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Male and Female Professions: The Influence of Culture

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Words: 645 |

Page: 1|

4 min read

Published: Dec 12, 2018

Words: 645|Page: 1|4 min read

Published: Dec 12, 2018

Cultural practices go a long way in influencing people’s views and beliefs on the difference in abilities between men and women, the effects are far-reaching and informs career paths for most people. Due to the belief that there are distinctly different roles for men and women evident in most cultural setups, for many individuals career activities should follow these definitions. Accordingly, the essay discusses how cultural practices impact not only beliefs about cognitive ability differences between men and women but choices about career activities.

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Cultural practices have defined the difference in cognitive abilities alluding that men are better in some fields whereas women are good in others and this affects how people view careers. For instance, cultural practices have instilled a belief that boys are excellent in mathematics and girls are incredible in languages (Halpern 23). These claims define the belief system in different cultures and as such, the children growing up in these societies embrace them and assume they are true. The early experiences together with the educational policies and the cultures the kids are exposed to that inform their interests and abilities in the different subjects . In the long run, these beliefs translate into fewer women compared to men that work or are willing to work as scientists and engineers.

Research has been done on this matter before and resulting reports are intriguing considering the outcomes on this area of interest. A report compiled by Hyde shows that sex differences have a minimal impact on verbal processing, understanding capacity and communication capability. In this regard, it can be justified that men and women have an equal aptitude in different subjects. Despite these findings, the number of women interested in careers related to languages outnumbers men in a big way. According to Reilly et al., this is mainly as a result of cultural practices that translate into beliefs and eventually into predetermined career paths based on gender cognitive abilities.

The influence a given culture has on an individual’s choice on a career path is significant. Cultural practices attach different meanings to careers consequently, determining how much value and worth is associated with a given profession. As such, the cultural practices do not only enhance the cognitive abilities different in men and women but also on the choice of career (Bolles 230). In some cultures, career choice does not have as much value attached to it and it’s not subject to discussion or thoughtful decision making but rather is predetermined following a set of assumptions. When the young individuals in such cultures are faced with the question of career choice, they do not know what to do and can hardly contextualize career choice for themselves without this influence.

I believe that the influence of cultural practices on the choice of careers for most people is trivial. For instance, from my interactions with my friend Wendy, both of her parents have taken career choice as predefined by culture. Her dad was interested in nursing but could not pursue it since he had grown up in a culture that referred to it as a more feminine career than masculine and he ended up as a Mechanical Engineer. Wendy’s mother had a keen interest in Civil Engineering pursuits but ended up in social work since her parents thought the latter a safer and feminine job.

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In conclusion, the essay has provided an insight on how cultural practices affects not only beliefs about cognitive ability differences between men and women but preferences about career endeavors. It is evident that the first-hand experiences an individual has as life unfold from views, beliefs, and decisions are majorly determined by cultural practices that define the different roles and abilities for men and women. The effect is far reaching beyond the differences in cognitive abilities for men and women to the choice of career paths.

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Male and Female Professions: The Influence of Culture. (2018, December 11). GradesFixer. Retrieved March 29, 2024, from https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/male-and-female-professions-the-influence-of-culture/
“Male and Female Professions: The Influence of Culture.” GradesFixer, 11 Dec. 2018, gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/male-and-female-professions-the-influence-of-culture/
Male and Female Professions: The Influence of Culture. [online]. Available at: <https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/male-and-female-professions-the-influence-of-culture/> [Accessed 29 Mar. 2024].
Male and Female Professions: The Influence of Culture [Internet]. GradesFixer. 2018 Dec 11 [cited 2024 Mar 29]. Available from: https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/male-and-female-professions-the-influence-of-culture/
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