Gender Discrimination
Daniella Gutierrez
Professor Ghani
Social Problems
11/27/12
Gender Discrimination
Gender discrimination has been a worldwide issue transcending various religions and cultures from the beginning of time. The discrimination exists based on differences between people of a different sex or gender. Although sex is a term based off of biological factors, gender is socially constructed which blurs the lines of discrimination. Today, the inequity of discriminations in America between men and women are often manifested predominately in the settings of employment and education. However, gender discrimination is not confined to those two circumstances. In the past, being a woman has meant less equality in political and religious state of affairs. In other countries and cultures, gender equality is much more relevant in all areas of life, but we will concentrate on this issue and how it affects us in the United States of America. In the US gender discrimination is illegal, but that doesn’t stop it from happening. Discrimination can happen subtly through sexual harassment, difference in admission requirements, and differences in educational programs and activities offered. According to a new study from Rice University, gender discrimination is one of the main reasons women choose to pursue careers in biology as opposed to physics. The researchers in this study asked how and why women feel more inclined to choose any other career apart from science or why they specifically choose biology. Men and women were interviewed and asked questions pertaining as to why this occurs. The study says, “During interviews, men almost never mentioned present-day discrimination, believing that any discrimination in physical science classes likely took place early in the educational history (primary school), which they believe explains women’s predisposition to biological sciences,” Ecklund said. “However, female scientists believe that discrimination is
Professor Ghani
Social Problems
11/27/12
Gender Discrimination
Gender discrimination has been a worldwide issue transcending various religions and cultures from the beginning of time. The discrimination exists based on differences between people of a different sex or gender. Although sex is a term based off of biological factors, gender is socially constructed which blurs the lines of discrimination. Today, the inequity of discriminations in America between men and women are often manifested predominately in the settings of employment and education. However, gender discrimination is not confined to those two circumstances. In the past, being a woman has meant less equality in political and religious state of affairs. In other countries and cultures, gender equality is much more relevant in all areas of life, but we will concentrate on this issue and how it affects us in the United States of America. In the US gender discrimination is illegal, but that doesn’t stop it from happening. Discrimination can happen subtly through sexual harassment, difference in admission requirements, and differences in educational programs and activities offered. According to a new study from Rice University, gender discrimination is one of the main reasons women choose to pursue careers in biology as opposed to physics. The researchers in this study asked how and why women feel more inclined to choose any other career apart from science or why they specifically choose biology. Men and women were interviewed and asked questions pertaining as to why this occurs. The study says, “During interviews, men almost never mentioned present-day discrimination, believing that any discrimination in physical science classes likely took place early in the educational history (primary school), which they believe explains women’s predisposition to biological sciences,” Ecklund said. “However, female scientists believe that discrimination is
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