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1. What are the primary, social, cultural, and economic factors that are responsible for gender indifference?

2. What are the short and long-term psychological effects of gender inequality?

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1. There are many factors responsible for gender inequality, and poverty is one of the biggest causes of this indifference. Poverty forces women into low-income and unofficial jobs. Even in professional settings, women are paid less than men and probably face abuse and harassment. Most importantly, women lack official identification, and lack of access to education, which limits their ability to improve their situation. Moreover, Domestic violence and abuse are significant contributors to gender inequality, which dominates women and restricts their opportunities for education, employment, and independence (fundsforNGOs & fundsforNGOs, 2022). Another important factor contributing to gender bias is the lack of legal protection. There are no legal rules against domestic violence, including both economic and sexual abuse, and this lack limits their ability to live independently and survive. Without proper laws to protect women, abusers feel free to do whatever they want, and because of it women have to make some decisions that hinder their goals and success and make it harder for them to be independent. The lack of dependence makes them feel powerless and unstable which prevents them from achieving their goals. There are many women in the world who do not have the right on their reproductive decisions because they cannot use modern birth control due to family, social pressure, and financial problems. This results in a significant number of unwanted pregnancies all over the world. This results in women's financial dependence on men, which limits their independence and self-reliance (Soken-Huberty, 2022).

2. Gender inequality  has always been an issue in the growth of women and some oppressed groups. The effects of gender inequality includes Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sadness, anxiety, psychological stress and many more. It effects women all over the world, which includes limited access to education, less employment opportunities, increased stress levels and sexual abuse, and gender-based harm. Gender Biasness not only hinders growth , but it also affects a person mentally, and women are more likely to be prone to these disorders than men. According to a 2020 article, men are 3.63 times more likely to die by suicide, whereas women are twice likely to suffer from generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder and experience depression twice in their lifetime (Leonard, 2021). Trauma is another consequence of gender inequality. It can lead to different physical and emotional troubles, feeling anxious, angry and sad are one of those symptoms. Some people might feel numb or they might not feel any emotion. Some might have trouble sleeping or experience flashbacks. If these symptoms remains over long time, it can also result in depression, anxiety or post traumatic disorder. For example, women usually spend most of their time doing household chores and taking care of others, which results in less sleep, less time for them to do something they enjoy, and no social life. Sexual harassment also impacts their physical and mental well being. Another important consequence of gender inequality is lower self-esteem. It leads women to make stereotypes about their abilities, resulting in low self-confidence (Leonard, 2021).

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Gender equality is not a ‘women’s issue’. The effects of gender inequality touch all parts of our community. Gender stereotypes have negative effects on people of all genders.

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fundsforNGOs, & fundsforNGOs. (2022, May 5). Risk factors contributing to gender inequality and relevant mitigation strategies - FundsforNGOs. fundsforNGOs - Grants and Resources for Sustainability. https://www2.fundsforngos.org/human-rights/risk-factors-contributing-to-gender-inequality-and-relevant-mitigation-strategies/

Leonard, J. (2021, July 1). What are the psychological effects of gender inequality? https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/psychological-effects-of-gender-inequality#self-esteem

Sen, S., Sen, S., & Sen, S. (2022, December 2). Importance of introducing gender education in early childhood. Rights of Equality - Promoting Gender Equality and Women Empowerment. https://www.rightsofequality.com/importance-of-introducing-gender-education-in-early-childhood/

Soken-Huberty, E. (2022, May 1). 10 causes of gender inequality. Human Rights Careers. https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/causes-gender-inequality/

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Educating children about gender equality is very important from the beginning as it shapes a positive perspective of all genders in children. By performing activities like art, drama, music, and other school subjects, children can learn to think their own way and question the gender roles they see in their homes, TV commercials, and cartoons. This will help children unlearn the stereotypes and roles of some genders (Sen et al., 2022). I can promote gender equality in classroom setting by encouraging children to play freely without holding a stereotype about a gender.  For instance, children can play roles like teacher, doctor, or firefighter, in which anyone can play any role irrespective of their gender or gender norms for particular jobs. On the other hand, I can encourage families to share their responsibilities, where father could help in cleaning, cooking, and other household chores, and mother can do their professional jobs, which will break their idea that domestic work is only for women, which will promote idea of equality in children. Moreover, I can put it into practice by teaching them the value of consent at a young age. Activities can be arranged for encouraging respect for someone’s physical and emotional boundaries. For example, children can ask for permission from others before touching or physically playing with other children. This way they can realize the importance of understanding and respecting the boundaries of others.

