Sociology of Gender

Subject Matter, Scope, Development
 Every science and sub discipline within each

science has its own subject matter/field of
inquiry.
 Subject Matter defines the boundaries of any
Science.
 It differentiate between
Sex and Gender.
 It Studies Gender
Inequalities.
 Basically it focuses the
issues concerning
Women, Men, LGBT
community.
 It examines, how Gender
Construction take place in
society through Gender
Socialization etc.
 How gender roles are
defined by different
institutions of society.
 How society decide cultural meanings for
different sexes.
 How society decided roles for different
gender.
It talks about the issues of
different gender in different institutions;
Family
Workplace
School, College etc.
 How and what type of gender
discrimination prevail at the familial and
societal level.
 It talks about Gender Stereotyping
 Sexism; discrimination against women
Women and Work
Women and Education
Women and Political Participation
Women and Health etc.
 Sociology of gender is about, How different
perspectives in sociology describe gender and
related issues.
 Perspectives in Sociology;
Marxism
Interactionism
Functionalism
Structuralism
Postmodernism
Feminism
 There is further distinction within every
perspective.
 For instance Feminism;
Liberal Feminism
Black Feminism
Socialist Feminism
Marxist Feminism
Radical Feminism
Postmodern Feminism
The ideas within these perspectives
are the subject matter of Sociology of Gender
Scope of Sociology of Gender
1) Understanding of Subject matter of the
Subject.
2) Looking at functions and relevance of
subject.
3) Existing ideas/thoughts of different
scholars on subject
1) Subject Matter
See the initial slides of this presentation

2) Relevance of Subject.
The relevance of subject
can be defined by two angles
Relevance as Academic discipline

Relevance as the use of subject in
practical life or in the life of
person who is studying the
subject.
 Understanding gender and its inter-linkages to
various institutions is crucial to gaining a
nuanced understanding of gender issues.
 It helps us to understand power relations in
society further;
 How this power functions.
 Who benefits from it, who does not.
 Who has vested interests in keeping this power
in place.
 Who resists and why and so on.
The subject has also introduced
new techniques, methods to study gender.
 The subject expand our horizons
regarding gender issues.
 Develop our conscious regarding gender
rights.
 It provide us a methodological base to
understand gender issues.
 It help us to understand a relationship
between gender and society.
Many More!
3) Theoretical Discussion
 Sociology of Gender is a branch of
Sociology.
 Sociology of Gender is a separate

discipline.
 It is a branch of Gender Studies.

Development of Sociology of Gender
 The sociology of gender and sex has developed
largely from the perspective of role theory and
symbolic interaction.
 There are a number of reasons for this.
First, several prominent
writers within the field, most of them women,
were students of symbolic interactionism. Their
intellectual back ground naturally provided a
framework for their developing work.
Second, role theory and symbolic
interactionism acknowledged and explored
various levels of experience neglected by other
sociological traditions.
 Initially,the term sex was interpreted by
sociologist as a demographic variable.
 The concern for sex and gender emerged in
late 1960’s and early 1970’s.
 Particularly, it begins with women liberation
movement.
 During this period, women began to be
conscious of their commonly devalued status.
 This new awareness resulted in striking
changes at a variety of academic institutions.
 Women in particular soon learned to demand
their own space within academe, and battles
were fought, won, and lost around specific
changes by and for women.
 The growth of Women's Studies is one
significant and durable example of such a
change.
 Sociology departments hired and promoted
more women sociologists.
 De Beauvoir, 1952, The Second Sex.
 Montagu, 1952 The Natural Superiority of
Women.
 Freud, 1953, Three Essays of Sexuality.
 Maccoby, 1966, The Development of Sex
Differences.
 Bardwick, 1970, Feminine Personality and
Conflict
 Money and Ehrhardt, 1972, Man and Woman, Boy
and Girl.
Many more.
 First Wave Feminism (1830’s – early
1900’s): Women’s fight for equal contract
and property rights
 Second Wave Feminism (1960’s-1980’s):
Broadening the
debate; workplace, sexuality, family and
reproductive rights
 Third Wave Feminims (1990’s – present):
 The “micropolitics” of gender
equality
Thank You!

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Subject Matter, Scope, Development

 Every science and sub discipline within each

See the initial slides of this presentation

Relevance as Academic discipline

 Sociology of Gender is a separate

 It is a branch of Gender Studies.

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