This chapter discusses gender roles and power dynamics within families. It explores how gender roles have changed over time to be more equal but cultural differences still exist. Women now earn higher degrees at higher rates than men but still earn less. While time spent on housework and childcare has decreased for all, women still shoulder a larger burden. Theories like social learning theory and family systems theory aim to explain how gender roles develop. Egalitarian relationships with balanced power tend to be happier than traditional power dynamics.

1. Chapter 7
Gender Roles and
Power in the Family

2. 7-2
• Contemporary models of intimacy stress gender
equality in marriage and other partnerships
• Individual and couple strengths require equality and
balance of power in family relationships
• Cultural differences exist in
gender roles Intimacy
Diversity
Strengths

3. 7-3
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce:
• Women are more likely to be living in poverty than men
• Poverty rates are especially high for single women with children
• Women are more likely than men to get both graduate
and undergraduate degrees
• Labor force participation has steadily increased for women
while decreasing for men
• Men are more likely to opt for staying home and caring for children
than in the past

4. 7-4
• Women’s wages have increased over time, but women still
earn only 80 percent of what men earn
• Women are more likely than men to use health care for
both health conditions and preventative care
• Women are increasingly the victims of crime and are also
increasingly the perpetrators of crime, resulting in an
increase in incarceration rates for women

5. 7-5
Gender identity: Sense of being male or female and
what that means in one’s society
Gender roles: Expectations about people’s attitudes
and behaviors in life based on whether they are male
or female
Gender-role stereotype: Based on whether a person is
male or female
• Prescribing certain qualities, behaviors, and
opportunities and prohibiting or discouraging
others

6. 7-6
Masculinity: Traits traditionally associated with
men
• Aggressiveness, independence, dominance, and competence
• Predisposition for math and science
Femininity: Traits traditionally associated with
women
• Passivity, dependency, sensitivity, and
emotionality
• Predisposition for art and literature

7. 7-7
Language can reinforce stereotypes and segregate
people by sex
• Misguided notion that men are more competent and
rational than women
• Terms used for men are more positive and affirming
• Terms used for women are more negative and degrading
Families are organized around expectations about
gender roles
• Environment impacts gender behavior
(family and/or social)

8. 7-8
Role issues
Percentage in
agreement among
happy couples
Percentage in
agreement
among unhappy
couples
Both are equally willing to make
adjustments in their marriage
82 46
Both work hard to have an equal
relationship
76 42
Both are satisfied with the
division of housework
87 54
The partners make most decisions
jointly
87 59
Household tasks are divided on
the basis of preferences, not
tradition
67 55

9. 7-9
Role issues
Percentage of couples
having problems, where
one or both partners
indicated this was an
issue for them
Concern about unfair division of housework 49
Housework is based on traditional roles rather
than interests
44
The husband is not willing to adjust as much as
the wife
44
Disagree whether or not the wife should work
outside the home when children are young
43
Partners disagree that both work to maintain
an egalitarian relationship
36

10. 7-10
• Husbands and wives have both decreased the total number of
hours spent on housework
• Women do almost 2/3rds of the work
compared to husbands
• Having children results in greater
imbalance
• Mothers 2 x more time on child care compared to fathers
• Men are seen as helpers in providing care for their children
• Perceptions of fairness regarding the division of household
responsibilities are a more likely predictor of marital discord
than actual behavior

11. 7-11
Emotion work
• Listening closely to a spouse’s thoughts
• Recognizing feelings and offering encouragement
• Showing appreciation
• Women are held more accountable for performing this
work in their families

12. 7-12
Mental work
• Divided unequally with women performing more of this
work
Includes worrying about children and household tasks
Invisible and is difficult to measure
Affects women’s marital satisfaction but not men’s marital
satisfaction

13. 7-13
According to Lyn Craig, the time parents spend with
children has increased over recent years, even with
more dual-earner households
• Due to the increase in expectations about what it means to
be a good parent
• Fathers typically spend time reading, talking, and
participating in leisure activities
• Mothers are more likely to do the routine care that needs to
be done on a regular basis

14. 7-14
Behaviors that affect how women and men collaborate
in the work of the family
• Child benefits when both parents provide care
• Equality in child care can happen when:
• Fathers take the initiative and do not give up, even if there
are signs of disapproval
• Mothers think before action is
taken or a response is given
• Mothers give compliments