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Play is fundamental to every child's learning and development. As a parent you have a key role in all of this - both in the time you can bring to playing with your children and which toys, games and activities you select.

As you do so, have you considered whether you might be, even unconsciously, contributing to reinforcing stereotypes about gender, disability, race, ethnicity or culture? How you parent your child at home contributes to the socialization of children (how they learn to behave according to social norms), and play is one area where this happens.
>>Read What is gender-responsive parenting?
For example, thinking about gender stereotyping, girls might be encouraged to play with dolls indoors while boys are encouraged to play outside. While this teaches girls to be caregivers from an early age, it can also impede their ability to develop other types of cognitive, physical and social skills. Boys are often given toys such as guns to play with and encouraged to participate in physical, and often more aggressive, activities with other boys or male caregivers, which can promote unhealthy expressions of masculinity.

Children with disabilities, as well as children from marginalized groups, may not be represented at all in the toys your children play with or the books they read, or they might be shown in stereotypical ways that has a harmful impact on them.

As a parent, you have a direct influence on your little one and the ability to prevent this kind of bias while you engage in playful learning with your child. Here are some ways you can encourage gender-equitable and inclusive playtime at home.

1. Encourage school attendance and give girls and boys equal and adequate time to play and participate in household chores, regardless of gender.

2. Make sure your children play with toys and games that develop the complete set of social and cognitive skills. For example, look for games that develop literacy, numeracy, spatial, cognitive and social skills or toys that stimulate creativity and problem-solving.

3. Help your children read books and watch media that tell inclusive and positive stories about children in all their diversity, that celebrate different cultures, include children with disabilities, and provide positive portrayals of gender roles.

4. Have your children play with toys and games traditionally associated with the opposite gender. Both girls and boys can play with dolls and cooking toys as well as engage in physically active games and sports. Toys and games should ultimately be tools that enable children to become agile and adaptive learners, and teach skills such as creativity, communication and problem solving.

5. Avoid toys and games that deliberately encourage gender stereotypes, such as pink packaging, unicorns, rainbows and hearts for girls versus blue packaging, robots, spaceships and toolboxes for boys. Ensure that toys and games given to children are inclusive and diverse in their representation.

6. Be aware of the way marketing and advertising can reinforce harmful gender norms and exclude children. Choose toys, books and games that send positive messages to your children.

7. Prevent children from playing with guns and violent toys, including overtly violent or sexualized digital games. The digital gaming industry is a fast-growing sector which is also deeply gender-biased, sexualized, and condoning of violence in much of its content. These kinds of games, often played by children and targeted at adolescents, have the capacity to deepen gender biases and promote unhealthy and harmful behaviour and attitudes in future generations.

8. Replace or supplement digital games with constructive physical activities, such as sports and outdoor games. Physical activity is essential for the healthy development of all children, no matter their gender, and children should be encouraged to engage in physical play as early in life as possible through sports, going to the playground or playing games with their friends. As a parent, try to support a full range of cognitive and creative skills for your children and ensure that girls and boys receive equal play time, indoors and outside.

9. Encourage your child to translate anger and frustration into problem-solving, positive communication and constructive physical activity rather than use aggression or bullying.

And remember, play builds the relationship and bond between parent and child so make sure to savour every moment you have together!

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How to remove gender stereotypes from playtime

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1. How can schools and communities can work together to create long-lasting changes in gender equality?

2. How can we prevent reinforcement of harmful gender norms in early childhood education?

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Prior to research on this topic, I knew that gender equality means people of different genders have same rights, opportunities, and treatment. It is basically the idea that no one is judged on the basis of their gender. It is about fairness that everyone should have regardless of their gender. It includes equal opportunities, such as right to education, and right to vote for all genders. I saw it as the fundamental human right where everyone is treated equally regardless of their gender, in every aspect of life, including education, work, and other social spheres.

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A Journey Through Social Justice: A Multimedia Voyage

Pawandeep Kaur & Dilpreet Kaur

ECE122 Social Justice: Nurturing Communities

Ryan Gracie

6 April 2025

I have maintained Academic Integrity in my work by adhering to the values of honesty and integrity. I declare that this work respects APA requirements as well as policies within the Faculty of Health Sciences and Wellness.

Name of students- Pawandeep Kaur & Dilpreet Kaur

Student ID- N01722318, N01701424