs to continue to raise the bar pay, because only 46.67% of male nurses rated nursing as financially rewarding.” Hence, these results are in agreement with the thesis results findings where only 32% of male nurses agreed that nursing provides good salary and benefits.

Despite these advantages, some men, however, find inequities in other fields, like obstetrics and gynecology, which put considerable pressure on them (Williams 1995, Tseng 1997). Truly, Hart (2005) found that 56% of male nurses were seen as “muscles”(p.48), and “uncaring” by their female colleagues, just because of their gender. This then puts a strain on how the male and female nurses communicate with their colleagues (Hart, 2005).

Furthermore, some studies found that males perceive that being in a predominantly female profession brings about a low status upon the male nurses (MacDougall, 1997; Williams, 1989). In History of Nursing in Malta, during 19th Century, it was written that “the social class from which nurses were recruited was illiterate and without any education”, and that the same conditions existed in other European countries (Camilleri,1964). Also, labeling nursing as an extension of women’s domestic role devaluated profession in relation to male occupation. Although this image is changing, many negative images still persist. Further still, in relation to the slight increase of men in the nursing profession, uneven numbers of male nurses are leaving compared to female nurses due to deficient respect from their colleagues, job dissatisfaction and problems arising in a predominantly female profession (Sochalski, 2002).

However, results in this research revealed that majority, or 88%of respondents disagreed that men in nursing feel insecure because it is a female dominated profession. Findings in this thesis suggest that male nurses in Malta do not feel as they are ‘crossing segregated work boundaries’, and ‘infiltrate’ in female domain (Bagilhole &Cross 2006, p.35). In addition to, 71% of men in nursing in this survey expressed that they are satisfied with the work they do. As one respondent wrote ” nursing is a male’s profession as the other profession or jobs are”. Hence, this result tally with findings of Rochlen et. al., (2009) where men employed as nurses were satisfied with their work in non-traditional career. According to Avery (2007), despite the feminine image in nursing, “nursing is profession for everyone”, due to the fact that men were present in nursing since 250 B.C when “males-only nursing schools opened in India”(p.1). They continued playing an important role in nursing (Meadus, 2000), until Florence Nightingale stated that “Every woman is a nurse”, establishing nursing as only one gender profession.(Fitzerald, 2007), and portraying the presence of the men nurse in this profession as an “anomaly”(Meadus, 2000, p.6).

5.4 Respondent’s motivation for choosing a traditionally female profession

The present findings indicated that 48% or fifteen male nurses choose the nursing profession to help others. As one male nurse replied there is “nothing better than being able to help people”, and ” bringing smile to others”. However, 16% or 5 respondents stated that the “money kept them in the profession”. These results coincide well with previous studies of Bartlett et.al.,(1999) where altruism and job satisfaction, rather than extrinsic rewards, have been found to be the main motivating factor for male nurses. Furthermore, Larocco’s (2007) study showed that eight men specifically stated that connecting with patients and aiding people are important factors when nursing is considered. One participant also added that “I just thought of nursing as caring for patients” (LaRocco, 2007, p.126).

Moreover, according to Boughn (1994), Brown and Srones (1971), Bush (1976), Garvin (1976), Mannino (1963) and Perkins et al. (1993), interaction with patients and helping people are important reasons in choosing nursing. Even Taylor et al. (1983), Skevington & Dawkes, (1988), Galbraith, (1991), Cyr, (1992), Kelly, et al (1996), MacDougall, (1997) suggested that caring for others and having the desire to be of help is a main factor for men in choosing a career in nursing.

Family and friends also served as the motivation for the resulting 26% or 8 of the male nurses who took part in this thesis survey. Positive family influence, like a nurse relative, a mother who is a nurse, became a good motivation for men. Moreover, in La Rocco’s (2007) study, five of the interviewees had a mother nurse. This response was found to be similar to the results of this thesis where three males had a mother nurse, and surprisingly one respondent had both parents working as nurses. Also, these findings conformed to the data collected from a qualitative research of Whittock et. al., (2003), where positive influence, for most participants, on choosing nursing as a career comes from the parents, specifically mothers who worked in nursing sector or other healthcare profession. Also, friends who gave positive reactions helped with their career choice of being a nurse (LaRocco, 2007). Eleven men in LaRocco’s (2007) study, claimed that their family was very pleased with their career choice.

In contrast, some men were discouraged by both family and friends, to enter the field of nursing and other medical fields (LaRocco, 2007). As found in a study done in the UK, only 12% of the male nurses said that their parents were happy about their career choice (Skevington & Dawkes, 1988). Abrahamsen (2004), also stated that most men who decide to qualify as a nurse find themselves problematic because the decision to become a nurse causes family and friend’s disbelief and surprise. In a society where nursing is seen as a female profession, very often family and friends ask, ‘You want to be a nurse? Why not a doctor?’ I guess they feel that traditionally males are doctors and females are nurses.”( Chung, 2006, p.1).

Other than that, ten percent of the male nurses who served as the respondents for this study stated that their motivation was good pay and security. It seems that nursing in Malta, according to the data collected from the survey, is being” one of the last secure job posts”, as one respondent replied. Furthermore, Yang (2004), interviewed a man who stated “One day I noticed a statement in the newspaper which said, ‘Male nurses earn as much as NT$ 50,000 per month’, so I put ‘nursing department’ down on my form as my choice” (Yang, 2004, p.645). In addition, LaRocco (2007), also had a dialogue with a male nurse who stated “I knew I would always have a job, [and] I did it for a steady job that I could handle” (LaRocco, 2007, p.125 ). Most importantly, Boughn (1994) found that money and job security were two major motivations for choosing nursing. On the other hand, Simpson (2005), found several reasons that motivate men to “seek” a non-traditional career, and one of them was” that most were not seeking entry”(p.365). They entered female-dominated occupations almost by”default” in that they were not actively seeking such entry, but simply ‘fell into it’.(Williams & Villemez’s s, 1993 p. 66.)These results are in agreement with the results in this study where, three or 10% of respondents couldn’t give the reason for choosing nursing as a career, which suggests, as found previously, that “they were not actively seeking such job but simply fell into it, either through availability or convenience”(Simpson , 2005, p.365).

Finally, the least percentage of participant stated that they considered nursing as a last resort and one even said: “I didn’t get accepted by any school except for that nursing one, so it was my only choice, and I studied there” (Yang 2004, p.645). The findings in this thesis revealed that two nurses or 6% didn’t have other career opportunity, which supports the previous research results of Yang (2004). The findings also showed that these nurses were age over 40 and with working experience of more than 20 years. These two respondents stated that “fear to change”, and “lack of a good opportunity” where the reasons for remaining in nursing profession.

