Getting started
Before jumping into the practical aspects of this guide, it is first important to acknowledge your gender biases and gender stereotypes, because we all have them.
The way that we think about others – our beliefs and attitudes – can influence how we treat each other – our behaviours – and can either perpetuate gender inequalities or support gender equality.
Understanding your gender biases and gender stereotypes is the starting point for adjusting and improving your language and communication.
Gender biases are prejudiced thoughts or actions based on the gender-based perception that women are not equal to men in rights and dignity.
Gender stereotyping refers to preconceived ideas whereby females and males are arbitrarily assigned characteristics and roles determined and limited by their gender.
The surgeon dilemma
You have probably come across this classic riddle many times:
A man and his son are in a car accident. Unfortunately, the man passes away. His son is rushed to the hospital and urgently needs surgery. Upon arriving in theatre, the surgeon refuses to operate saying, ‘I can’t, it’s my son!’
Can you guess why the surgeon would say that?
Here is a short self-reflection exercise for you to explore potential gender biases and gender stereotypes.
- If we ask you to picture a nurse, what gender comes to mind?
- In school, a child is sick. Do you think the teacher is more likely to call their father or mother?
- A manager is strong, competent and charismatic. Which gender comes to mind?
- Think about your childhood: were you expected to behave a certain way because of your gender? What were some of those behavioural traits?
- What comes to mind when you see a working father doing his daughter’s hair in the morning?
- If you were asked to address someone with non-binary pronouns (they/them) how would you react?
- When you think of rugby, which of these two images below do you naturally associate with the sport, considering they are both winning teams?
- Where has your reaction come from?
- What were you taught about rugby?
- What were you taught about women and sport?
The fact of the matter is that both teams are champions. However, normalised notions about women and men may prevent us from accepting that women can be rugby champions just as much as men. This may be down to how we were taught about different roles and expectations between girls and boys.
To further explore gender stereotypes, the European Commission’s ‘End gender stereotypes’ campaign raises awareness of the role they play in our society. Through a series of visuals presenting different areas of life such as career choices and work–life balance, the messages encourage the viewer to rethink their perspectives.
For a more practical exercise, you can try the Harvard Implicit Association Test. It will assess the areas in which you unconsciously associate certain attributes with specific groups of people.