Our class (and sociology in general) is usually focused on the ways that men and women are treated differently and the implications of that different treatment. Sometimes, students think that gender differences are simply an innate part of our nature (DNA, biology). However, a cross-cultural look at gender reveals how widely these cultural norms vary. It is our culture (or cultures) that surround us with these ideas and norms so they color how we see the world. This makes it difficult to see the social construction of gender.
In
Are men natural born criminals? The prison numbers don't lie (2015),
Telegraph reporter Jessica Abrahams explores the academic theories that account for the social construction of higher criminality among males. Among her claims are:
- The vast majority of crimes are nonviolent and men commit those too, so it is not simply that men's biology makes them more violent.
- Women may commit as many crimes as men, but they are better at not being held accountable and males may be deferential to holding women accountable.
- Women hold fewer positions in which they can commit crime and males feel pressure to succeed which motivates them to commit crime.
- Hypermasculinity may be the key to breaking the cycle of male crime.
Even with the generalizations about gender and crime, there are still wide variations in gender norms among cultures. This provides evidence that gender is not built-in biologically.
Here are some cross-cultural studies that demonstrate how gender can vary:
From the World Economic Forum (2017), the Global Gender Gap Report:
https://www.undispatch.com/heres-every-country-world-ranks-gender-equality/
And
here is a pdf of the 2017 Global Gender Gap Index.
Here are 6 cultures that still exist today which are matriarchal.
And
here are some ways that matriarchal cultures exhibit different norms:
Marriage
Marriage in matriarchal societies are typically non-binding, and various types of romantic relationships are embraced.
In the mostly matrilocal tribe of Khasi in India, because children live with the mother's family side of the family or clan, there is little to no stigma and hardship when women divorce and have to move. "No matter how many times the woman marries, her children will always remain with her," editor of The Shillong Times and a Khasi, Patricia Mukhim, told Dame magazine. "And even if a man abandons a woman he has impregnated, the children are never 'illegitimate.' "
Crime
In mainstream society, men overwhelmingly commit more crimes — and more serious ones at that — than women. Jennifer Schwartz of Washington State University's Department of Sociology told Dame magazine: "In more gender-egalitarian societies, there is much less crime by both women and men. And in those societies, the crime gap between women and men is somewhat larger, that is, women participate even less in crime."
Sex
Generally, people who live in matriarchal societies have much more sex and face much less stigma. In the Mosuo tribe, for example, men and women can take as many sexual partners as they pleaseand bearing children with different people is accepted.
Domestic Violence
Domestic abuse is an epidemic in mainstream society; an estimated 3-4 million women are battered each year in the U.S. alone. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there are indications that domestic violence is close to absent in matrilineal societies.
Here is a 2004 book by anthropologist Peggy Reeves Sanday, professor at University of Pennsylvania:
Contrary to the declarations of some anthropologists, matriarchies do exist. Peggy Reeves Sanday first went to West Sumatra in 1981, intrigued by reports that the matrilineal Minangkabau—one of the largest ethnic groups in Indonesia—label their society a matriarchy. Numbering some four million in West Sumatra, the Minangkabau are known in Indonesia for their literary flair, business acumen, and egalitarian, democratic relationships between men and women.