5.5 Perceived stereotypes of men in nursing

In addition to the problem that nursing is a female profession, male nurses also have to face the problem of overcoming the stereotype that they are gay or effeminate (Williams, 1995). Some of the stereotypes that these male nurse have to contend with were presented in the thesis results that 52% of male nurses were not embarrassed of their choice of profession. These results are similar to the findings of Hart (2005), where 40% of respondents sometimes feel “awkward or defensive when asked about their profession”(p.47). According to the thesis results, most of the respondents or 64% strongly disagreed that men in nursing are being questioned if they are a ‘real men’. Furthermore, 77% disagreed that men in nursing are too gay or feminine. These findings revealed that they are not in agreement with the results of several studies that have found supporting data regarding these stereotypes. For example, because of inequities, male nurses’ sexuality is usually questioned and they are labelled as homosexuals (Kelly, et al, 1996). Moreover, Wingfield also reported that men in nursing consider themselves as sufferers of homophobic abuse, with a respondent even claiming that “I’ve been called awful things-you faggot this, you faggot that” (2009, p.23). Furthermore, Harding (2007), explored “discourses which stereotyped or labeled male nurses as gay and conflate homosexuals and sexual predators”(p.639). Also Harding (2007) reported that majority of men in nursing are heterosexual but public perception is still that most male nurses are gay. This stereotype persists only in general nursing, men working as psychiatric nurses are perceived as masculine due to need of physical strength. Although society is becoming more comfortable with men as nurses, nearly half or 48% of the respondents experienced the stereotype that men choose nursing because they failed to enter a medical course.

Because of the situations and stereotypes, a more serious stereotypical belief was formed that male nurses are not appropriate caregivers (Evans, 2002). Truly, different societal norms have created concepts of caring as something that is not included in masculine images of males, and that caring falls under a female conception (Evans, 2002). Evans (2002) found out that for men nurses” touching patients is potentially dangerous”, and that men are “vulnerable caregivers”(p. 7). Similar results were found by Abrahamsen (2004), where male nurses were minority in somatic wards due to the fact that they were pressurized by their friends and family to apply for more ‘masculine jobs or seek a leadership positions’, because it is not natural for men to undertake intimate nursing tasks (p.12).

Gender stereotyping creates a compound and conflicting situation of rejection, acceptance and doubt for male nurses’ ability as caregivers and nurturers (Evans, 2002). Thus, as a sad effect of this, and to avoid tight situations, some male nurses alter their caring principles and nursing roles (Egeland & Brown, 1989; Kauppinen-Toropainen & Lammi, 1993). Even though, studies of Ekstrom (1999) resulted that male nurses exhibit lower caring behaviours, they in general, do not effect the care given to the patients. As Mac Doughall (1997) stated, man do have ability to care, but they need to be shown how. (p.813). Lately, society is becoming more comfortable with men as nurses. As Cyr (1992), stated, “the art and science of nursing has not always been a predominantly female profession”(p.54).

5.6 Conclusion

In all, this chapter has presented a discussion of the findings of the study. The various demographic profiles of the respondents, the reasons for choosing nursing, the experiences, and the stereotypes among male nurses in Malta were presented, with subsequent presentations of other relevant studies. At the end of the analysis and discussion, it was found that various related literatures, both old and new, confirmed the results of the study, while there were a few others that disputed it. Overall, the findings suggested that men employed in nursing, are just as committed to the profession as women.

5.7 Strengths and Limitations of the study

It should be noted that this study has several limitations and strengths. Firstly, the chosen sample does not represent male nurses as a whole. The male nurses that work in Gozo, and other different hospitals in Malta were not included in this research. Moreover, a satisfactory response rate (88.6%) helped strengthen the outcome of the study.

However, the purpose of the study was not intended to allow generalisation among the male nurses working in different hospitals in Malta and Gozo.

Secondly, a self- administered questionnaire was used to collect data, and thus all data that were used in this study were self-reported. Although the questions for the survey were carefully chosen and modified by the researcher reading an extensive literature especially Smith (2008), it seems that some of the respondents did not understand that their sexual orientation was not questioned, but only concept of gender stereotype. To avoid similar misunderstandings, in future studies, a focus group design method could contribute to explain the motivation for choosing nursing as a profession, and career development of male nurses in a female dominated profession.

The rather high response rate of 88.5% indicated that male nurses were interested in subject, and this helped strengthen the outcome of the study. Although in this study, the research tool was a questionnaire, some qualitative data were also obtained.

Despite being time limited prior to specific deadlines, this study has educated and motivated the researcher to understand more nursing as a science.

Although this study was purely quantitative, some findings provided valuable information about male nurses in a female dominated profession. Further qualitative research could give clearer picture about the real perceptions of men in nursing, and establish the extent to which the findings from this research can be applied in more general context. The next chapter shall conclude this dissertation with recommendation for further research, and implications in nursing.

Gender reflects the socially constructed roles, behaviours, activities, and attributes that are considered apt for men and women in any society. Mostly the terms gender and sex are not differed and taken as closely related terms. Sex relates to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women while gender refers to cultural differences rather than biological ones between men and women. Male and female are sex categories while feminine and masculine are gender categories.

Moser (1993) says that the differences between women and men within the same household and within and between cultures are socially and culturally constructed and can be altered over time. These differences are mirrored in social roles, responsibilities, access to resources, social limitations, opportunities, needs, perceptions, views, etc. Thus, gender does not take only women, but considers both women and men and their interdependent relationships and responsibilities.

Reversal

A reversal can be taken as change whether the change is a positive or negative against the prevailing trend. It is a change from one state to the opposite state turning the situation into an opposite direction or situation.

Gender Roles

A gender role defines the appropriate social and behavioral norms adopted by men and women in a social setting. Gender roles vary from culture to culture and traditions and roles can change over time even in the same cultural settings. Gender roles are cultural and personal to determine the speaking, dressing and communicative styles of males and females within a society. These cognitive frameworks are deeply embedded within the minds of males and females to define the masculine and feminine roles. Various socializing agents like parents, peers, teachers, television, movies, music, books and religion influence determining the gender roles within a society. Parents are the biggest factor to decide the gender roles especially of their young offspring.

