Foreign Related Literature

Gender stereotypes are extremely common in society. One of the reasons

this may be is simply because it is easier on the brain to stereotype. Gender

stereotypes appear to have an effect on an early age. In one study the effect of

gender.

A stereotype is a widely accepted judgement or bias about a person or group

even though it is overly simplifies and not always accurate. Stereotypes about

gender can cause unequal and unfair treatment because of a person’s gender.

In the case of gender it is the implicit belief in gender stereotype that women

perform worse than men in mathematics, which is proposed to lead to lower

performance by women. Stereotype threat is being risked of confirming, as self-

characteristic, a negative stereotype about one’s group.

After sixty years, a psychologist named Carol Gilligan, who used it to show

that psychological test of maturity have generally been based on masculine

parameters, and so tended to show that women were less ‘mature;. Gilligan

countered this in her ground-breaking work, In a different voice, holding that

maturity in women is shown in terms of different, but equally important, human

values.

In 2018 Jolien A. Van Breen et. Al conducted research into subliminal

gender stereotyping. Researchers took participants through a fictional moral

choice dilemma task, which consisted of eight scenarios; The results showed that
women who identified as feminists were more willing to ‘sacrifice’ men than

women who did not identify as feminists.

In recent years, the majority of Monley’s theories regarding the importance

of socialization in the determination of gender have come under intense criticism,

especially in connection with the false reporting of success.

In 2012 the journal Women, Gender & Research (Kvinder, Køn & Forskning)

celebrated its twentieth anniversary. Since its inception, it has been the only

peer-reviewed journal in Danish focusing on gender research, its aim being to

raise the level of this research by presenting interdisciplinary, high-quality

studies addressing contemporary issues.

During the past twenty years, the journal has been at the cutting edge of

ongoing theoretical breakthroughs with, for example, thematic issues on

orientalism, intersectionality, trans* and feminist materialism. There has also

been a focus on a wide range of empirical fields such as genetics, war,

parenthood, care and academia. The journal welcomes articles from both

established researchers and PhD students, as well as occasionally from MA

students.

Since 2010, the journal has published one English-language issue each

year, as its aim is to further the internationalization of Danish gender research.

The editorial board of Women, Gender & Research consists of an

interdisciplinary group of researchers based at different Danish and Nordic

Universities. The aim of Women, Gender & Research is to continue to contribute

to raising the quality of Danish gender research.

Current projects include studies of the welfare state’s family policy. In

particular there are studies of state initiatives in relation to specific groups of

children and adolescents (age, gender and ethnicity), as well as studies of

physical spaces (in schools, homes, urban areas) functioning as child and youth

environments. These are all cross-disciplinary studies bringing together

sociologists, historians and jurists.

Children and young people as ‘social actors’ is a central theme in several

projects engaging with the study of children and young people’s own identities

across the categories of gender and age, including the topic of their own

involvement in the creation of childhood and youth by, for example, using digital

social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.).

These studies use various methods, such as interviews with children and

young people, material from public institutions and authorities, political

debates, newspaper articles, memoirs, etc. Several of them contain critical

reflections on the concepts of the child, childhood and youth. It is argued that

notions of childhood and youth are constructed and created in relation to

historically specific norms and ideals about gender, age and normality/deviation.

As stated by Eva Bertelsen et.al, at present, research is characterized by a

major political focus on boys and education, understood as a concern for boys’

under-achievement in primary schools and higher education. Thus the focus lies
on interpreting, qualifying and complicating conclusions about gender derived

from the national statistical material (PISA and the like), as these have

consequences for both academic performance and the provision of special

support in primary school. The theme of gendered patterns in drop-out and

completion rates in secondary and higher education is an engaging one. Here

both qualitative and quantitative methods are employed with a destabilizing aim.

Research in education points to the fact that dropouts are produced in two ways:

first, through inadequate teaching methods and learning environments; and

secondly, through the experiences and self-understandings of the pupils and

students themselves. The research shows how dropping out and social sorting

are conditioned by categories such as gender, ethnicity and social class.

