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Gender is socially constructed--how have you been socialized into your gender identity?

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I would say family has socialized me into my gender identity because of the expectations of a Hispanic woman. Hispanics push the role of marianismo onto women which translates into the women holding more responsibility than a man in a household. The woman is expected to take care of house duties while taking care of everyone else around them; Women are expected to be selfless. Because of these expectations, I naturally believe these are the things I’m supposed to do one day. My mom is a reflection of the expectations of a Hispanic woman so, it influences my idea of what being a woman is. Something else that has shaped my gender identity is the toys I had growing up as well as how I was being dressed. I had baby dolls that I would pretend to take care of and was dressed from head to toe in “girly” pink clothes.

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Before I became gender fluid, I was biology a male. I was named an American boy name and I don't know anyone who isn't male with the name. I had interests that were mostly linked to the color blue like Sonic and Thomas, which the color is stereotyped as masculine color. I would have mostly have trains for toys. I always have my hair cut short by my parents. I literally went to a school where everyone was a man and I saw how cruel they are. However I actually have interests aimed to opposite genders like My Little Pony. I played with Barbies with my siblings. I always wanted to keep my hair long and curly. Not to mention I was the only brother in a family of girls. I don't really care about what gender people are targeting to me. I just want to do what I want to do.

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I was socially made into my gender identity because of the beliefs my family holds of Hispanic women. My family believes Hispanic women should be the ones doing it all and carrying everyone else's worries on their shoulders. It’s not always troublesome until I come to a situation that requires me to do teamwork or share responsibilities. I’ve been used to the norms of having to do things by myself and being told it will always just be me and myself that times like those are now hard for me since I try to break away from these traditions.

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I have been socialized into my gender identity by the toys I grew up with as a kid and the way I dress. Growing up, I always been given baby dolls and other girly toys to play with. I rarely played with action figures, toy weapons and cars that was considered to be all for boys. Whenever I go to stores or to a McDonald’s, the toys are segregated by gender and I usually get the girls toys, I never received a boys toy. I think the purpose of being given a baby doll as a kid is that I’m supposed to be caring towards the doll like I’m being caring towards a child. Another thing is that I never wore suits to formal occasions, I found myself wearing fancy dresses, makeup and heels. However those experiences aren’t really a bother to me because as I got older, I’m still a caring person and have a liking towards fashion mostly wearing dresses that I find pretty and colorful.

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Growing up, my family plays a huge part in socializing me into my gender identity. For example, as a girl, my mom would always buy me clothes that are mostly bright colors like pink or yellow, dolls, stuffed toys, pink/girly bags, etc. Because of this, growing up, I have always thought that these things are for girls only. However, as I grow older, she begins to let me make the choices instead. For example, whenever we go out shopping for clothes, she’d always ask for my opinion first instead of making the decisions for me. What I notice is that it doesn’t matter what the clothes look like, blue, green, unique designs that go against gender norms, etc. It doesn’t matter. I think this is because she notices the change in my taste in fashion. I prefer band tees, baggy jeans and sweaters, neutral/dark colored tops, etc. All of the clothes that go against how a girl should “look like”. Because of this, it allows me to understand that gender identity is a much deeper topic than that, especially in today’s society.

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I can say my family has socialized into my gender identity. Coming from a Mexican household, my sisters and I would get the role of taking care of our brothers. My mom would give me most of the chores around the house, while my brother gets a more laid-back chore. I guess it's more of a mom role, I would grow into. I would help my mom cook, clean, serve food to my father and brothers. Also growing up my mom would always dress me up in girly pink clothing, along with receiving toys and movies of princess and barbies. With my father, he sets harsh rules to my dating life, to which on the other hand my brothers can do whatever they want in their dating life. There is an obvious difference to how my parents view both genders and how they decide to raise my family. Family has shaped my gender identity in having the role of the women of the house. In addition, giving my identity to be very famine and girly. Having my favorite color be pink and wanting girly clothes and item's while still growing up.

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Jonathan Cruz - Gender is socially constructed--how have you been socialized into your gender identity? 

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Jonathan Cruz - Gender is socially constructed--how have you been socialized into your gender identity? 

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Throughout my life, a common theme has been that men aren’t to cry. They must not show signs of weakness and must always be strong. This is socialized by the society I grew up in as well as the older male figures in my life. Growing up, these ideas stuck in the back of my mind like a hornet's nest. Even in times of needing great vulnerability, I used to bottle and suppress these overwhelming emotions which could end up making way through bursts of pent-up emotion. The ideas added poison to the mind of a young boy spoon-fed false ideology, which was supposed to make him appear “stronger” and fit the uniform of masculinity. Being told to "be a man" or "walk it off" in response to anything that could be interpreted as a weakness. As I matured I realized the damage this was doing to me and other young men. It took time to trust and separate myself from that, but today I have successfully learned to navigate most parts of even my deepest layers to understand myself. I wanted to embrace that side of myself to build a healthier life while surrounding myself with people who wish nothing but the best for me. This is one of the many reasons most guys fail to break out of this stage because of the community they are raised in forcing them to hold this “masculine” image to fit in.

