Question

should biological difference matter while defining social roles and responsibilities?​

Answer 1

Answer:

C.L. Ridgeway, in International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, 2001

Explanation:

Eagly's (1987) social role theory argues that widely shared gender stereotypes develop from the gender division of labor that characterizes a society. In western societies, men's greater participation in paid positions of higher power and status and the disproportionate assignment of nurturant roles to women have created stereotypes that associate agency with men and communion with women. In addition, the gendered division of labor gives men and women differentiated skills. When gender stereotypes are salient in a group because of a mixed sex membership or a task or context that is culturally associated with one gender, stereotypes shape behavior directly through the expectations members form for one another's behavior. When group members enact social roles that are more tightly linked to the context than gender, such as manager and employee in the workplace, these more proximate roles control their behavior rather than gender stereotypes. Even in situations where gender stereotypes do not control behavior, however, men and women may still act slightly differently due to their gender differentiated skills.

Social role theory has a broad scope that applies to interaction in all contexts and addresses assertive, power related behaviors as well as supportive or feeling related behaviors (called socioemotional behaviors). The explanations offered by the theory are not highly specific or detailed, however. The theory predicts that women will generally act more communally and less instrumentally than men in the same context, that these differences will be greatest when gender is highly salient in the situation, and that gender differences will be weak or absent when people enact formal, institutional roles.