This question has been an ongoing debate within politics and media since more military functions opened up for women. It has been said that women are not physically able to defend their country the way men can. Others argue that with new technical advancements the military do not have to relay solely on physical strength and that therefore women are just as qualified as men. While most western cultures strive for gender equality within society, the military is lagging behind. In order to understand why this is the case it is key to understand why people refer to someone as male or female, instead of a person. Gender cannot be ignored because it is one of the structuring elements within our daily life. Membership in one of the sex categories has social consequences; it allocates resources and power in everyday domains. Not only in political, economic or domestic domains but also within interpersonal relations. Or as West & Zimmerman state (1987, p. 147): ‘Gender is a powerful ideological device, which produces, reproduces, and legitimates the choices and limits that are predicated on sex …show more content…
Demographic patterns are characteristic for the demand in labor. When the supply of men is low for military labor because of a small birth cohort, opportunities increase for women to join the military in order to meet de demand of military labor. The second social structure is labor force characteristics. When women have a greater share in the labor force, it is likely that they also have a greater share in military labor. This is partly because the same factors have influence in both the labor force as in the military, like a shortage of male labor. The other reason is that the involvement of more women in the labor market brings structural and cultural change in the division of labor. Therefore more jobs are seen suitable for both men as women. When the occupational structure is less gender segregated, there is more room and acceptance for women in military functions. The third social structure, economic factors, has an effect on women’s military and civilian employment. In times of economic growth, there is more room for women in the workforce. Though when there is economic decline, women are the first to leave the labor market. When there is low male unemployment, there is a demand for women in both the workforce as well as the military. The fourth social structure is