Gender and Social Control

Social Control Through enculturation and internal controls –Shame –Guilt Through external controls –Informal sanctions –Formal sanctions and legal systems

Sanctions and Enforcement Informal sanctions –Individual behaviors –Social rewards and/or punishment Formal sanctions –Formal enforcement of explicitly stated rules –Authority delegated to enforcement specialists

Power vs Authority Power the ability to influence others. Authority the right to exercise power that is delegated by society to certain individuals.

Authority Is, by definition, something that occurs in the public arena of society Since men are generally in charge of the public, men are generally the ones who have delegated authority. Women tend not to have authority, but usually have power.

Institutionalized Sexism Cultural traditions (including patterns of social organization and belief systems) that channel men and women into different power/authority statuses Formal Institutions/Laws Not allowing women to vote Informal Insitutions “Old Boy Networks”

Factors Influencing Women and Power The relative degree of authority and/or power held by women appears to be tied to: Women’s contribution to household income/subsistence Women’s control over resources such as land/herds An ideology that favors women and/or women’s roles in the society at large