Parents usually treat male and female infants differently. Expectations for males and females are set in a very early age. Traditionally, boys are taught how to fix and build things and how to earn for household and girls are taught how to cook, sew and manage the household. Children then receive parental and social approval when they conform to gender expectations and adapt themselves to the cultural and conventional roles which are reinforced by the additional socializing agent, media. In other words, gender roles and the values pass from one generation to the successive generation in a society.

Linda L. Lindsey and Sandra Christie (n.d.) say that as long as the girl infant is wrapped in the pink blanket and the boy infant is wrapped in blue blanket, the development of gender roles gets started. The pink and blue colours are the first indications given by the society to distinguish a female from male. As they grow up, the other cultural factors assure the distinction to remain intact. Girls are given dolls, doll houses and tiny stoves to pretend run a whole household system while boys are given toy tools to construct buildings and toy weapons and tanks to wage wars. In the teen and adult age, girls buy cosmetics and clothes while boys buy sports components and stereo components that is a result of gender role socialization. Commonly the gender roles espoused in childhood remain constant in adulthood.

Gender Roles in Pakistan

According to a Gilani Research Foundation survey carried out by Gallup Pakistan (april 27, 2009), majority of the Pakistani males and females have distinct roles to play in the society. In the recent years although women’s status and role has been uplifted beyond being a housewife, the priority is still given to men in politics, education, employment, and related walks of life.

Dr. Rakhshinda Parveen (n.d.) expresses that the constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan dictates equal rights for men and women. However, men are more equal than women in reality. The reality shows women in lower status than men in every sphere of life whether it’s education, food, health care or freedom of choice of partner. According to the Human Development Report 1999 of UNDP, the Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM) rank of Pakistan among 185 countries is 100. This rank determines the empowerment of women on a country basis. This measurement results in unequal status of women in economic resources, participation in political decision-making and economic decision-making. In spite of the fact that the Holy Quran dictates the equal rights for women wellbeing and development, women have always been the main target of rights violation in the Muslim countries. The typical subjugated image of Pakistani women reflects the centuries old patriarchy deeply rooted in the sub-continent. Although, emancipation and empowerment has always been documented in the legal documents, this has not come to the reality to its full extent yet.

The two fundamental perceptions establish the gender relations in Pakistan that women are inferior to men and that a man’s honour is determined by the actions of women of his family. In the Muslim societies, women bear the honour of the family name. To ensure that honour, they are not supposed to dishonor their families, their mobility is limited and they have restrictions on their behavior and activities and have very limited contact with the opposite sex. Women are constrained to have “Purdah” (veil) to restrain their protection and respectability. “Purdah” creates physically and symbolically different spheres for men and women by separating their activities. Mostly women spend their time at home to do homely tasks and go out only for serious and approved reasons. Social life generally revolves around the activities of men in society. In the most parts of the country, except in Islamabad, Karachi, and wealthier parts of a few other cities, those families are considered shameless who do not restrict their women. “Purdah” is practiced according to the family tradition, class and rural or urban residence but men and women do not mix freely anywhere without serious reasosn. The most extreme restraints can be found in parts of the North-West Frontier Province and Balochistan, where women are not allowed to almost leave the house before they get married and are not allowed to meet the unrelated men and they cannot contact with their male cousins on their mother’s side, because these men are not classed as relatives in a strongly patrilineal society. In the rural areas of Punjab and Sindh, gender relations are relaxed because women are equally responsible with men fosr transplanting, rice seedlings, weeding crops, raising chickens and selling eggs. When a family aspires a higher status, it entails stricter ‘purdah” as a first social change. (Jone Johnson Lewis, 1994)

Some urban women, residing in the close-knit communities in the old cities of Lahore and Rawalpndi, generally wear a burqa(fitted body veil) or a “chadar” (loosely drapped cotton cloth used as a head covering and body veil) when they leave the homes. They usually live in a multistory (havelis) building constructed to accommodate large extended families. The places where people do not know their neighbours, there are less restrictions on women’s mobility.

Reversal of Gender Roles

In the modern times, the old perceptions of a patriarchal society are destabilized that has shifted the earlier unequal power dynamics between males and females and has resulted in the empowerment of women over men. The traditional gender roles have given a way to totally reversed roles to reserve the rights and emancipation of women. Now a days, wives are earning as much as 20% more than their husbands in the whole world that dictates the changing power dynamics that shows that women have got the power to harness the economic power upsetting the old traditional patriarchal beliefs. Traditionally, the women used to need physical protection and economic stability provided by men to save their submissiveness. (Kandiyoti,1988). The traditional patriarchal hierarchy has been shattered and resulted in females patronizing their male counterparts in courtship.

Modern women have become more educated and successful, that education and awareness has empowered women resulting in displacing men from their gendered position in society. The emergent trend of educated women out-earning their partners has led to changes in social perceptions and household roles. It has gradually shifted the institutionalized and privileged status of males in society. If women become the breadwinners, the domestic order shifts automatically to men because there is not any other option and this can give both men and women a sense of purpose and identity.

Alongside the empowerment of women, the emasculation of men redefines the masculinity and femininity which has determined the gender activities of society. Men, who have become domestic, have redefined the masculinity by entitling them as “providers” who provides not only economically but also emotionally and logistically. The traditional notion of masculinity of a father has been limited to begetting protecting and providing for children. The difference between what is masculine and what is feminine is what is determined by the gender roles adopted by both the genders. However, by bearing the role of childrearing and household chores, the masculinity of males comes into question that results in confusion in the individual male’s social identity. As a result, unemployed husbands preserve their masculinity by claiming that they are still provider if not economically but emotionally as they spend more time with their children than their own fathers. (Liza Mundy, 2011)

Deccan Herald (2012) conducted a research to study the effects of massive social changes on gender relations. The study has found that men today want babies and commitment, while women are more likely to want independence in their relationships. The study was conducted on over 5,000 American adults and the results revealed that more than half of the single men wanted to have children as compared to just 46 percent of women. The results showed the effects of the growing gender role reversal.

History of Gender Roles Reversal

The gender ideologies have changed since 1970s. Women became aware of their rights and emancipation with the emergence of feminist movement in 1970s. In 1960, 19 percent of married women with young children were in the paid labour force (U.S. bureau of the Census 1999). By 1998, the ratio of working women was up to 64 percent. This movement of mothers into the work places in the time span of 40 years left a profound effect on the attitudes towards the working women in the public and private spheres. The most of the American men approved and expected their wives to be active in working outside homes as the paid labour force. At the same time the provider role ideology continued to have great effects on males and females. The modern men and women are more receptive for women participation in working places than they were in 1970s. The nostalgia for breadwinner/homemaker family can still be found but more in men than women. Although some men resent the constricted definition of masculinity that narrows their role as economic providers, they stick to their roles as emotional providers among their children. (Teresa Ciabattari, n.d.)