In addition, research in education takes up themes such as gender

differences in specific fields, bullying, IT, management issues, learning, the

gendered brain and the history of education in Denmark. Learning, development

and self-management in the context of people’s working lives is a field in its own

right.

As stated by Linda Lund Pedersen, Feminist theory is a conflation of many

different ways of comprehending and interpreting gender/sex, as, for example,

liberal, socialist and radical feminism. Often feminist theory is formed within a

field of inter-disciplinarity, where feminist theory is coupled with theories of

sexuality, race, ethnicity, class, age, geopolitics and nationalism. This notion is

exemplified in the conceptualizations of queer and crip theories, sexual

difference theories, postcolonial theory, critical race and whiteness theories,

(post-) constructivism and somatic-materialist theories.

A significant interest of feminist theorists is the dismantling of fixed ideas

and stereotypes about gender, gendered norms and gendered hierarchies.

Feminist theories often use creative and activist approaches, seeking new ways

not only to understand topics or issues, but also to transform them. This is

mainly done through creative ways of understanding and doing gender. The

formative in feminist theories emerges in its engagement with other theoretical

and practical disciplines, as, for example, creative writing. Transgressions of

conventional boundaries, theories and categories are essential characteristics of

feminist theories.

Initially, research was focused on women working in male-dominated jobs,

women and management and women’s working conditions. In recent years

research has focused on gender relations, gendered notions of professionalism

and specific work and professional cultures. In addition, research on the

gendered division of labor has been carried out in themes such as wage

formation, unionization and in-/ equality in the labor market.

Relations between working lives and family lives have attracted particular

interest, and this is an area in which men’s and women’s situations are both

analyzed. A major theme in research into working lives – both within and outside

gender research – is the connection between people’s identity and their work.

This is explored through studies of subjectification processes and identity work

in the context of people’s working lives. The gendered division of labour is a

central theme in this research. Several studies have examined the dynamics of

the vertical division of labor, in which women are generally located at the bottom

and men at the top of the social hierarchies of workplaces, and the horizontal

division of labor, where women and men perform different tasks.

In June 2012, World Vision International commissioned a gender equality

study, with support from World Vision Australia, to examine the organization’s

influence on gender equality within its partner communities. The study was

motivated by the organization’s desire to learn from past and current

programming, and specifically: to identify whether World Vision has contributed

to a change in gender equality, and if so, how this has occurred and what factors

led to positive change. The study was also intended to strengthen the evidence

base of how World Vision programs can address gender issues, and to

demonstrate the organization’s commitment to being a credible, critically

reflective contributor to global efforts towards gender equality. Dr. Tania King

stated that all children are like little detectives. They are constantly seeking to

classify and categorise the world around them in order to understand what

surrounds them.

Part of a child’s development is the process of beginning to understand. In

2016, Associate Professor Naomi Priest from the Australian National University

and Dr. Tania King were commissioned by the City of Melbourne to conduct a

literature review, to bring together evidence related to gender stereotypes in

preschool children. And while this is an area where theory abounds, they found

that there was a lack of empirical evidence about the influences on children’s

perception of gender.

It’s fairly well-established that awareness of gender emerges early in a

child’s life – this is nothing new. It’s also clear that awareness of gender

stereotypes arises early in life too.

Their research done in 2007 among three to five-year-olds found that at an

early age, these kids were able to identify “girl toys” and “boy toys” – and predict

whether their parents would approve or disapprove of their choice. In the

previous research according to Zamora children can already stereotype and they

can easily identify what the toys are for and for whom.

As stated by Olivia Clancy (2018), Gender stereotypes are an omnipresent

aspect of today’s society. A trip to a toy store, visit to a playground, or afternoon

watching children’s television programs reveal that from an early age, girls are

expected to be vulnerable and in need of protection while boys are supposed to

be adventurous and independent. These harsh norms are often ingrained into

children before the time they reach age 10.

Something worth noting about these stereotypes is that they also seem to

be universal. A 2016 study looked at children ages 10-14 years from 15

countries globally and found that the way in which children are gendered from

early on is socially based, not biologically.

