How are Gender roles Influenced?

We live in a world where the determination of the sex of a baby is right away associated with established gender roles that they are supposed to adhere to. It is usually observed starting right from the baby shower that the color blue is often related to boys and similarly pink is for girls, throughout their life. I’m sure you must have seen and experienced the difference in the color of stationeries, toys, room walls,and apparel in general between you and your sibling of the opposite gender. People are expected to adopt those colors only, which are consistent with their gender, mostly because of the influence of media, families or societal norms. The segregation of even the colors based on just the gender of the individual speaks volumes about the extent of the division of gender roles in everything. Now, the division of gender roles is not entirely invalid. But the problem arises when these gender roles become stereotyped and an unchangeable paradigm. It limits the individual to having only a particular set of acceptable interests and desires. When the said gender roles are not performed, a plethora of issues and an outrage of negative emotions arise.

A lot of discrepancy between gender roles is noticed in the professional sector as well. Usually males are appointed as delivery partners. One reason is that females are stereotypically thought to be not good drivers or are thought of being too weak to travel at all hours of the day to make deliveries alone. For the job of a bartender, it is rare to find a woman performing the same. Maybe because society thinks that bartending does not look good on a woman’s character and personality. You won’t find a female chemist and medical representative as many as you’d find males. Whereas, men are questioned and mocked for putting on makeup and wearing jewelry as well as engaging in professionally dancing, when compared to women. Other women driven jobs are in the sector of nursing and caretaking, primary teachers, house help etc.

The important question which needs to be pondered upon is how to overcome these gender based roles. In order to do that, we need to be aware of the roots of the development of such roles and norms. How do they develop? Once the cause and growth of it is understood, then the issue can be resolved.

There are numerous factors contributing to the development of gender roles but what affects the most is the influence of a family’s teaching along with cultural factors on a child. Since childhood, it is common to see that girls are taught to be more familiar with the household chores as compared to boys. Women are asked to be dressed “decently” while there are hardly any obligations for boys in terms of how they want to behave or dress. Men on the other hand are expected to do the hard labor and public jobs. These are some of the most basic and known roles that are being assigned based on gender. The individual choices, interests, and needs are not considered.

However, the splitting of roles is not always because of the direct influence of the family environment. People observe the behavior of others; then they internalize that particular behavior which later on is imitated by them. These are the behaviors which are appreciated and accepted by others. In order to gain the similar benefits or appreciation, people end up engaging in those actions even if they don’t want to. This is how society influences and defines your role. In some cultures, females are not supposed to attend the last funeral rites. Males are only allowed in those rites. Also, in some cultures, men are legally allowed to have more than one marriage whereas women don’t. Even female sexual and emotional satisfaction is not very well taken and discussed in our society.

Such influences impact the thinking and understanding of the children of that family as well. What they see is what they incorporate in their daily lives. If I have seen my brother talking to my dad about family expenses and income and I, his sister, was never invited to that conversation, I would internalize my role of not being a part of the same and would always depend on someone else for it. If I have seen my sister folding the clothes of family members and I, as her brother, was never asked to do the same stuff, then I would internalize her role of taking care of the same and my role of not even knowing how to fold the clothes. In conclusion, how you are treated by your immediate family affects your understanding of gender roles. It is both intentional and unintentional. A father discussing the family business and income with his son may be because he was present there and not because he was a boy, but her sister’s perception of already existing gender norms influenced her thinking because she was not invited to discuss the same. It is also possible that the father was actually not interested in sharing his business with his daughter. When two siblings, a boy and a girl are treated equally since forever then the chances of both of them to engage in every activity irrespective of the gender association are very high. 

We discussed gender roles but did you realize that all those roles are just restricted to male and female; where do other genders come into picture? Even though we do not want any other specified gender roles, people are not even aware of other genders. Gender identity is a gray area, which is not only male or female. It is much more than that. Breaking of gender norms is what is gaining attention these days. There are various cases where people went out of their ways to break the established norms and have been successful. One example could be of Usaamah Siddique, a male fashion blogger and influencer who has recently worked with renowned fashion brands and gained much recognition. It is noteworthy where fashion is a field which has always been limited and subjected to women’s opinions and style. In the sports industry, especially the Indian Cricket Team, where the concern is mostly with men, women have leveled up their game and fought off well to make their spot in the Indian women’s cricket team. To conclude, it takes a lot of courage and determination to fight off your way and break the norms in order to achieve what you really want. And, it is never easy to keep up with societal pressure and expectations. Nevertheless, as long as the end result is great and in favor of you, it is nothing to worry about.

Author’s note:

Saloni Bansal is a second-year B.sc. Applied Psychology student. She is intrigued by the idea of how, while writing down your thoughts, you become aware of and acknowledge new things. It gives her great insight and serves as a conduit for her to explore her beliefs and thoughts. That is how you can better understand and accept yourself. Other than that, humor and adventure are what keep her going.