Gender as a Social Construct

1. Definition of Gender:

• Gender is a social and cultural concept that defines roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a society attributes to individuals based on their perceived or assigned sex at birth. Unlike biological sex, which refers to physical characteristics (like chromosomes and reproductive organs), gender is more fluid, encompassing societal expectations about how individuals should act, think, and feel based on their gender identity.

• Gender identity refers to a person’s internal understanding of themselves as male, female, both, neither, or somewhere along the gender spectrum, which may or may not align with the sex they were assigned at birth.

2. Social Construction of Gender:

• Gender as a Social Construct means that gender is not inherent or biologically fixed, but instead shaped by social, cultural, and historical factors. It is learned through the process of socialization, in which individuals internalize the gender roles and expectations taught
by society.