15. 7-15
Traditional view: Reflection of a male-oriented culture
Parsons theory: Highly contrasting gender roles
essential for family and society
• Men’s instrumental role was to be the breadwinner, the
manager, and the leader of the family
• Women’s expressive role was to take
care of the emotional well-being of
the family

16. 7-16
Contemporary view: Both sexes are capable of:
• Being successful in a variety of roles at home and at work
• Learning to work together and becoming interdependent
Egalitarian roles: Social equality between the sexes

17. 7-17
Margaret Mead
• Observed that varieties in temperament were not dictated by
biology but were largely the creations of the societies
David Buss’s research:
• Women placed more value on wealth and ambition
• Men were more interested in signs of youth and fertility
Study by Treas in 2011 concluded that:
• Cultural values contribute to how couples divide household
tasks
• Couples follow the examples of those around them

18. 7-18
Contemporary Traditional
Both women and men initiate dates The man initiates dates
The woman keeps her maiden name after
marriage
The woman takes the man’s last name
The partners cohabit before marriage or may
never marry at all
The partners live apart before marriage
Premarital sex is expected Premarital sex is not an option
Both partners continue their education The wife supports the husband through school
The birth of a child might precede marriage Children are conceived after marriage
Both partners work, and both may have
careers
The husband’s work is the priority
Roles are flexible Roles are rigid
Both partners share child care
The mother is responsible for child care and
housework
Both partners initiate sex The husband initiates sex
Both partners select the couple’s friends
The husband’s friends become the couple’s
friends

19. 7-19
Latino: Males stereotyped as macho
• View not supported by research literature
• Positive attributes of machismo within the context of history
and family: Bravery, altruism, and being responsible for and
providing for one’s family
African American
• Flexible and adaptable: Men and women adopt multiple roles
• Marriages are more egalitarian

20. 7-20
American Indian
• More female-headed households
• Tribal traditions and religious beliefs:
• Make it difficult for women to attain leadership roles
• Impact views on contraception and abortion
Asian American
• Values tradition and respects its elders
• Segregated sex roles
• Patriarchal form of society

21. 7-21
Immigrants face challenges when they come to a new
country
• Must adjust to a completely new set of rules regarding their gender
• Must make decisions about adapting gender roles based on new
norms
• Many women come to the United States with relatively traditional
roles and enter a culture where women often have power equal or
nearly equal to men
Researchers found that women gained power in their
couple relationships when they had opportunity, access to
resources, and legal protection

22. 7-22
Social learning theory
Cognitive development theory
Family systems theory
Feminist framework

23. 7-23
Concerned with how individuals learn the behavior
patterns considered appropriate for their sex
• Observation of behavior
• Imitation
• Reinforcement of sex-related behavior by others
• Understanding standards and rules

24. 7-24
Links gender-role development to the more general
maturation of a child’s thinking processes
• To understand the world children actively create:
• Gender identity
• Gender-role stereotypes
• Gender values

25. 7-25
The theories assumed that children of the same sex
developed very similar gender-role identities
The theories characterized traditional gender-role identities
as desirable
The theories assumed that early childhood is a critical
period in gender-role development and that an adult’s
gender-role characteristics spring directly from early
childhood experiences

26. 7-26
Family systems theory suggests that the family
functions as an interconnected system
Change is a difficult process for both individuals and
families
Balanced families tend to be more
open to change
Some types of unbalanced family
systems resist change and restrict independence in
family members

27. 7-27
Views that women have been exploited, devalued, and
oppressed
• Institutional restrictions on women’s development
• Changing conditions for women

28. 7-28
Power: Ability of an individual to change the behavior
of other members in a social system
• Has both perceptual and behavioral aspects
• System property
• Dynamic, not a static process
Family power: Ability of one family member to change
the behavior of the other family members

29. 7-29
Perception of relationship Percentage in
agreement among
happy couples
Percentage in
agreement
among unhappy
couples
Both perceive as egalitarian 81 19
Husband perceives as
traditional, and wife perceives
as egalitarian
50 50
Wife perceives as traditional,
and husband perceives as
egalitarian
37 63
Both perceive as traditional 18 82

30. 7-30
Balance decision making by the value of the areas each
partner controls
Men should realize that there is a lot to be gained by
giving up some of their power over women and
children

31. Chapter 7
Gender Roles and
Power in the Family