- Published: September 18, 2022
- Updated: September 18, 2022
- University / College: University of Bristol
- Level: Masters
- Language: English
- Downloads: 32
Gender Roles Gender roles have value to the society. It is through gender roles that the society benefits by having clear and accepted division of labor. Gender roles provide a way in which functions are to be performed by people in social institutions such the military, family, work groups, and religious organizations. The division and specialization of labor help maximize the efficiency of the society’s activities.
The structural functionalist perspective views the society as a complicated system whose individual components work cohesively to promote stability and solidarity. The approach evaluates the society at a macro-level while focusing on social structures such as gender roles that shape the society as a whole. It addresses the society as a whole by considering by considering its constituent elements such as traditions, norms, institutions, and customs. Herbert Spenser popularized the analogy that presents parts of the society, for example, gender, as organs that function together for the human body to be normal (Magar).
Gender roles from a functionalist perspective were articulated in early 1950s. The theory suggests that differences in gender roles are an efficient way of creating divisions in labor. The division, therefore, aims at maximizing the use of resources, as well as, the efficiency of the society’s system. The perspective views the predefined roles as complementary. Men will provide for the families while women manage homes. Gender, therefore, contributes to the society’s stability, in the same way, as other social institutions (Magar).
The functional prerequisites refer to the basic needs such as shelter and clothing that people require to live beyond the poverty line. In a similar way, the functional prerequisite also refers to factors that help maintain society order. Gender roles maintain social order by ensuring that the basic needs people need in the society are available (Magar).
Works Cited
Magar, Prashant. ” Gender Roles in Society.” Buzzle, (2009): 2. buzzle. Web. 3 July 2014.
