A01

• Define socialisation

  The way in which social norms are transmitted and communicated
• Define culture

  The ideas, behaviours, attitudes, and traditions that exist within a large group of people that are passed down from one generation to the next and are often resistant to change
• Define media

  Tools used to store, distribute and communicate information which may convey expectations around gender roles and gender-appropriate behaviours
• Describe Margaret Mead’s (1935) research as evidence for cross-cultural differences in gender roles

  She carried out an ethnographic study by living with three cultural groups in Papua New Guinea for 2 years and found:

  • Arapesh - both sexes feminine
  • Mundugamor - both sexes masculine
  • Tchambuli - gender roles reversed compared to Western society
• Describe Buss’ (1989) study as evidence for cultural similarities in gender roles

  • He found several consistent patterns in mate preferences across 37 cultures from 33 countries
  • Females value the earning capacity of potential mates, as well as ambition and industriousness, whereas males value physical attractiveness and relative youth
• Outline the role the media plays in shaping gender roles

  Media portrays role models with whom children may identify with and imitate; these role models often reinforce male and female stereotypes
• Outline how media reinforces rigid stereotypes

  Through oversimplifying and generalising representations of groups in various media forms it can perpetuate biases and influence public opinion
• Describe Furnham and Farragher’s (2000) study as evidence for the reinforcement of sex stereotypes in the media

  • An analysis of TV advertisements in Britain and New Zealand found that males were more likely to be shown in autonomous roles, whereas females were more likely to be seen in familial roles within domestic settings
  • In both countries the sex-role stereotyping in voice-over material was stronger than visual material - 69% of British voice-overs and 81% of New Zealand voice-overs being provided by men
• Describe how the media influences self-efficacy in relation to gender role development

  • Media provides information about the likely outcomes of behaviour for men and women, thus seeing other people in the media perform gender-appropriate behaviours increases a child’s belief that they can carry out such behaviour in the future
  • Similarly, the failure of others that we identify with decreases a person’s faith in their ability to master similar skills or tasks