Artifact 1: Sex vs. Gender |

There are clear differences between sex and gender. While the two are often used interchangeably, they are instead very different. Sex is the “biological differences between males and females, such as the genitalia and genetic differences.”[1] These genetic differences include secondary sex characteristics, for example, body hair and muscle mass. Gender is defined as “the role of a male or female in society (gender role), or an individual’s concept of themselves (gender identity).”[2] Gender is a result of how a man or woman views themselves in society and the cultural norms that dictate how they must act.

While sex mainly depends on physical characteristics, gender does not and is therefore influenced by culture. The culture that a person lives in defines how traditionally masculine or feminine they should act, what opportunities they will have as a member of their gender, and how socially accepted or safe they will be if the person does not fit easily into a traditional category as defined by sex and gender. Gender roles “give individuals cues about what sort of behavior is believed to be appropriate for what sex.”[3] This means that society heavily influences individuals how to act regarding their gender.

Gender roles create an expectation of how one should act, which in turn leads to stereotypes. Because gender roles are “also linked to the different levels of power that males and females hold in society,” this creates gender stereotypes based on how a man and woman should behave in society.[4] For example, in the what was patriarchal and still is male dominated society of the United States, the men traditionally provided for the family while the women stay home and tend to the house and children. This has created a stereotype of women as “motherly.” Since women have had this role for so long, society believes they must be better at taking care of children than men. While women are considered to possess the ability to care for a home and family, men have developed the stereotype of being tough, going to work every day to provide food for the family. Like primitive hunter-gatherer societies in which the men hunt for the food, men are seen as the head of the house, a gender role that society has assigned to them.

Sex is something that cannot be easily influenced by culture; however, gender is fluid based on society’s expectations. When men and women fall into preconceived gender roles assigned to them by society, stereotypes surface. Often these stereotypes lead to unwanted bias, especially toward women, simply because they become associated with the roles they have had to occupy throughout history.

[1] Tim Newman, “Sex and Gender: What is the Difference?” Medical News Today (MediLexicon, Intl., March 2016)

[2] Ibid.

[3] Amy M. Blackstone, Human Ecology: An Encyclopedia of Children, Families, Communities and Environments (ABC-CLIO, 2003) 335-338

[4] Ibid. 336