 The consequences of imposing these roles onto young children are less

known but just as powerful. A new study by the Journal of Adolescent Health

revealed that girls conforming to traditional female stereotypes can result in

depression, child marriage, leaving school early, and increased exposure to

violence. Boys also feel the consequences of conforming, which can include

engaging in physical violence, dying more frequently as a result of unintentional

injuries, becoming more prone to substance abuse and suicide, and having a life

expectancy that is shorter than that of women.

Knowing that children are pressured to conform to the gender binary at

such a young age, it is important to begin modeling healthy behaviors for

children early on. Here are three ways to start:

1. Model and Live Gender Equality

Teach boys that they are allowed to play dress up and let girls know they can

also learn how to fix cars. Have open conversations with them about gender

inequality and how that is not okay. Most importantly, let them know their

gender does not and will not determine their future.

2. Have a value system based on internal values rather than external ones

Help children understand the importance of equating personal worth with care

for others, loyalty, confidence, ambition, fairness, etc. instead of surface level

qualities.

3. Encourage children to talk openly

Letting children have a voice from the time they can use theirs will teach them

that what they have to say matters. This will show them that they are loved and

unique individuals and do not have to conform to societal expectations.

According to Heejung Chung (2019), Flexible working is becoming a must

for many. One recent report found a quarter of UK workers have refused a

job due to a lack of flexibility. This number jumps to 40% for millennial workers

for whom work-life balance and flexible working is key when evaluating a job

prospect.

Many hope that flexible working can help tackle the persistent gender pay

gap. This is why the UK government announced a review of the right to flexible

working in 2019 and the prime minister, Theresa May, said firms should strive

to make it a reality for all staff, while urging companies to ensure women are

better represented at senior levels. But my work with Tanja van der Lippe into

the reality of how flexible working plays out shows that it can end up reinforcing

gender stereotypes if cultural norms go unchecked.

There’s no doubt that the ability to control when and where you work can

be really useful for better balancing work with family life. For example, being

able to work from home means you can avoid (sometimes very long) commutes.

And, in some cases, it can help you blend care or household work alongside your

job. Flexible schedules allow workers to avoid peak traffic and make tag-team

parenting – where one starts early and does the school pickup, while the other

does the drop off and works later – a possibility.

 Empirically, studies have shown that giving mothers access to flexible

working arrangements significantly decreases the likelihood that they will drop

out of the labour market after giving birth to their first child. It will also decrease

the likelihood that they will reduce their working hours after the first or any

subsequent childbirth. Given that reduced working hours and moving into part-

time jobs is one of the most important causes of the persistent gender wage gap,

this flexibility may well help to reduce it.

But there are downsides to flexible working. Research shows that it can lead

to people working more overtime. Plus, the capacity for workers to extend their

working day is not equal between genders.

Men, on average, are more likely than women to work longer hours when

given more control over them – even if it’s unpaid overtime – according to

research I’ve done with Mariska van der Horst. Another study has shown that

men are also more likely to worry about work when not at work and working

flexibly, since men are less likely to worry about the competing care demands

they face in the house – which is not the case for women.

Many women, especially mothers or those with care responsibilities, do not

feel like they can extend their working days. And, when mothers work flexibly

and work from home, studies show they increase their timeand activities in the

household in a way that fathers do not.

This indicates that flexible working may even reinforce traditional gender

roles – men working longer, women increasing their care duties.

 Even employers expect women to use flexible working to address family

demands, while men are expected to protect their working time, which can help

advance their careers. This could explain why research I’ve done with Yvonne

Lott found that flexible working led to income premiums for men but not for

women.

When mothers use flexible working, they are also more likely than their

male colleagues to face flexibility stigma – the idea that they are less committed

and less productive – as a result. Using the most recent survey conducted by the

UK department of business, energy and industrial strategy of more than 2,000

workers, I found that more than a quarter of mothers experienced negative

career consequences, such as lower pay and damaged career prospective, due to

working flexibly. For fathers, this was about one in ten.

