ABSTRACT
This qualitative study looks at role expectations of men and women as felt and experienced by CMU students today in 2016. We are taught from an early age of what the typical behaviors and expectations are to be male or female. These differences come into effect during relationships when masculine and feminine gender roles that have been traditionally prescribed by culture impact our behavior and decision making. The purpose of this study is to identify the values college students place on traditional gender roles. The present study is based on a semi-structured in-depth interview with eight CMU students; four males and four females. The findings show that societal expectations for how men and women should act still exist and influence the structure of a relationship.
INTRODUCTION
Gender stratification is inevitable and something that an individual is born into. It has been prevalent in the U.S. and around the globe for decades. Men are viewed as
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While a majority of the men did feel sympathy towards women, they were still convinced that it was unacceptable for them to perform at the same level as woman. As Kaufman noted, “the college experience tends to liberalize students’ gender-role attitudes on a variety of dimensions.” Majority of the participants responded to these questions by reflecting back on their childhood. From that we can assume family has a significant impact in the way we wish to pursue a relationship. Notably, there was a a greater difference in responses between male and female interviewees than as a whole. Males that were interviewed were more likely to praise the stereotypical gender role because it was what made them feel superior. Unlike, females who felt demoralized by the stereotypical gender role. Women were also found to be more alert about gender stratification than men because it affected women