Media and Culture

• define media

  any information that is presented to people via platforms such as newspapers, television, magazines and books
• how does media affect gender development?

  • Changes in gender behaviours can be attributed to too much exposure to gender stereotypes in the media.
  • Generally, people who are exposed to more gender stereotypes in the media are more likely to hold stronger gender stereotypes than those with less exposure.
  • This occurs when individuals are drawn to models in the media (people that are attractive, that they identify with, or they respect).
  • Their behaviour is observed and encoded by the individual, who may or may not imitate them.
• evaluate the influence of media

  • research support for the impact of media on gender stereotypes. Williams (1981) conducted a natural experiment to investigate the difference in gender behaviours after media (television) was introduced to a town in Canada. He found that before the introduction of television, gender stereotypical behaviours and views were low, but two years later they had increased. Furthermore, there were distinct differences between male and female behaviours, and their stereotypical attitudes towards gender, in the two years after the introduction of television.
• evaluate the influence of media

  • research support for the claims that when children are exposed to media, they are exposed to gender stereotypes. Bee (2000) conducted a content analysis of children's books and adverts, investigating the number of gender stereotypes that they expose children to. Bee found that books often contained gender-stereotypical characters (for example, a female nurse and male policeman). These findings suggest that media is exposing children to information about what is and what is not acceptable for their gender, based on stereotypes.
• evaluate the influence of media

  • anomalies that it cannot explain. Some people who are exposed to gender stereotypes do go on to learn gender-stereotypical behaviours and assume a stereotypical gender identity. However, some people who are exposed to these same stereotypes do not develop a stereotypical gender and instead, adopt a more androgynous gender identity. If media was the powerful influence behind learning stereotypical gender roles, then these anomalies could be explained.
• define culture

  a large group of people who share the same beliefs, traditions and attitudes.
• how does culture affect gender development?

  • Across most cultures, the sex categories of ‘male’ and ‘female’ are used, which suggests that there is some biological and universal element to gender roles.
  • However, different cultures can often have different expectations or beliefs about gender roles, and they may differ vastly from each other.
• evaluate the influence of culture

  • Mead (1935) conducted an overt, participant observation in Papa New Guinea to investigate whether there were cultural differences in gender roles when compared to typical Western gender roles. The males and females of the Arapesh tribe were observed to be nurturing and caring, demonstrating typical feminine roles. In the Tchambuli tribe the females of the tribe being more masculine and the males of the tribe being more feminine. This suggests that culture does influence gender roles and gender is much more flexible than biologists have previously proposed.
• evaluate the influence of gender

  • low internal validity: Most cross-cultural research into gender relies on the participant observation method. This method is criticised for being intrusive and potentially disruptive to the everyday life of those being studied, both during and after the study has concluded. For example, in Mead’s study of the tribes in Papa New Guinea, the presence of a researcher may have been enough to change their usual behaviour consciously or unconsciously.
• evaluate the influence of gender

  • culture bias: This happens when one culture’s views or expectations of gender roles are used as a benchmark for ‘normal’ and are considered (consciously or not) as superior to other cultures. An example of where this may have occurred is in Mead’s research of the tribes in Papa New Guinea. Mead travelled to this country and observed gender behaviour and roles in non-Western tribes, yet she was using her Western expectations and understanding of gender to interpret what she observed.
• evaluate the influence of gender

  • environmentally reductionist: it is criticised for only focusing on one or a small number of relevant influences. Media is just one way in which people are exposed to gender stereotypes, with exposure also likely to occur in school, at home or even in all three. In addition, there are also biological and sociological explanations of how people develop gender roles. This suggests that rather than focusing on one level of explanation, a more holistic view of gender is required.