Interestingly, men generally held harsher views towards those working

flexibly. Almost half of all fathers in the data said they themselves experienced

some negative outcomes due to colleagues working flexibly, and almost two out

of five men surveyed said that flexible workers generally make more work for

others.

This does not mean that flexible working in itself is a problem. But, equally,

we cannot expect that a simple increase in flexible work will automatically help

reduce gender inequality. To enable a better use of flexible working, a few things

need to be in place.
 Studies have shown that when gender norms are more progressive, flexible

working is less likely to lead to traditional gender roles being reinforced. Plus, if

more people work flexibly and overwork is less prevalent in companies, then

flexible working is also likely to result in better outcomes.

Lastly, it seems like there are differences across types of arrangements.

Flexitime, where the number of hours worked per week/day is set within

boundaries, seems to result in better outcomes compared to complete autonomy

over your working time, where encroachment over your family time is more

likely.

More fundamentally, we need to challenge organizational cultures that

privilege work above everything else, with long hours considered to be

synonymous with productivity and commitment. We also need to challenge some

of our gendered assumptions of men and women’s roles at home. These changes

are crucial, especially if flexible working is to help reduce the gender wage gap

and bring about a better work-life balance for all.

Foreign Related Study

According to Parenthood Organization, in the age of 3 years old, a child can

already stereotype by showing them a picture of an objects and as they grow

older, they are more likely to think that stereotyping to someone is just an

opinion.
 As eloquently stated by Jacobs, it was found that parent stereotypes

interact with the sex of their child to directly influence their child’s self-

perceptions and both the parent stereotypes and the child’s self-perceptions

influence the child’s performance.

As stated by Virginia Woolf, made the point: It is obvious that the values of

women differ very often from the values which have been made by the other sex.

As studied by Jean Lipman-Blumen, a women who grew up following

traditional gender roles from childhood were likely want to be highly educated

while women brought up with the view that men and women are equal were more

likely to want higher education. This result indicates that gender roles that have

been passed down traditionally can influence stereotypes about gender.

In a later study, Deaux et.al, found that most people think women are more

nurturant, but less self-assertive than men and this belief is indicated

universally. To put it another way women do not have an inherently nurturant

personality, rather than a nurturing personality.

As stated by Jo Krøjer (2009). Working lives and the labor market are central

areas in gender research, as they are among the primary sites of inequality

between men and women. Theoretically, research has moved from marxist

patriarchy theory and role theory to post-structuralism. Methodically the field

encompasses economic statistics, quantitative surveys, qualitative observation,

interview studies and historical analysis.

 As stated by Karen Borgnakke et.al, The study of gender, children and youth

has become an independent and cross-disciplinary field of research, falling into

two areas. The first considers how cultural norms and structural frameworks

reflect different conceptions of boys and girls, in particular when it comes to

incest and the notion of ‘seductive girls’. The second examines children’s and

young people’s behavior and gender-specific strategies within these cultural and

structural frameworks.

Local Related Literature

Some of the most significant laws of the last decade that impact the welfare

of women and girls include the Magna Carta of Women (MCW) also known as

Republic Act (R.A.) 9710), the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health

Act (R.A.10354), the Domestic Workers’ Act (R.A. 10361), and the Anti-Child

Pornography Act (R.A.9775). In particular the Magna Carta of Women is the

encompassing Act that operationalizes the country’s commitment to the CEDAW.

It sets out the State’s obligations in promoting and protecting gender equality,

women’s rights, and the promotion of female empowerment across all sectors 10

of society. Some of the key features of the law include setting targets for

increasing the participation of women in high-level government positions and

governing councils at the local level, expanding the coverage of maternity

benefits, penalizing discrimination on the basis of gender, and protecting women

and girls against violence. Its implementing rules provide for a governance

structure for the monitoring of gender equality goals, i.e., the Philippine
Commission on Women (PCW) and the enforcement and governance of gender

and women protections and participation across all levels of government. The

Magna Carta is the overall framework that guided and continues to guide efforts

to legislate, implement, support, and program the gender equality efforts of

government, civil society, and other stakeholders. As far as laws are concerned,

the Philippines performs better than its neighboring countries, although

enforcement and implementation of these laws remains understudied.

