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Unlock This CourseSocial control refers to the ways society encourages people to follow norms and rules. When it comes to gender, social control shapes how we're expected to behave as males, females, or non-binary individuals. These controls start from birth and continue throughout our lives, influencing everything from the clothes we wear to the jobs we choose.
Key Definitions:
These are official ways society controls gender behaviour through laws, rules and policies:
These are unofficial ways society shapes gender behaviour through social pressure:
From the moment we're born, we're taught how to "properly" behave according to our gender. This process, called gender socialisation, is one of the most powerful forms of social control.
The family is where we first learn gender expectations. Research shows parents often treat boys and girls differently without realising it:
Boys often receive construction toys, vehicles and action figures that encourage spatial skills and physical activity. Girls typically get dolls, kitchen sets and beauty toys that focus on nurturing and appearance.
Girls' clothing often prioritises appearance over practicality (frilly, decorative, restrictive). Boys' clothing typically allows for more physical movement and durability.
Parents often use different language with children based on gender: more emotional words with girls, more assertive language with boys. Girls are praised for being "pretty" while boys for being "strong".
Schools reinforce gender norms in both obvious and subtle ways:
School uniforms are a clear example of formal gender control. Traditionally, girls were required to wear skirts or dresses while boys wore trousers. This reinforced gender differences and restricted girls' physical activity. In recent years, many UK schools have moved to gender-neutral uniform policies, allowing all students to choose between trousers and skirts. This shift came after campaigns highlighting how gendered uniforms reinforced inequality and caused practical problems for girls during cold weather and active play.
The media plays a powerful role in reinforcing gender norms:
Research by the Geena Davis Institute found that male characters in family films receive significantly more screen time and speaking parts than female characters, teaching children from an early age about gender importance.
The workplace continues to be a significant site of gender control:
When people don't conform to gender expectations, they often face consequences:
Informal punishments for breaking gender norms:
Formal consequences for gender non-conformity:
Modern society is seeing increasing challenges to traditional gender control mechanisms:
Feminist movements have consistently challenged gender-based social control:
LGBTQ+ activism has challenged binary gender expectations and controls:
Social media platforms have become both sites of gender control and resistance. On one hand, they often reinforce narrow beauty standards and gender stereotypes. On the other hand, they provide spaces for people to express gender in diverse ways and build communities around non-traditional gender identities. Platforms like TikTok and Instagram have allowed young people to share experiences of breaking gender norms and find support, challenging traditional social control mechanisms. However, research shows that those who publicly challenge gender norms online often face significant harassment and trolling, demonstrating how social sanctions continue to operate.
Gender control doesn't affect everyone equally. It intersects with other factors like:
For example, research shows that Black women in the UK face different beauty standards and workplace expectations compared to white women.
Gender control varies significantly across cultures:
The World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report measures these differences, with Nordic countries typically showing the least gender-based control and Middle Eastern and North African countries often showing the most formal gender control.
Gender-based social control continues to evolve. While traditional mechanisms remain powerful, they face increasing challenges from:
Understanding how gender control operates helps us recognise its influence in our own lives and consider whether these controls promote fairness and wellbeing or restrict human potential.