GENDER & POLITIK:

KONSEP-KONSEP DASAR
Mohtar Masoed
Ririn Tri Nurhayati

S1-HI-FISIPOL-UGM
Definition of Terms:
Sex vs. Gender
Sex refers to the biological categories of
female and male that are differentiated
by genes, hormones, reproductive
organs, etc.
Characteristics or traits determined by sex
should be relatively constant across
situations and across cultures
Definition of Terms:
Sex vs. Gender (2)
Gender refers to the social categories of
female and male that are differentiated
by psychological characteristics or role
expectations.
Traits and behaviors related to a gender
might vary from culture to culture and/or
across situations
Gender Identity
A persons perception of
themselves as a specific gender
In most cases, gender identity
matches with biological sex and
societally noted gender but not
always
Gender Role
In most societies, the male role is
described as agentic getting
things done
In most societies, the female role
is described as expressive and
communal keeping the group
together and content
These descriptions are not always
accurate but can serve as broad
categorizations
Gender Role Variations
Gender roles (expectations of
behavior) are not static
They vary by
Geography
History
Race/ethnicity
Social class
Age
Situation
Gender Role Conflict
Often people find themselves in
situations in which gender role rules
collide
Can be because of multiple roles that a
person holds
Can be that the role expectations for a
given gender actually conflict in specific
situations
Sex or Gender Role Stereotypes
Beliefs or assumptions about the traits
that an individual will posses because
of their membership in a sex or gender
category
We often use stereotypes to tell us
what to expect from other people in a
given situation
Can also rely on stereotypes to know
how to act in unknown situations
Sex or Gender Role Stereotypes (2)
More likely to be applied to unknown
people and situations than known ones
Can limit the actions we take in a
specific situation reducing individuality
or creativity
Can limit the actions of others because
stereotyped-based assumptions can
change the entire situation
Sex or Gender Role Stereotypes (3)
Stereotypes pertain to all aspects of the
gender role
Personality traits (e.g., agressiveness vs.
niceness)
Family roles (e.g., cuts grass vs. does laundry)
Occupations (e.g., truck drivers vs. nurse)
Academic majors (e.g., engineering vs. language)
Physical characteristics (e.g., muscular vs.
petite)
GENDER VS. SEX:
SEMANTIC INCONSISTENCY
Two Different Questions
If women ruled the world would things be
different? (SEX)
Would the world be different if
characteristics associated with femininity
(gender) were valued? (NOT if the number
of women (sex) in positions of power were
increased) (GENDER)
Countries ruled by men participate in war
more than those ruled by women. (SEX,
NOT GENDER)
women, like men, do have interests in
power, but... the kinds of power that the
two genders emphasize may be quite
different. (SEX, NOT GENDER)
Gender Gap
Its a misnomer: it repeatedly refers to variations
between men and women as gender differences.

The idea of a gap assumes a distance or asymmetry
between a dichotomy; the term gender gap can
only be coherently used to describe differences
between the sexes, as in attitudes towards war.
But the usage is incorrect because it is referring to
distributions of attitudes between men and women,
not between feminine people and masculine
people
Genderedness
Gendered attitute toward peacekeeping.
(Refers to socially constructed ideas)
Gendered distribution of labor.
(Refers to the distribution of the sexes among
occupations).
The Indonesian military is a gendered
institution.
(Refers to both. It is gendered in the sense of being
highly masculinized, but it is also considered gendered
[that is, sex-specific] in being composed primarily of
men).
IR = Gendered Discipline?
Refers to the fact that the actual location of
male and female scholars in the discipline is
asymmetrical? No. Its not about sex
distribution.
It means that the ideas constituting the
discipline are based on a masculinist bias that
excludes perspectives, questions, and
theoretical frameworks based on
characteristics associated with women and
femininity.