A minority of U.S men resisted changes in women’s roles that could result as harmful for children and family life. These rapid changes in the roles of women have resulted in the widening gap between men’s and women’s attitudes. There is a larger gender difference in attitudes than it was 25 years before. (Teresa Ciabattari, n.d.)

Reversal of Gender Roles in Pakistan

Gender roles have not been altogether revolutionized in Pakistan but have still been treading the way to transform. The contemporary socio-political and economic conditions in Pakistan are restrained in the paradigm of patriarchy and capitalism. The envoys of women rights movements have been shouting out loud the revolution in the gender roles that has resulted in women working in every field of life. Women have come out of their spheres at home to take part in the tread of progress but they have instigated some initial stages yet and have a long way to trek on. (Pak Tea House, 2012) The women of Pakistan had confronted great challenges in the early 1990s such as increasing practical literacy, gaining access to employment opportunities at all levels in the economy. This development promoted a change in perception about women’s roles in society. Women status in society gained public voices from within and outside the political process.

The twentieth century has seen various attempts to bring social and legal reforms to improve the Muslim women’s lives in the subcontinent. Islam has played very important role to develop the rights of women since partition.

Muslim reformers in the nineteenth century introduced women education to ease some of the restraints on women’s activities to ensure women’s rights under Islamic law. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan organizes the Mohammedan Educational Conference in the 1870s to endorse modern education for Muslims, and he founded the Muhammadan Anglo- Oriental College. Many of the early proponents of education improved the status of women education by initiating cooking and sewing classes initially in a religious framework to advance women knowledge and skills. Still the literacy rate was very low as in 1921, there were only four out of every 1,000 Muslim females were literate. (countrystudies.com, n.d.)

Different organizations have been developed for the betterment of women’s rights. The Gender and Development (GAD) was introduced as a replacement to the Women in Development (WID) approach. Both organizations aspire to construct the gender equality and tackle the subordination of women in the home and in the public sphere. WID was established in the late-1970s, when it was acknowledged that women were left at the sideline in the process of development and progress of country. WID tended to examine women in isolation while GAD developed the female gender roles maintained by many facets of society, community, economy and not least of all, men. Gad aims to empower women to increase women self esteem, to encourage women organizations. (Jenny Mason, 2009). GAD challenges the social norms which dictate the women subordinate position to men. The educational gender gap in Pakistan is the result of the specific historical, political and cultural forces. (Jafar, 2002)

The movement for independence from the British colonization in 1947 was very significant for women who challenged their traditional, domestic gender roles in the male patriarchal society to actively participate in the fight for common Muslim rights. (Jafar, 2002) During the period from independence to the beginning of Zia ul-Haq’s rule in 1977, there was a coalition between the women’s movement and the state with a common goal to create a modern Pakistan by equalizing women’s rights: by granting them government jobs and increasing educational rights for women. (Jenny Mason, 2009)

In 1977, General Zial ul-Haq overthrew the government of Zulfiqar Bhuto thinking it to be un-Islamic and aspired for Pakistan to “return to Islam”. General Zia ul-Haq emphasized the dichotomy of Islam versus the West. This Islamization approach appealed many anti-colonialists and nationalists who supported patriarchy in the country. They accentuated the symbol of Pakistani women as traditional and a symbol of honour for their male partners. Women were taken as ideological boundary makers between Muslims and the western World. (Jafar, 2002) These laws and norms moved women to the private sphere and those who continued to work in the public sphere were portrayed as the symbols of moral decay.

In spite of Zia’s efforts to restrict women’s liberty in the public sphere, the women’s movement in Pakistan continued to develop during his rule. The Women’s Action Forum (WAF) was established in 1981, which fought for the policies created by Zia and their promotion gained international attention which placed a negative pressure on Zia’s government which helped to avert the further discrimination of women’s rights. After the suspicious death of Zia in 1988, Benazir Bhutto, the daughter of Ali Bhutto, was elected as the first female Prime Minister of Pakistan which was a big step towards the growth of women in Pakistan. (Jenny Mason, 2009)

Although today women’s rights’ movements and organizations are active in fighting for gender equality, only few are willing to touch the family traditions and honour. Others tend to remain traditional when it comes to the family honour and name.

Islam as well as Pakistan’s constitution has dictated equal rights for man and woman but the society greatly violates women rights. Despite all these violations, Pakistani women have elevated their status in society with the help of some organizations, enlightened groups and government. It has happened just because of the increase in awareness of girls’ education

Now in Pakistan women are working everywhere as in schools, colleges, universities, offices, factories, hospitals etc. they are students, workers, teachers, doctors, nurses and pilots. Pakistani women have proved to do whatever they are capable of despite all the hardships they face in society. These working women are seeding a silent revolution in Pakistan. A silent social revolution has seeped in with rising number of women joining the workforce and moving up the corporate ladder in Pakistan. (Fehmina Arshad, n.d.) They are doing everything from pumping gasoline and serving burgers at McDonald’s to running major corporations. Women now hold 78 of the 342 seats in the National Assembly. The cultural norms regarding the women in the workforce have been changed.

Despite all the enlightenment and development regarding the rights of women and their being in the workforce, the society has still been captured into the old shackles of conservatism and the working women have to face criticism and condemnation from some for being bold enough to stand up for their rights. Working women are always blamed for being poor mothers and condemned to bring a bad name on the honour of the family in Pakistan. (Fehmina Arshad, n.d.) Despite women taking earning responsibilities, men do not take any attention about household chores. Women have to bear outside as well as inside home responsibilities.

