Gender and Role

In the society we live in, everyone has a gender as well as their biological sex. It is the biological sex that an individual is born with, that is formed while still in the womb, and determines his reproductive functions and some physical characteristics. Men and women are born with some biological and physiological differences. The biological sex of the individual expresses with which reproductive organ he was born and this structure is related to the reproductive function. However, this physical difference causes the society to assign certain duties and responsibilities to the individual according to the gender he was born and to put him in a certain mold. These characteristics imposed on the basis of the physiological characteristics and reproductive organs of the individual are perceived as sexual identity.

Social roles are the roles that the society expects from the individual according to his / her status in the society he / she lives in. Individual’s profession, place in the family institution, gender, etc. he adopts certain roles and behavioral patterns. In the context of gender, there are stereotyped female and masculine roles, namely femininity and masculinity roles. Society expects the individual to behave towards them and to have the psycho-social characteristics that society expects from him in accordance with his / her biological gender, which are categorized as feminine and masculine. Individuals of different sexes acquire these roles in the socialization process starting from the prenatal period. These social roles, which are organized in favor of the patriarchal order and in accordance with heterosexual norms, are adopted and internalized by individuals through social learning. The most prominent example of this is that the important task given by gender stereotypes to women is to raise a child and to ensure the continuity of the family, while the important duty of the man is to work and to support the family.

Gender is the socially constructed gender of the individual. Although it is not related to biological sex, it is a gender understanding that structures issues such as gender roles, behavioral patterns and sexual identity by associating the individual with the gender he / she has. Gender roles that are shaped in line with this configuration are the adoption and display of roles in accordance with the norms of society and culture by men and women.

Gender roles reflect the inequality and discrimination between men and women in society. However, Classical Sociology and other social theories did not draw much attention to social differences and inequality between men and women. Marx, Weber and Durkheim, who were important figures in sociology; They did not touch upon gender inequality much, and they even suggested views more prone to the view that women have an innate, secondary and unimportant role of society.

Durkheim argued that as the society modernizes and develops, the physical and mental differences between men and women become more acute and argued that specialized roles of men and women facilitate the distribution of tasks and community life. Weber argued that men are physically and intellectually superior and argued that this superior energy of men decides the dependent position of women. These thinkers seem to understand the different social roles of men and women; They interpreted it as congenital and should be. However, this does not mean that gender inequality is completely ignored, Marx also saw this gender inequality between men and women as a problem.

Gender inequality is the inability of women and men to have equal rights and conditions in many areas of social life. In the patriarchal order we are in, women; They do not have equal conditions with men in their professional life, family, outside and many other areas. This unfair attitude of the society leads to the exploitation and prevention of women.

There are different views and approaches regarding the formation of gender and its roles. For example, Social Learning Theory, one of them, is based on the effect of social environment on learning. It was claimed by Bandura and others, the founder of the theory, that social learning explains the process of learning and internalizing gender roles. According to the theory, gender roles are acquired by observing and imitating the people around the individual, especially the parents, and then reinforcing this with a reward.

According to the theory, gender roles and responsibilities in collectivist societies are sharply determined; A standard model has been created for both genders by putting being men and women into a certain mold. This consistency facilitates the transfer of the roles accepted and traditionalized by the society and the responsibilities imposed on the sexes from generation to generation. Contrary to the collectivist social structure, in individualist societies, on the other hand, there are no such sharp boundaries and determined duties between gender roles. This suggests that the roles in such societies may differ depending on the situation and circumstances. Therefore, there will not be much similarity between these two different social structures in terms of gender roles.

Try to explain gender roles, another theory, Social Role Theory, is similar to Social Learning Theory. According to this theory, it suggests that the individual takes shape according to the society he is in and the duties and responsibilities imposed by that culture, and that he forms his social roles in this way. There are typical male and female roles in society; the man works and is responsible for the maintenance of the house, the woman is responsible for the housework to look after the children. The individual adapts to the social roles imposed on him in the society he lives in and internalizes these roles. While the man deemed suitable for working life represents status and power, the woman deemed suitable for domestic life remains in a passive position.

The fact that women become more involved in business life will give women status and power, and housework will be shared by women and men. The stereotypical roles of men and women will begin to disappear over time and be replaced by more prejudiced and egalitarian societies.