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I have been socialized into my gender identity by things like family, friends, and school. Growing up as a girl I was conditioned into liking the color pink, playing with dolls, and spending lots of time learning how to fit into certain roles. I was taught to express my emotions, while the boys in my classroom were taught the opposite. I was raised to always be presentable, while the men around me were excused from those lessons; overall my socialization into being a woman has been a journey full of representations and expectations. Molding me into who I am now.

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Jamaya Joseph

11/19/2024

I was socialized into a certain gender identity based from family, growing up there certain things my aunts would question about me when I did something they referred to as something a boy would considerably do. They would push me to be more “Feminine” or “Lady Like” things such as crossing my legs when sitting down, wearing girl colors for example: Pink, Purple, White, etc.. While when we stepped outside, I wasn’t allowed to act a fool and play fight or even be around boys too often unless they were family which was rare. When babysitting my nephew my mother always states, “You're a boy, boys don’t cry stop all that crying nonsense,” Which would make me think she’s wrong, but it was how she was constructed that made her that way. Colors play an important role because when we babysit my mom says, “Take that pink hat if my grandson,” It seemed colors were a very important role and when used wrong it could affect the way someone looked at something.

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I have been socialized into my gender identity through my household and the way I grew up. I was the only girl in my family and I was always surrounded by boys but I was almost never allowed to play or hangout with them because I could get "hurt". But I was also in a soccer school since I was four and was the only girl until I turned twelve. My dad always protected me and would go with me everywhere and would always tell my male cousins to take care of me because I was also the youngest. When I started going to school I had a better relationships with the boys and my whole life my friends have always been the opposite gender. This doesn't make me a "boy" Im still a girl, I still wear makeup and like to get my nails done but I also like to play soccer and go to car meets with my friends. Of course in other people's eyes this is wrong because why would there would only be one girl in a group of only guys. I grew up different for many people and gender or my sexual orientation has never been an issue. My parents started talking to me about the world, boys, sex and puberty at the age of 8 and they've always made it seem as something normal but they've always encourage m e to stay safe and provided resources for me to do so.

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As a straight Hispanic man, my gender identity has been shaped by cultural expectations of machismo, family values around independence and responsibility, and social circles that emphasized traditional masculinity. Media like music and sports reinforced these ideals, influencing how I view myself and express my identity.

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I was socialized by my family about what is socially accepted for how women should behave and act and what is socially accepted of women to do. from taking care of kids to being pure. this made me more aware of how close minded these ideas were as I saw other peoples views and beliefs such as in school

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Since the day I was born I have been socialized into my current gender identity as a girl. As a baby and a small child, I have been dressed in pink, purple, or pastel color clothing. In addition to dresses and other feminine articles of clothing. In particular, when I was younger I had super long hair and that was always the talking point about me. I was told, "never cut your hair." When i did in fact cut my hair and chemically treated it, people around me were disappointed in me. This is largely because as women, a part of being "feminine," is having long hair. I was also frequently told, still to this day, that things are for boys or what I do isn't "lady," like. From certain over sized clothing, from certain actions like sitting with my legs slightly open. However, I also received positive sanctions from "acting lady like." When I happen to be sitting with my legs crossed my mom will praise me and say something along the lines, "Wow Mel you are naturally so feminine/elegant." Throughout my life I am implicitly and explicitly taught what is valued in being a woman and I have ingrained that in my gender identity.

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My parents raised me as a male and while I was growing up, I usually had male friends around me. When I watched something entertaining, I would watch action packed shows and play with action figures which were always in a different section compared to items like dolls. My parents, my dad specifically, also always encouraged me to exercise and build muscle so that I grow strong when I'm older. In terms of my hair, my parents never let me grow it out until I was around 14-15, instead having me get haircuts that left my hair short since ladies usually have long hair as I was told.

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Growing up as the oldest daughter meant having to take care of my sisters and do the workload when my parents around. At first I would get praised and given prizes for what I did, but after a while it stopped because taking care of my sisters was something I was "meant" to do and it was preparing me when I have children in the future. This annoyed because my boy cousins were never seen taking care of their siblings, instead they were outside doing what they wanted. I couldn't do that because I am a girl and something bad can happen to me. No family members had bat an eye due to the fact that is so, not only socialized, but normalized that a girl needs to be home taking care of children that aren't even hers. Since young it was setting up expectations for my cousins and I that the girls were with the young ones and helping the women and they boys were outside rough housing while the men "watched". Being a girl in this world meant having to sacrifice much of myself to give to others but being called selfish when I tried to do it for myself.

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Being a girl growing up one would have to sit a certain way so that nothing would show even if at times there were pants under whatever one was wearing. Only being shown girl toys and girl clothes and how looking or evening questioning something out off the ordinary got weird looks or plain out ignored. Of course there many things when it comes to associating women and gender roles; cooking, cleaning, emotional, selfish, attention seeker etc. Therefore a time I was socialized into gender identity was when this drunk government worker, a man nonetheless apparently was so bothered and fascinated by the outfit I was wearing and the way it looked on my body. He made comments and got upset when I didn’t reply to the negative or positive ones and then when I ended up moving away because there was more space to move that still bothered him because he wouldn’t stop talking about it. Funny if no one bothered to say anything not even the driver who was listening to what he was saying. Of course I could’ve said something but if I did I might not be here typing this today. For the record I was wearing a red hoodie and sweats and crocs covered all the way. So to him as a woman I must’ve been an attention seeking and selfish woman.