Pakistani Television Dramas (History)

The Pakistan Television Corporation or PTV is Pakistan’s first national television broadcaster. PTV transmitted its first live program on November 26, 1964, in Lahore. Pakistan started its broadcasting from a small pilot TV Station which was established at Lahore from where first transmission was beamed in Black and White with effect. Television centres were established in Karachi and Rawalpindi/Islamabad in 1967 and in Peshawar and Quetta in 1974. (Rafay Mehmood, 2011) Pakistani media has played a foremost job in programming many unforgettable Pakistan classical dramas which inspired the generations in the past history. PTV started the tendency of making classic dramas with the help of intellectual writers, powerful direction, and multitalented actors.(Anum saulat, 2010)

The decades of 1970s, 1980s and 1990s have seen the tremendous success of dramas and telefilms in the Indian Subcontinent. There was only one TV channel, PTV, at that time which had touched the peak of success in drama making. PTV telecasted many popular dramas like ‘dhoop Kinary’, ‘ankahi’, ‘tanhayian’ and ‘dhuan’. The whole concept behind telecasting such dramas is to present a well prepared family drama with a strong script to provide a clean environment. The credit of such classic dramas goes to the brilliant story writers like Haseena Moen, Seema Ghazal, Ashfaq Ahmad etc. Their stories mirrored the heart touching issues of society. This was the magnificent time for Pakistani classic dramas which won many national as well as international awards. (Anum Saulat, 2010) The most famous drama serials of this time include Khuda Ki Basti, Unkahi, Tanhaiyaan, Akhri Chatan, Zair Zabar, Aangan Terha, Fifty Fifty, Studio Dhai (2-1/2), Studio Ponay Teen (2-3/4), Andehra Ujala, Sona Chandi, Uncle Urfi, Taleem-e-Baalighan, Alif Noon, Waaris, Dhoop Kinare, Sunehray Din, Alpha Bravo Charlie, Ana, and block buster serials like Pesh, Dhuwan, Kath Putli, Wafa Ham Nibhaein Gai, Bandhan, Kaghaz Kay Phool, Muqqdas, Bint-e-Adam, Malangi, Sawan, Sheela Bagh, Tinkay, Aisa Bhi Hota Hai bhar, rasta de zindgi, and many others.

Many programs were very popular even in India. Indian streets used to become deserted when few of the most popular Pakistani TV dramas were broadcasted. Although Pakistan and India are always at daggers drawn with each other, still the dramas of PTV were very popular and still are studied in the acting academies in India.

In the early 90s, the private produces entered the territory of Pakistani TV for the first time and presented some phenomenal programs such as drama serial ‘Jaal’ and ‘Kashkol’, cooking shows like ‘potluck’ and sitcoms including ‘family Front’ and ‘Teen Bata Teen’ that enthralled the viewers for a long time. Though Indian programs like ‘CID’ and Ekta Kapoor’s ‘Hum Panch’ created a small cult of their own but the local channel STN and PTV kept the countrol. Whether the field was drama , sitcom or crime stories, the 1990s gave a tough time to Indian Programming because of the quality, cultural relevance of the local dramas and because the access to the satellite channel wasn’t easy In Pakistan and was considered a luxury. (Rafay Mehmood, 2011) As the sun was setting on PTV’s golden era, Family Front’s Sumbal, Nusrat and Bobby; Alpha Bravo Charlie’s Faraz, Kashif and Gulsher; Samsung VJ’s Faisal Qureshi, Jawad Bashir, Ahsan Rahim, Amna Khan and Ahmad Ibrahim; Teen Bata Teen’s Lucy, Johnny and Shaffu became a cult icon and are still remembered for their brilliant performances to make the characters everlasting. (Shiza Nisar, 2010)

There came a time starting from 2001 when Indian dramas showed on a channel, Star Plus, were immensely popular that they not only attracted the women but also children started watching them. But now Pakistani dramas once again have touched the peaks of fame. Indian dramas got famous because of the glamour and family politics shown in them. These dramas affected the Pakistani cultural norms values and traditions so badly that the living styles of the viewers became Indian and they corrupted the society as they were so unreal. They showed the unrealistic lives of industrialists, elites and landlords through glamour. In the start Pakistani dramas started copying their style but soon they turned back to their own identity with the arrival of new competitive private producers in the industry.

With the realization that the Indian dramas had corrupted the society, these drama makers extinguished the Indian elements from the productions to follow their old trends of limited episodes and powerful story line. Many writers started writing many powerful stories for different TV channels like Geo, Hum TV, PTV, ARY digital. (Anam Saulat, 2010) Now a day, expression in media has resulted in a lot of channels and variety of Pakistani dramas for the viewers and every channel is now struggling hard to provide the audience with the best dramas ever. This competition has aggravated them to make good serials which reflect and mirror the true picture of Pakistani culture and traditions. Because of this sudden revival of Pakistani dramas, the audience loves the new dramas very much. (Shiza Nisar, 2010)

The modern dramas that have gained popularity are ‘meri zaat zarraye be-nishan’ ‘Ainee ki aygi barat’ series on Geo and , ‘nur pur ki rani’ ‘malaal’ ‘wasal’ ‘nur bano’ ,qaide e tanhai’, ,humsafar’ and many others on Hum TV. These dramas are realistic with powerful direction and script. They mirror the societal issues that actually exist in the society. Moreover, dramas like ‘wasal’, ‘ishk junoon deewangi’ ‘doraha’ and ‘malaal’ focus on the problems that are faced in a marriage because of modernity and reversal of gender roles. These problems do prevail these days. The reason why the ratio of divorces has increased is well depicted in these dramas. People should be well aware of the bitter realities that prevail in society. (Anum Saulat, 2010)

Reversal of Gender Roles in Pakistani Dramas

The electronic media in Pakistan has become an avenue for women to be seen shoulder-to-shoulder with men where they can work as diligently as they can to be an active part of the society. However, the role of women in our media seems to be heading in a direction where only their looks and attractiveness can be rewarded. (Zirgham Nabi Afridi, 2010)

Most of these dramas revolve around the family, especially women, often as independent individuals and most often as mothers, sisters and wives. The majority of Pakistani dramas today are a strange mix of progress and retreat. Some of the serials hold a few liberal, progressive and gender-sensitive messages, most of them emphasize patriarchal values existed in society. The Pakistani dramas reflect two main streams to depict the gender roles. One is to portray women as dependent on their male partners in a male patriarchal society. Women are shown being brutalized by men, slapped, beaten up, disgraced and ill-treated and men are depicted as the decision makers of the family, who simply dictate women what to do and what not to do. The other stream is to show the women indulged in working shoulder to shoulder with men to be an active participant in the progress of society. They are well aware of their rights and can stand for their liberties if ill-treated but the working women are also portrayed negatively who are the main source for a home breakup. It is rather difficult for the general viewing public to understand the contradictory messages lying within the modern day drama. Working women are depicted as strong and independent, yet also negatively portrayed as cunning (In Durr-e-Shawar the male lead, Haider, laments the fact that his wife, Shandana, is a working woman). (Tasneem Ahmar, 2012)