The dynamic women's movements of the Philippines in Southeast Asia are

composed of women from various social classes, ideological orientations,

religious affiliations and occupational groups. This paper is a preliminary

attempt to undertake an anthropology of feminist knowledge as I examine the

representations of gender inequality, the empirical articulations of women's

oppression, and their influence in the directions and dynamics of feminist

theorizing. Narratives or texts about women's/gender issues are embedded in

many kinds of writing—in research reports, creative works, in designs of

development programs, in advocacy materials, training manuals and so on. I

argue here that the development of many discursive sites for the interrogation of

marginality has been responsible for the advances as well as drawbacks, the

many bases of unity as well as tensions, among feminists in non-government

organizations, in academe and in people's organizations. Narratives or texts

about women's/gender issues are embedded in many kinds of writing—in

research reports, creative works, in designs of development programs, in

advocacy materials, training manuals and so on. In other words, the discourse
has gone beyond feminist academic circles to include feminists in development

and advocacy work. I try to provide a brief overview of the important historical

events in the birth and subsequent growth of what is often referred to in feminist

circles as the second wave of women's movement. This provides a useful

backdrop for understanding the contents and trajectory of the many and diverse

ideas put forward by Filipino feminists.

According to Philippine Commission on Women (2009), In the Philippines,

efforts to make governance gender responsive are promoted through legislation,

such as the Magna Carta of Women (MCW) which mandates non-discriminatory

and pro-gender equality and equity measures to enable women’s participation in

the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of policies, plans, and

programs for national, regional, and local development.

A recently published research paper by the Philippine Institute for

Development Studies (PIDS) (2017), think tank found that traditional roles of

female homemakers and male providers hampered female employees’ chances of

successfully breaking into the labor market.

Despite the Philippines’ rapid economic development, and the country’s

high ranking – fourth among 80 countries – for women working in management

roles, according to the International Labor Organization, Filipino women are still

expected to do most of the domestic chores.

The Filipino values – “women nurture, and their advantages are in

housework,” compared with “men provide, and their place is in the labour
market,” – lead to discrimination against those women who do want a career,

according to the authors of the paper, Connie Bayudan-Dacuycuy and Lawrence

Dacuycuy.

The number of Filipino women in work, including those who are self-

employed, has been static for the past three years, accounting for 62.8 percent

of the total national labor force in 2016, 63.7 per cent in 2015 and 63.3 percent

in 2014, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The service sector, including retail, finance and accommodation, provides

many more opportunities for women and men in the country, according to the

PSA. In 2016, its employment numbers represented 55.6 per cent of the total

40.8 million employees in the country, compared with 26.9 per cent in

agriculture and 17.5 per cent in industry.

According to Martin and Ruble (2004), one must understand the

development changes of gender which may be accounted for by children's

cognitive abilities and their envolving understanding concepts. The

developmental changes bring out the relative strength of children's gender-

related beliefs and behaviors are predicted to decline. Additionally, evidence

suggests that gender stereotyping shows a developmental pattern that can be

categorized into three phases: first during the toddler and preschool years

children begin to learn about gender related characteristics, second, children

between the ages 5-7 acquire new gender knowledge in which it reaches its peak
of rigidity, lastly, a phase of relative flexibility occur. Children learn at an early

age what it means to be a boy or a girl.

As stated by Martin and Little (2007), children ought to be brought up in

society that does not stereotype gender or gender roles. As such, children will be

able to attain knowledge, skills and abilities based on their individual choices

without being tied down to stereotypical roles and rules out by the society.

However, research in the recent years have highlighted that information of

occupational gender stereotypes is present in children 3 years in age and

increases gradually with age.

Children try to make sense of their surrounding which they do by using

gender clues that are provided to them by society to help them interpret what

they see and what they hear.

Even in the traditionally male-dominant industries like engineering there

are a number of women working as managers or leaders ”she added”. The service

sector, including retail, finance and accommodation, provides many more

opportunities for women and men in the country.

