On the Origins of Gender Roles: Women and the Plough - Essay Example

On the Origins of Gender Roles: Women and the Plough Introduction The article, “On the origins of gender roles: women and the plough”, by Alberto F. Alesina, Paola Giuliano, and Nathan Nunn, studies the historical origins of existing cross-cultural differences in value and belief concerning the appropriate role of women in society. This study examines a deeply held belief that varies widely across societies: the natural role or appropriate role of women in society. In other societies, the dominant belief is that women should be allowed to participate freely, and equally to males, in employment outside of the homes. In others, there is a different view that the allowed and appropriate women’s place is within the home; they were discouraged from taking part in activities outside of the domestic fields. Consequently, these differences can be clearly seen in surveys carried out. The findings showed that, women who belonged to societies which, practiced plough agriculture had lower rates of participation in the workplace, that is, in entrepreneurial activities and politics. For instance; the results of surveys carried out world wide showed varies across countries; in Iceland 3.6% and Egypt 99.6% agreed with the statement that, “when jobs are scarce, men should have more right to a job than women” (Alesina et al, 26). In other words, there was a greater prevalence of attitudes favoring gender inequality in such societies. The authors’ principal concern is to explain the origin of these cultural differences. Therefore, they test Ester Boserup’s 1970 hypothesis that, the origin of differences in gender roles were from agriculture traditionally practiced in the pre-industrial period. It finds out that historical gender division of labor observed today may nave been influenced by traditional agricultural practices. These agricultural practices were divided into; shifting cultivation and plough cultivation. Shifting cultivation used hand-held tools like digging stick and hoe. It was labor intensive and women actively involved in farm work. In the other end plough cultivation is more capital intensive, uses plough in land preparation. As ploughing requires grip strength and upper body also, requires power to control the animals pulling it men were at a greater advantage than women. Gender bias is reinforced in ability because; ploughing cultivation needs less weeding which was generally done by women. This is in contrast to shifting cultivation where women were more suited as weeding had to be done using hoes. Boserup held that societies that traditionally practiced plough agriculture other than shifting cultivation developed specialization of production along gender line. In this paper, Boserup’s hypothesis is tested by combining pre-industrial ethnographic data, reporting whether societies traditionally practiced plough agriculture, with contemporary measures of individuals view about gender roles, as well as measure of female participation in activities outside of the homes. Further, they added an analysis of more variations across countries, individuals and ethnic groups. Consequently, the findings confirmed that traditional plough used was positively correlated with attitudes reflecting gender roles today. Moreover, it was negatively correlated with female labor force participation, female participation in politics and female firm ownership. Men tend to work outside of the homes in the fields, while as women specialized in activities within the home. Division of labor in this eventually defines the role of women. Societies characterized by plough agriculture and a leading gender based division of labor, developed the notion that the natural place for women is within the home. Unfortunately, these notions and practices with respect to women continue even today, when most economies are moving away from agricultural practices. Using ethnographic evidence and Boserup’s hypothesis, the authors find more evidence of a historical connection between plough use and decline in female involvement in agriculture. More particularly, in tasks like soil preparation, land clearance, planting, crop tending and harvesting. In addressing the issues of causality, they used controlling observation characteristics. The analysis made a distinction amongst traditional plough agriculture and all other forms of subsistence. In the study non-plough societies include agricultural societies practicing shifting hoe agriculture as well as societies not engaged in agriculture, such as herding and hunter and gatherer societies. Frederick Engels (1902) proposed a high determinant of cultural differences in gender-role position. He explained the origin of differences in gender role as a result of intensification of agriculture, leading to the gradual emergence of private property monopolized by men. He added that, it is this control of private property that permitted men to intimidate women, making them even more dependent on their husbands and their property, as a result, making them less active and equal players in community life. This paper goes further and analysis various other variables and factors such as ethnicity and religion and links them to the traditional plough use and the subordinate status of women. The findings are that current differences in female behavior and gender attitudes have indeed been shaped by historical differences in agricultural systems. Furthermore, the authors examine variations across second-generations female immigrants born and living in the US, but coming from diverse cultural backgrounds. Samples of women aged 15 to 64 and another sample was taken from married women in the same age group. Apparently, from both cases, it is found that apart from the fact that all immigrants’ women face the same labor market, politics and institutions, the one common history that they share is the use of the plough and its link with less female labor force participation. Therefore, while women fight against centuries of gender inequalities and subjugation, both inside an outside home, they would do well to remember that it is, probably, the plough and man’s monopoly over it that is responsible for their present status in society. Despite a host of varies over the following centuries such as industrialization and a higher general rates of female involvement in the workforce, economist found that farming practices by ancestors can well explain variations between countries in the fraction of adult women who work outside the home. Consequently, merely about a quarter of the Arab world women work outside their homes, but women of nearly 91% in Burundi do. This fraction ranges between half and three-fifths in majority of industrialized countries. But in countries such as Rwanda, Kenya, Madagascar or Botswana, whose people are much greater in number of descended from hoe-users; women are far more likely to be in the labor force than those in historically plough-using places like Syria, India or Egypt. But in countries such as Rwanda, Kenya, Madagascar or Botswana, whose people are much greater in number of descended from hoe-users; women are very much likely to be in the labor force than those in historically plough-using places like Syria, India or Egypt. This alone does not demonstrate the Boserup hypothesis. It is possible that societies which had very strong beliefs about “a men's work” or “woman's place” were the ones that took over the plough. This alone does not demonstrate the Boserup hypothesis. It is possible that societies which had very strong beliefs about “a men's work” or “woman's place” were the ones that took over the plough. Different studies point out that the decision to take or choose not to undertake plough cultivation has a lot to do with the type of climate and farmland. Generally speaking, it is most useful to use ploughs for crops that need large tracts of land to be tilled in a short span of time, possibly because the climate favors a grain with a comparatively short growing season. Crops like barley, wheat and rice are well-suited for plough-based farming; others, including millet, sorghum, roots and tubers, gain less from the plough use. The economists were able in their studies to use measures of agro-climatic conditions to predict which parts of the world would adopt the plough. Eventually, the data indicate that ethnic groups who were expected to take ploughs based on climatic conditions like their ancestors, have aggressively differentiated economic roles for genders even today. Therefore, it seems reasonable to argue that its functions drove attitudes other than the other way around. There is evidence from economists that agricultural history till affect people’s belief. World Values Survey data show that plough–users descendant are significantly more likely to correspond with a argument that men should have claims first on jobs when there is high unemployment rates. Furthermore, they also agree that better political leaders are made by men. The authors also found that daughters of America immigrants are less likely to work when their parents were from traditionally plough-based society. Contrary to the authors’ assumption, attitudes toward ploughing are not fixed for ever. Several countries in the west which were predominantly, though not exclusively populated by plough users become drastically more open to mothers working full-time owing to second world war that forced many women to accept and take on the so called a “male” jobs. Nevertheless, even now, the share of adult women working outside homes in OECD countries is approximately 16% lower than matching men. Consequently, policies that make it easier for women to balance their family lives with workplace demand are up against attitudes that bear their roots deep in early history. In conclusion, it was important to test the long hypothesized plough agriculture and traditional use of shifting hoes cultivation association with gender norms. The findings provide evidence that present day differences in gender attitudes and behavior of female are indeed influenced by differences in traditional agricultural practices. The analysis of immigrants’ children brought out a better understanding especially in challenge that individuals in areas such as labor market, policies and institutions. References Alberto, Alesina, Paola Giuliano, and Nathan Nunn. "On the Origins of Gender Roles: Women and the Plough." The National Bureau of Economic Research. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2013. . Read More