Television dramas can be considered as important tool to propagate gender equality. The dramas depicting equality of gender roles do not expose the overt victimization of women in them. Female characters in these serial are strong, independent and intelligent. How women are portrayed on TV is linked to the prevalent trends set by the management of entertainment television channels. The women who have reached the top in management struggle to change the prevailing trends. They act like new trend setters. Sultana Siddiqui, for example, established a policy that no woman will be slapped in the dramas aired on the TV channel she heads. Moneeza Hashmi, as managing director of the state-run television in Lahore, supported extensive programming intended to guarantee the women’s rights and gender equality. After she left, the policy unfortunately seems to have disappeared. (Bushra S, 2012)

One usually obtains their gender roles usually through social interactions rather than obtaining it genetically. When humans are born, one are endowed with a small concept of gender. Manners and proper behavior is mainly learned through the social interactions with others and also the relationships with one another. Our gender identity is build through the interactions or experience from our parents, media, people from school, work or at home and also society can influence our gender identity. Depending on how we are raised greatly affects on how one acts as they grow up. The media can influence every aspect of one’s life, their lifestyle, fashion, physical appearance, and also behavior. Society has the power to change the behavior and people’s point of views way more than what genetics or biological can.

The genetic make-up for all living beings mainly humans are usually born with might affect their physical abilities, but one usually learns how to act in specific ways by just watching the people around them. An example of this would be that when boys of a young age watches cartoons or anything that involves a male aspect, theses young boys are usually influenced by the characters or what they see on television. Usually these characters are portrayed to be in a violent and aggressive manner, which cause these children to act what they see. On the bright side mainly super heroes are the ones that influence young boys the most such as Superman,

Spiderman, Iron or even Batman and they are usually portrayed to be a strong, very athletic and brave hero which can influence a boy’s every action.

In cartoons like these there is also a downside to it to where boys are depicted to be destructive and usually aggressive as well to a point where it suggest that males should be very competitive to one another. Children at younger age are also more vulnerable to be influenced by television when compared to an adult due to the maturity level of one another. Not only just the boys also the older males are influenced by today’s media, televisions, music and society. An example of this would be the music artist Eminem where he wants males to be very violent and rebel against homosexuality and also be dominant towards females. Usually the younger teens are influenced by this because of the lack of maturity to make their own choices or decisions and these young males are gullible to a point where they are influenced by what they see. There was a Columbine massacre or incident in 1999 that proved that the boys who killed all those innocent students derived all of their ideas from certain movies and television shows. This proves that teens at a very open age that can be easily manipulated by society to act in predictable or spontaneous ways.

According to Diekman, author of “Stereotypes as dynamic constructs: Women and men of the past, present, and future.” states that “typical characteristics for women are piety, submissiveness, and domesticity, while authority, and social behavior, are traits commonly held by men”. When girls are young, they are usually given a Barbie doll to play with and are expected to grow up as the ideal Barbie girl who is very beautiful looking and supposedly very feminine. Girls are usually less athletic when compared to boys due to their genetic make-up; they just tend to not be athletic. Due to this genetic unfairness between males and females, parents would not treat each gender the same way when it comes down to sports. The boys are usually taught to be very aggressive because they are more athletic and competitive than girls while on the other hand girls are encouraged to express or release their feelings and its ok for them to cry openly. Boys are never encouraged to cry or complain about anything. They are taught to replace the feminine feelings of fear and sorrow and replace them with excitement or anger. Boys or males in particular use the phrase “be a man” referring to being tough or strong and one that never shows his emotions.

Children can also be influenced by their peers to act in specific ways at a very young vulnerable age. One can be made fun of easily if they are usually doing things that don’t suit

their gender. An example would be if a young boy or any male would easily be made fun of if they like to play with dolls, like shopping or just play in the kitchen. The society and media shows what types of things that certain gender should usually be doing for each gender. On television, it would usually have specific types of clothes, toys, jobs, etc for each of the genders and what they think each gender should follow. Due to these social influences, males and females act the way one does because of how society taught one to grow up to be. As for careers men are the dominant one because of how they can handle tougher jobs than a woman. Women are depicted to be caring for others or cooperative with anything and also just less valued. Woman careers are preferred to usually be models, nurses or even housewives.

According to InfoRefuge on an article about Gender Roles and the Media, it states that “our society continues to respect and represent men more than women in every aspect of our daily lives.” People were raised by the society to think what men and women are capable of. Due to these circumstances these are usually the reasons why men mainly get “better” jobs than women do and also have a better chance of getting jobs in the work force. Gender stereotypes are everywhere and still occur today. For example, it is not acceptable in this society for a female to coach a men’s sports team at any type of level professional, college or either high school team male oriented teams. This is a huge deficit and disadvantage because of the fact that females too can be amazing coaches sometimes way more superior to most males and therefore the players would miss out the chance from learning and gain experience this coach. The female coaches also suffers from not gaining or they miss the opportunity to coach these male players and are often force to pass down their knowledge to just female players. Society is unfair to judge solely on one’s capabilities on gender. Therefore theses better jobs that usually pay a lot, females are solely at a disadvantage of getting the job due to their gender which is unavoidable.

Another influence that society has on one is when people begin to date. There are certain specific behaviors that are supposedly expected by each gender because of the social influence, custom and usage in society. Men are the ones that should be expected to pay for the date, drive and also ask the girl out and many more outdated manners that guys should usually do for a woman. Women on the other hand, also have a specific role in the dating game. When two people get married, society assumes specific roles according to their gender. Men are expected go to work to pay for the bills, put a roof over their heads and also put food on the table. According to an article on CliffNotes on gender stereotypes, it states that “Traditionally, the female stereotypic role is to marry and have children.” This means usually women are the ones staying at home to take care of the children or plainly be a housewife. These stereotypical roles are starting to deteriorate because of the fact that it’s society’s standards. Women are far more important that what society depicts, they also have the same capabilities as any other man or human being. They could also be working or doing the exact same thing as man could or even better. There are no biological or physical abilities that hold men and woman to these assumed roles in society.

Humans are born knowing which gender they are, but one learns their gender identity through the interactions of what we grow up with and learn how society expects them to act. There is no possible way that one could learn what one believes in and behaviors through biological influences; society has a much stronger influence on the way people act solely based on gender. Everyone in this world is born with some kind of innate ability on how to act relative to gender, but the way on is raised, how one interact with others and also the influences that the media has is what influences one’s gender identity.