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I have been socialized into my gender identity due to the way I was raised as a child. Growing up I have always been taught “right” from “wrong” based off my parents beliefs. My parents would never tell me explicitly to behave like a man, they would imply that I am doing something incorrectly. For example, whenever I would sit and cross my legs my mother would tell me to position my legs a different way as the way I am sitting is meant for women. Another subtle influence was receiving a bike for Christmas and it being blue with flames, rather than pink with rainbows.

Personally, I would say that we are most impressionable when we are children learning from those around us. My parents never really told me to act a certain way, but there were obvious cues when it came to understanding gender. I learned the most about gender when being a little boy hearing peers saying things like pink is for girls and boys need to be strong.

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I have been socialized into my gender identity (female) through my family, religion, and society. I was born in an Islamic country (Pakistan) and into religious muslim family. In my religion, there are only 2 genders/gender identities and homosexuality is forbidden. In a muslim country like Pakistan, there are basically 2 genders, male and female. I was shown that men go to work and provide for the family and women stay home and take care of the house and family members. However, during my time in Pakistan, there were also some transgenders. We always viewed them as weird or poor because they were men that used to do makeup and dress up like women and then beg for money. This is how they were viewed and then I also viewed them that way. When I was young, people said I kind of looked like a boy when I wore gender neutral shirts and pants and this is probably because I had short hair. I honestly didn't like makeup or barbies, I feel like I wasn't really into girly toys and things. However, I was and am still a female. I guess everyone has different interests and just because I wasn't into girly things didn't mean I wasn't a girl. I sometimes thought I was a tomboy or something but I grew out of all that now. This is how I have been socialized into my gender identity.

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I was socialized into my gender identity by my family. I always had to act and look a certain way, and my responsibilities were different from those of my siblings because I was a girl.

Since I was the eldest girl, my mother and grandparents were determined to turn me into a "princess." I was constantly getting my nails done, wearing dresses, pastels, and various shoes and outfits. I learned from things like this that being a girl meant constantly trying to look good or breaking your back to do so. In addition, I was taught to be what they consider a good woman—cleaning, cooking, sewing, and child care—because I was a girl. To them, being a woman meant being a housewife.
Each of these unique features has influenced who I am as a woman.

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The way I have been socialized into gender identity is by a young age, being told I'm a girl and I'm supposed to do girl things. As a little girl, I was supposed to be girly and wear girly things. I was supposed to like wearing dresses, skirts, "girl color" clothing, etc. As I got older and was able to choose what I wanted to wear, I got told, "You're a girl, not a boy why do you dress that way?". " I always taught you what to wear as a girl." When it came to liking a color "I had" to like "the girl colors." I like blues, so I was named "a boy" just because I like blue. When I was younger, I wasn't shown "the things a woman should do." Me and my brother will always do the same things. Until I was older, things did a 360 turn all of a sudden, I was supposed to do "the women's job." I was like 12 when this happened I didn't know anything, so I just did what I was told. Until I started learning in school what gender norms were. That's when my mindset changed, and I told my parents that if I did something, my brother had to help me or also do it, and if he didn't, then I would do the same thing as him: sit down and not do anything. This didn't stop my parents from telling me to do "the women's job." This happened more when my brother left for college.

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My family has socialized me into my gender identity because when I was younger my family would always buy girl's clothes and buy me dolls of the color pink. Now that I am bigger I have no interest in dolls I make my own decisions and choose what's best for me. My mother would forced me to wear dresses as I was younger and I did not like it because the little Boys in my neighborhood would always be trying to say weird stuff. Now that I am bigger I don't really pay much attention to that.

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I would say my gender identity has shaped by a combination by my culture, religion, specially by my family and community. I've been taught specific roles, behaviors, and expectations that align with my religion beliefs and my cultural background. My family encouraged me to dress modestly, behave some type of ways and be kind, show me that I'm to take care of people. Also societal expectations play a role in shaping my understanding of what it means to be women and how to behave as a women. These influences contribute on how I shape and express my gender identity.

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I have always been "different" while growing up and it resulted to my family trying to socialize me into my gender identity. I have always identified as a female but, I was "tomboyish". My family was afraid of me being someone entirely different; a boy. I would have guy friends, dress as a boy due to comfortability, and avoid any close interactions with females. Personally, I did that to steer clear of any conflict since females are known for that. I also just wanted to be comfortable. My mom tried to enforce the concept of dressing more feminine and being into feminine things like shopping and going out with my girlfriends. Growing up, I then fitted into those feminine ideas slowly but in my own way. It shaped who I am. I'm still a bit boyish in how I act, but I'm feminine in the way I dress and talk.