Introduction
The notion of equality between men and women is doubtful due to varied physical and emotional factors. To start with, the definition of equality is treated differently from the different genders’ perspectives. For a woman, equality is respect for her work and personal achievements, the opportunity to receive the same salary for her diligence as a man, and the chance to compete on equal terms for a good position. Men only perceive equality as a woman’s duty to prove her abilities at the physical level. Equality from the point of view of the ideology of modern society does not imply physical identity but the same human rights, regardless of gender. However, physical and emotional differences between different genders are pointless to reject. The current paper is devoted to analyzing the impossibility of emotional equality between men and women due to socially and biologically conditioned factors.
Topic Details
Existing research is vague regarding emotional differences between the sexes. Substantial evidence has been found that there are differences in the way men and women detect, process, and express emotions (Kleinberg & Van Der Vegt, 2020). Other studies show that men and women have more emotional similarities than differences. Stereotypes of introverted men and emotional women are widespread and influence the raising patterns of the different genders. Gender differences are formed in the process of education under the influence of cultural practices defining the cliche behavior of the representatives of particular genders. As children develop in a social environment, they learn behavioral stereotypes, gender roles, and gender-role attitudes, which they are forced to follow and accept. As a result, men and women are reported to deal with stress differently. During stress, a lot of hormones are released in the human body (Kleinberg & Van Der Vegt, 2020). Oxytocin is one of such hormones determining the emotive reactions of people. The female and male bodies are nevertheless affected differently by the effect of this hormone.
For example, testosterone, present in large quantities in men, suppresses oxytocin. For this reason, a man becomes angry and aggressive more easily. Men are also considered to be not very good at expressing their feelings. Experiencing stress, men will rather detach from the problem, digesting what happened. On the contrary, the hormone estrogen in the female body helps oxytocin and enhances its effect. Women become soft, caring, and calm due to the impact of this hormone (Kleinberg & Van Der Vegt, 2020). They peacefully try to solve occurred problems with words when a stressful situation arises. From the women’s perspective, communication is seen as one of the most effective ways to solve emotional contradictions.
Biological Perspective
Contrary to the stated above argument, there is a position highlighting the idea that the general differences in emotions of men and women are exaggerated. Researchers say that contrary to widespread gender stereotypes, women are no more emotional than men. Both sexes interpret feelings such as enthusiasm, nervousness, or tension differently. Exactly what “emotionality” means to men and women is part of a new study from the University of Michigan that dispels those preconceptions (Beltz, et., 2021). Scientists emphasize that men and women have the same level of emotionality, which does not depend on hormones or the menstrual cycle. The researchers measured emotion fluctuations in three different ways and then compared the men and women (Beltz, et., 2021). They found little to no difference between the two, suggesting that men’s emotions fluctuate to the same extent as women’s.
According to the research, these findings are vital not only to reveal the gender stereotypes and children-raising cliches but also for the historical exclusion of women in the studies’ variabilities. Women have historically been excluded from research in part because of the assumption that fluctuations in ovarian hormones lead to abnormalities, especially emotional ones, that cannot be controlled experimentally. Despite such valid findings, only this experiment cannot overlap all existing data regarding the hormone functioning of men and women. The study has many limitations to what is explained to be the checking of only one set of hormones (Beltz, et., 2021). As a result, further research should be held to counterargument the differences in the motions of the men and women.
Social Perspective
Despite the absence of differences between men and women in the overall level of emotional intellect, women are reported to express a higher level of interpersonal indicators of emotional intelligence. This can be defined through gender stereotypes limiting the expression of emotions that are treated as being not relevant to the representatives of a particular sex (Kleinberg & Van Der Vegt, 2020). Men showing varied specters of feelings are evaluated more negatively than women. They are not inclined to console them in these cases, as is customary for women.
On the contrary, the expression of anger and aggression is considered acceptable for men but not for women. Aggressive boys are rated as more attractive and competent than non-aggressive ones. In contrast, aggressive girls are regarded as less attractive and usually face a wide range of problems in their relationships with peers. In a conflict situation, men are more prone to external aggression, while women are more prone to self-aggression. Women, starting from adolescence, show a more pronounced tendency to manifest depression, sadness, shame, fear, and anxiety. This is not to say that men do not experience such “non-male” emotions, but in situations of direct communication, they tend not to show them. Therefore, social patterns are the most influential on differences in expressing the feelings of different genders.
Conclusion
Based on the conducted exploration, it can be stated that men and women are not equally emotional. The different functioning of the brain affected by prevalent hormones in the bodies of men and women contribute to the different levels of emotional expressiveness. Only a few research exist contradicting the facts of different emotional levels. In order to prove the emotional equality of the sexes, a more comprehensive study is needed. However, not the harmony impact people’s emotions but the social impact. The socially conditioned stereotypes affect the behaviors of different genders. The social and parental role in forming the level of emotional expressiveness of different genders is critical.
References
Beltz, A., Loviska, A., & Weigard, A. (2021). Little evidence for sex or ovarian hormone influences on affective variability. Scientific Reports, 11(20925), 1–12.
Kleinberg, & Van Der Vegt, I. (2020). Women worry about family, men about the economy: Gender differences in emotional responses to COVID-19. Social Informatics. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 12457, 397–409.