“Gender is the division of people into two categories, “men and women”. Through interaction with caretakers, socialization in childhood, peer pressure in adolescence, gendered work and family roles, women and men are socially constructed to be different in behaviour, attitudes and emotions (Borgatta. E.F. andMontgomery, R.J.V,2000,p.1057).

HOW DO WE LEARN TO ACT AS MALES OR FEMALES?

We learn to act as males or females through:(1) gender roles

(2) gender identity

(3) gender socialization

WHAT ARE GENDER ROLES?

Gender roles are the roles that society assigns to men and women based on their gender. They especially influence relationships between men and women

Womens’ lifestyles are changing to accommodate new careers, education and family structures, and their role in society is being adjusted accordingly. Education has evolved from providing them with skills necessary for building a family and managing a household into a more broad, extensive education that benefits them in a variety of careers as well as allows them to reach a higher social status as educated members of society. In secondary schools, teachers who provided female students with homemaking skills have switched to more intellectual courses like physics and biology.

Bitter feminists around the world were often heard blaming men for the current state of the world, but it should be realized that part of the future of the twenty first century, is determined by how much women corporate with working with men to influence the direction of the nations of the world. There is the link of the relationship between female literacy and independence growth where the level of female literacy is higher and the dependency growth is lower. The twentieth century has been the dawn of a new era for women in the world. They have evolved and broken many barriers in social status and education level. Stemming from backgrounds that were tough and limited where they were maids, field labourers and cooks, they have definitely matured, transitioning to higher and more meaningful roles in society. Their determination and push for social equality has had a major role to play in the development of the world. This development is a major factor responsible for the state of the economies in the world today. Women have graduated from being mainly domestic workers to that of doctors, athletes, and Prime Ministers. They are also specializing in jobs that were once only occupied by men, for example, filling the position of managers, engineers, safety-officers and welders just to name a few. Young girls and women living in these modern times must take advantage of the opportunities provided and use the resources that are available to them. Women must become less dependent on the opposite sex and strive to earn their own in terms of possession and finances etc.

Women are venturing out and challenging themselves but some of the men have occupied traditional female roles and at a slower pace, for example, men have become hairstylists, cooks house-keepers, baby-sitters etc. Traditional hierarchical organizations are a thing of the past. In the working environment, the strategies used by women to reach mid-management levels are preventing them from breaking through the glass ceiling. To be successful, both men and women must be able to get excellent results through people-oriented leadership practices. They become self-disciplined, ambitious and are likely to embrace a visible, take charge and influential approach to their roles. Contrary to common stereotype, women are better team players than men and are better at communicating and keeping people informed; are able to put the success of the team first, using influencing skills rather than authority to accomplish objectives. As far as leadership values go, co-workers rate women higher in such skills as hiring the right people for the job, developing and coaching subordinates, and organizing, monitoring and controlling the work of others. They are also better at creating a vision and setting clear direction and high standards of performance.

Even though women’s decisions are of high quality, they continue to be viewed as less objective, less flexible and lower in emotional control than men. Their more forthright communication style, may appear less polished and diplomatic than men’s when dealing with those above them in the hierarchy. In the future, there should be transformational leadership for regional and national renewal for sustainable development using methods by the media, including church women and social welfare organizations and communications programmes on the concept and practice of a new kind of leadership, which is gender issues, and expectations in leadership and improving the capacity of various interests groups in understanding and analysing issues from gender perspective through seminars, workshops and public as well as community meetings. At a regional level, steps of the process of assigning people to do different tasks , must take place as well as setting up a monitoring framework and specific demands should be developed and implemented. From this a new culture will emerge when building positive relationships, command authority and interacting with the world. Everything involving women has changed and will continue to do so over the next decades. In every arena, women have continued to excel and have definitely made a dramatic difference in the world.

WHAT IS GENDER IDENTITY?

Gender identity refers to the feeling that one is male, female or transgender. Many things contribute to the formation of gender identity, including society, family and factors that are in place before birth. Transgender individuals may have the genitals of one sex but a gender identity, usually associated with the other; example, a person born with a penis who feels female may identify as transgender.

According to Paul Connelly (1998), a study showed interesting insights into the relationship between gender and ethnicity. I t was seen that children in schools, though young brought the ways of thinking about masculinity, family and ethnicity into the school arena. I t was found that teachers at these schools were more likely to criticize the behaviour of black boys than other children, and for this the boys were sent outside for deviant behaviour, were singled out and instructed to stand by a door or wall, or even the outside the staff room during playtime. These boys were stigmatized for being black and were accused of being part of “race” crime and gangs. Their black sisters were perceived as potential disruptive children, likely to be good in

sports and also singled out and punished. On the other hand, the South Asian boys were seen as immature rather than seriously deviant. Their behaviour was viewed as silly rather than a threat, and according to the teachers, they were described as passive, conformists and vulnerable. They

were not able to express their masculinity as their performance in sports was not good. However, they preferred to focus on school work. The South Asian girls appeared to be more hard-working and obedient than the boys and compared to other girls. The teachers encouraged the girls to focus more on their school work which in turn caused them to be very competitive with other girls in the school. This study shows how gender and ethnicity interact in creating identities among children, also some of the ways this might influence educational achievement in schools as well as showing how these children create the gender identities found in schools.

WHAT IS GENDER SOCIALIZATION?

Gender Socialization is the process of learning the social expectations and attitudes associated with one’s sex. Through this process, sociologists explain why human males and females behave in different ways; they learn different social roles, for example, girls learn to wash and keep a home clean and boys learn to clean the backyard and put out the rubbish.

Socialization is the primary means by which human infants begin to acquire the skills necessary to perform as a functioning member of their society, and is the most influential learning process for a child to experience. Though the variation is materialized in the customs and behaviours of societies, the most fundamental expression of culture is to be found at the individual level, which can only occur after the individual has been socialized by the family, extended family and external social networks. This process of both learning and teaching is the way in which cultural and social characteristics are continued and passed down to generations.

Sociologists, such as Durkeim, noted the relationship between norms, values and roles during socialization. The following are the different types of socialization:

PRIMARY SOCIALIZATION

This occurs when a child learns the attitudes, values and behaviour suitable to individuals as members of a particular culture. For example a child witnessing his/her parent giving a derogatory opinion about a minority group, then the child would automatically think that behaviour is acceptable and continue to have this opinion about minority groups.