According to the PSA, In the 2016, its employment numbers represented

55.6% of the total 40.8 million employees in the country, compared with 26.9

percent in agriculture and 17.5% in industry.

PIDS revealed that in the Philippines, women are paid slightly higher than

men, especially in high-level positions. But women earned less than men when

they were employed in lower level jobs, such as clerks, service workers and shop
assistants, even though there sectors hire more women. In male, dominated

sectors such as trade and machine operation. Men are paid more than women.

Conducted by international internet-based market research firm

YouGov,the study shows there is a generational divide between respondents aged

16-29 and those who are over 45 when it comes to their perception of their

gender identity.

“On a scale of zero to 10,where zero is completely masculine and 10 is

completely feminine,there is 17% gap between male 16-29 years old (39%) and

those over 45 (56%) in those who define themselves as a either completely

masculine or near completely masculine,” the YouGov report reads .”This divide

is also seen among women.While just under a third of women 31% aged 16-29

say they are almost entirely feminine,nearly 49% of women over 45 do.”

Attitudes toward masculinity and feminity also differ between

generations.67% of those aged 45 and above see masculinity as either very

positive or fairly positive,this falls 58% among 16-29 years old.

“Young people are also less likely to believe that they conform to gender

stereotypes than older generations. Only 43% of 16-29 years old either strongly

or slightly agree that they conform to gender stereotypes compared with 51% of

those over 45”,the report reads.

As for equality between the sexes? Overall, what the study found was that

Asia Pacific residents regardless of age are at odds when it comes to their opinion

of gender stereotypes and their societal impact.39% agreed that gender roles
were a barrier to equality but it’s not a view held by all nationalities. Thailand,

Singapore and Australia seem to thinks so as almost half of their respondents

agreed to this notion but in Indonesia less than a quarter said yes.

With access to millions of people worldwide, YouGov gathered data online

between July 5 and 13 from almost 9000 respondents in Australia, Hongkong,

Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Local Related Study

As studied by Clarissa C. David et.al (2009), throughout the last three

decades, the Philippines has an active and aggressive legislative agenda to

protect women’s rights and ensure gender equality. While many landmark laws

have been passed and are in full effect, the implementation of some of these

measures are constrained by a lack of political support or resources at various

levels. Moreover, there also remain old laws in effect that are indirectly harmful

to women. The legislative agenda to advance women’s and girls’ rights and safety

is continuously active and should be monitored closely since the decision-

making bodies of the legislature are dominated by men.

According to the World Economic Forum (2017), the Philippines has been

leading the economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in

advancing gender equality since 2006. However, the organization noted that the

country still needs to address the lack of economic opportunities for Filipino

women. This Policy Note examines this scenario using select indicators of the

Sustainable Development Goals and finds that employed Filipino women indeed
face more disadvantages than men. The study urges the government to assess

the reasons behind this inequality, as well as the persistence of gender wage

gaps in some sectors and occupations. It also calls for the government to address

the gender-based barriers that hinder opportunities for capacity development

and career advancement of women in the Philippines.

As stated by Jo-Ann Capuz, “There are unconscious gender issues that can

be felt in the workplace despite continuous efforts to promote equality,” people

management that such principles do not stop local women pursuing careers to

prove their worth. For example, she said, about half of the consultants in

Monroe’s Manila office are female, which was indicative of the workforce in the

Philippines. “Even in the traditionally male-dominant industries like

engineering, there are a number of women working as managers or leaders,”

According to Jo-Ann capuz, there are unconscious gender issues that can

be felt in the workplace despite continuous efforts to promote equality. However,

she told people management that such principles do not stop local women

pursuing careers to prove their worth. She also said there was an equal

proportion of men and women in management positions, especially in the

business process outsourcing industry.

As studied by Margunn Bjornholt (2011), The work-sharing couples study

was an action research project conducted in the early 1970’s to reconcile work,

family and gender equality in families. It’s design involved both spouses working

part time and sharing child care and house work. This article is based on a
follow-up study of the original couples 30 years later. The men played a key role

in initiating work-sharing in their families and how the men became agents of

change is the topic of the article