Introduction
The current era has witnessed many changes concerning issues such as politics, social life, and culture in our society. With these developments, various areas have been developed as well as impact, and it is for this reason that several initiatives seek to eradicate some of the societal problems affecting women and men. One such area is the field of sport where the female gender must be involved in making crucial decisions regarding their participation in male-based sporting activities such as football, NBA, NFL, and cricket. These decisions will be informed by the prevailing political, legal and cultural environment in which they live, as well as their personal needs or interest in the development of female athletes. This would involve the availability of funds, the influence of sponsors on the final results, and public approval. While there exist equal opportunities within different sports arenas, gender stereotyping in many games has greatly affected sports in general.
Gender Stereotyping in Football
Gender stereotypes can often be defined as the way an individual identifies his/ her gender regarding a certain type of activity, situation, or event. Different kinds of stereotypic behavior may occur in specific spheres of life. For example, women are associated with tasks such as cleaning and cooking while men are associated with occupations like fishing and hunting. Some events are also considered feminine as well as masculine at times. There exist also stereotypical beliefs about certain sports, careers, jobs, and careers in each case. Women are mostly associated with soft sports and jobs involving the home, while men are characterized by hard and aggressive sports and jobs involving the outside world.
Stereotypical ideas result from the fact that one gender is supposed to perform better than the other or that a particular career is not appropriate for either gender. It might also be because of the belief that girls should be more interested in schoolwork while boys should pursue playing sports. As such, it becomes the norm that children who grow up watching television movies, plays, and animations that highlight masculinity are not encouraged to play sports such as rugby or soccer. Males are therefore perceived more suitable for sports of all types, including hockey, basketball, wrestling, and football, while females are only suited for sports involving mother and child and childcare. Such assumptions and perceptions tend to hold both women and men in high esteem, especially in cases of success.
Some people hold views and opinions about some forms of discrimination and prejudice within societies. Many people also view individuals based on race or other characteristics against another individual, group, class, or even a person. Gender is one form of prejudice, although it does not seem to be the major source of it. However, it is still evident that more than half of the players across most football teams are black males who are believed to be less motivated as compared to white females. Due to this, a lot of efforts have been put by the government into ensuring that more blacks participate in the game rather than whites despite the challenges such as racism and violence. Racial groups are therefore not included in a majority of elite-level clubs across the country.
Many coaches also encourage or discourage playing sports of various categories such as football, baseball, gymnastics, swimming, softball, and athletics based on gender. There are very few organizations whose main targets are sports that emphasize equality. Instead, those companies focus on maximizing profits while taking advantage of individuals with different abilities. From this point of view, athletes who identify themselves with male-oriented sports are discouraged while athletes who identify themselves with female-oriented sports are encouraged through financial incentives and promotion offers. Others feel discriminated against because of their skin color and do not believe they have a right to compete or develop their talents if they think so. Their coaches are therefore forced to withdraw them.
Negative Effects of Gender Stereotypes
Gender stereotypes are often portrayed negatively in most athletic games due to the inherent differences in genders. Through the use of body language, male and female players are usually regarded as aggressive and assertive respectively. Those male athletes who identify with male-oriented sports are however expected to show less physical aggression than their female counterparts. By using femininity to reinforce the idea of masculinity, females tend to project a feeling of power and dominance. They are therefore more likely to avoid situations threatening physical confrontation and to use passive approaches when dealing with violent attacks and accusations. Most females within any team are also expected to avoid being direct and show signs of weakness whenever possible. When a female athlete is faced with a fight or when confronted, she always tends to exhibit assertiveness and tries to regain control by asserting herself fully with all her strength. She is therefore not able to take any step back during confrontations or when defeated in an argument.
The media have often portrayed the female gender as less concerned about sports. This implies that the female sportsman has little to no self-confidence and cannot, therefore, express her talent. Due to the stereotype that is held, females rarely show their talent in competitions. In addition, the media shows women playing weaker or slower sports than what their female competitors are doing. Female athletes are thus treated as inferior to others, leading to feelings of humiliation and depression. Females are also said to lack self-confidence and they cannot stand out and be appreciated during competitions. According to Kate Bornstein, females who identify with female-centered sports have a lesser chance of developing confidence, and they feel outcasted and isolated. These attitudes lead most young women to refrain from participating in male-oriented sports until adulthood. In essence, gender stereotypes result in lower levels of achievement among female students as compared to their male counterparts. Consequently, young men find it difficult to achieve higher learning achievements compared to women. Other effects include decreased social interactions with friends and family members, and reduced interest in education and employment. Additionally, stereotyping leads to limited exposure to the real world. Lastly, most females are expected to behave according to male values, but they are never allowed to challenge such values. They are therefore discouraged from achieving their best since they feel excluded and are afraid of failure.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it is possible to conclude that general and gendered stereotypes of men and women have significant psychological impacts on the lives of many women and men. These effects come along with negative consequences on human socialization, as well as other aspects such as their academic achievements, relationships with peers, self-worth, and performance. Unfortunately, many women remain unaware of how gender stereotyping affects them. More needs to be done by psychologists and scholars who are dedicated to studying discrimination. Moreover, much effort has to be put into research to ensure that these concepts and beliefs are eliminated because some of them have continued to affect the daily lives of millions of people in the United States of America and around the globe.
You must be logged in to post a comment.