SECONDARY SOCIALIZATION

This socialization refers to the process of learning what is acceptable behaviour as a member of a smaller group within the larger society. It is normally associated with teenagers and adults, and involves more minute changes than those which occurred in the former socialization; such as, relocating to a new environment or society.

DEVELOPMENTAL SOCIALIZATION

With this process learning behaviour is done in a social institution or social skills are developed.

ANTICIPATORY SOCIALIZATION

Anticipatory socialization refers to the process of socialization where a person “rehearses” for future positions, occupations and social relationships, for example on the job training (O.J.T).

RESOCIALIZATION

This refers to the process of discarding former behaviour patterns and accepting new ones as part of a transition on one’s life. It occurs throughout the human life cycle and can be an intense experience with an individual having a sharp break with the past, and needing to learn and be exposed to radically different norms and values. An example would be a religious convert internalizing the beliefs and rituals of a new faith. An extreme example is the process by which a transsexual learns to function socially in a dramatically altered gender role.

ORGANIZATIONAL SOCIALIZATION

This process involves employees learning the knowledge and skills necessary to assume their organizational role. As they are new to the institution, they become socialized by learning about the organization and its history, culture and procedures etc. They also learn about the skills needed to do the job, their work group and formal procedures and informal norms. Socialization functions as a control system in that newcomers learn to internalize and obey organizational values and practices.

WHAT IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE?

Domestic violence is a pattern of coercive and controlling behaviours and tactics used by one person over another to gain power and control. This may include verbal abuse, financial, emotional, sexual and physical abuse. Domestic violence occurs in heterosexual as well as same-sex partnerships, and crosses all ethnic, racial and socio-economic lines.

Domestic violence has many forms of which there are five:

PHYSICAL: which is inflicting or attempting to inflict physical injury. Examples of these are, grabbing, shoving, slapping, hitting, arm-twisting, kicking, punching, stabbing, shooting. Physical abuse can also be used to deny access to resources necessary to maintain health, such as, medical care, hygienic assistance, forcing alcohol and other drug use.

SEXUAL: Forcing or attempting to coerce any sexual contact without consent, for example, marital rape, forced sex after beating, attacks on the sexual parts of the body. Another method used is attempting to undermine the victim’s sexuality, such as treating him/her in a sexually derogatory manner, criticizing sexual performance and desirability and accusations of indidelity.

PSYCHOLOGICAL: this involves instilling or attempting to instill fear, example, intimidation, threatening physical harm to self/victim, threatening to harm/kidnap children, mind games, destruction of pets and property. There is also the method of isolating or attempting to isolate the victim from friends, family, school/work, example: withholding access to a phone, constant “checking up”, undermining victim’s personal relationships.

EMOTIONAL: undermining or attempting to undermine the victim’s sense of worth by using constant criticism, belittling victim’s abilities and competency, name-calling, insults, put-downs, silent treatment, and undermining a partner’s relationship with the children.

ECONOMIC: this involves making or attempting to make the victim financially dependent. For example, having and maintaining total control over financial resources including the victim’s earned income, public assistance if any, withholding money/access to money, requiring accountability and victim giving an account for all money spent.

COMPARISON AND CONTRAST OF THE SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY AND THE GENDER SCHEMA THEORY

The social learning theory of Bandura specifies the importance of observing and modelling the behaviours, attitudes and emotional reactions of others. Most human behaviour is learned observationally through modelling: from this, one is able to understand how the new behaviours are done.

Aggression is one type of behaviour that can be learnt through models. Through a lot of research, it was found that children become more aggressive when they observe aggressive or violent models. Bandura stated that there were conditions that an individual requires before successfully modelling the behaviour of someone else. The person must first pay attention to the model in order to be able to remember the behaviour that was observed, then must be able to repeat what was demonstrated. Finally, motivation is needed to complete modelling a behaviour. Modelling helps to increase the frequency of similar behaviours, for example, a girl noticing her friend excelling in dancing and then she may try to excel in singing as she does not have the skills for dancing. Most of the time persons engage in certain behaviours because they believe they can put them into action successfully. As a result, it can be said that the person has ‘high self-efficacy’. Persons who have high self-efficacy tend to be better and often achieve more at whatever they pursue.

In contrast, the gender schema theory (Bem 1981) focuses on the role of cognitive organization in addition to socialization This theory postulates that children learn how their cultures and societies define the role of men and women and then internalize this knowledge as a gender scheme or unchallenged core belief. This scheme is then used to organize subsequent experiences. Children’s perceptions of men and women are thus an interaction between their gender schemas and their experiences. Eventually, they will incorporate their own self-concepts into their gender schema and will assume the traits and behaviours that they deem appropriate for their gender. So, even with children learning from modelling behaviour and also learning how their culture defines the roles of male and female, what is internalized and is actually modelled are very different in terms of positive and negative behaviours and roles.

INTERVIEW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SURVIVOR TAKEN ON 5/4/2011

Question: Is this your first experience of Domestic Violence?

Answer: Yes.

Question: When did you notice the signs of Domestic Violence?

Answer: I was twenty, there were subtle signs from the relationship. The other person was ten years older than me.

Question: When did you decide to seek help or did someone call for help for you?

Answer: I called for help myself.

Question: Were there others in your family who were also abused?

Answer: No.

Question: How many incidents have you experienced with Domestic Violence?

Answer: Only one, but many were built into it.

Question: Is this prevalent in your family?

Answer: Yes, my mom and my two sisters went through it.

Question: Which organisation did you contact or go to for help?

Answer: I called the police after being beaten and raped, then went to hospital and subsequently a safe house in Piparo.

Question: How did the organisation protect you?

Answer: I had police security on 24 hour shift in Piparo in 2004, then the same in a safe house in Port-of-Spain.

Question: What have you learnt from this experience?

Answer: “You never know your strength. Pay attention to the smallest signs, pay attention to what is said in jest”.

Question: What stood out for you from this experience?

Answer: Having a relationship with God is what is most important. Knowing that it has a God and having a relationship with God are two different things.

Question: What would you advise young people to do to avoid this situation or what to look out for before taking action?

Answer: Look for signs of the person keeping you away from friends, belittling you and telling you ,you are not good enough. If you’re hit once don’t let a second time occur and the perpetrator saying ‘look what you made me do’.

Question: Has this experience affected your psychological thinking about men?

Answer: Yes, I don’t have patience with men.