1. Cross-cultural studies of gender roles

2. Distinguishing different kinds of culture Cross cultural studies help us to increase our understanding of the relative contributions of biology and socialisation. There are variations between cultures in the different roles taken from men and women. Traditional -This is the idea that men and women have different gender roles which are clearly defined. They do not usually diverge from them e.g. men do physical work, women stay at home. Egalitarian -This view states that there is some choice and flexibility over gender roles and both men and women have greater equality e.g. both genders work.

3. Hofstede 1989 4 further dimensions: Masculine - There is a high regard for stereotypical male competition including qualities such as achievement and competition. The UK, US and Japan are examples of countries which would meet the criteria for this culture. Feminine - There is a high value on stereotypically female qualities such as interpersonal harmony and cooperation example countries include India and Pakistan. Individualistic – value identity through personal choices and achievements Collectivist – value on membership of family, work and community groups

4. Margaret Mead In the 1930s mead lived with 3 tribes in New Guinea and found that gender roles were different to western societies finding a cultural difference. Arapesh tribe - Men and women showed stereotypical behaviours similar to western societies. Mundugumor tribe - Both males and females acted in a macho way. Tchambuli tribe – behaviour was opposite to what we would expect in western societies However as she extended her studies she found that their were also some culture similarities, she found that across all 3 tribes, men were more aggressive then women suggesting that some behaviours are innate and universal. ArapeshMundugumor Tchambuli tribe

5. Whiting and Edwards 1975 They suggested that gender roles were organised in similar ways across a range of traditional cultures. They looked at 11 non- western societies and found that girls were encouraged to spend more time with their mothers doing domestic and childcare roles Where as boys were assigned task outside the house including herding animals and maintenance. They concluded that behavioural differences seen in both genders come about because of the tasks they are given during their childhood/ adolescence.