Exploring Perspectives Across Generations and Cultures- A Qualitative Interview Study

Exploring Perspectives Across Generations and Cultures- A Qualitative Interview Study

The interview was with three individuals of diverse cultures. The interview questions were centered on gender identity and perceptions of gender and sexualism across life spans and how they can influence belief systems and behavior. Informed consent was obtained from each interviewee before the initiation of the interview.

Interview Questions

1. What is your name?
2. How old are you?
3. What is your ethnic background?
4. What is your gender identity?
5. Where do you live?
6. What is your level of education?
7. What is your marital status?
8. Where do you work?
9. How do you perceive gender constructs?
10. What do you think about sexism, stereotyping, and discrimination in society, and have you experienced either?
11. What is your cultural definition of gender?
12. What are your perceptions of class and gender?
13. Have you ever experienced any gender stereotyping at your workplace?
14. Do you have any sexual harassment concerns at your workplace?
15. What are the apparent cross-cultural issues related to gender traits at your workplace?

Demographic Information of the Interviewees

The interview was with three individuals. The first interviewee, JK, is a 25-year-old Caucasian male. He lives alone and is currently working as an intern pharmacist. He has a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy. He is single but in a monogamous relationship with a female. The second interviewee, LB, is a 39-year-old African American female. She lives in downtown Los Angeles. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in psychiatric nursing. She is married and has three children. She currently works at a local hospital as a nurse. The third interviewee was a 60-year-old male, MA. He is an Asian-American living in Texas. He is a war veteran currently running hotel services. He is divorced but has four children with two different women.

Responses to the Interview Questions

First Interviewee: JK

JK is a 25-year-old Caucasian male. He is just beginning his career as a pharmacist. He reported that he identifies as a male. His perceptions of the gender constructs are diverse. He believes that males and females have distinctive identifying traits that affirm their male identity. Per his beliefs, males are supposed to be masculine, providers, domineering, and bold. Females, on the other hand, are supposed to be submissive, feminine, and dependent. He denied having experienced any sexism, stereotype, or discrimination. He further noted that his culture assigns gender based on the external biological appearance at birth. For this reason, the male and female gender are the widely accepted gender definitions in his culture. He, however, noted that Westernized cultures increasingly recognize other gender identities, such as transgender and non-binary. He denied having experienced any issue of class or gender during his developmental stages, as well as gender stereotyping at his workplace. He has also never been sexually harassed or had any cross-cultural issues at his workplace.

The Second Interviewee, LB

LB is a 39-year-old African-American female. She identifies as a female. She expressed specific concerns with the female gender as she noted that the perception of gender roles in the current societies is to blame for traditional gender-related issues such as gender inequality and gender-based violence targeting the female gender. She noted that during the early phases of her career, she experienced gender stereotyping as she worked in a male-dominated hospital. LB mentioned that her culture encourages female inferiority as it requires women to be under other men and that they should not speak for themselves. In her culture, girls and women are required to be feminine and to perform roles traditionally labeled as feminine. She, however, noted that she hasn’t experienced any issue with gender or class growing up and that she has never been sexually harassed at her workplace. She has also not experienced any cross-cultural issues related to her gender traits.

The Third Interviewee, MA

MA is a 64-year-old male. He noted that he identifies as a male and added that he had specific issues with the current gender construct that elevates the female gender at the expense of the male gender. He added that the traditional position of males in society is slowly fading away due to the sustained empowerment of females. He noted that he has occasionally experienced stereotypical gestures within society. These stereotypical gestures were especially pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic. He added that in his culture, women’s roles are confined to households, with girls being groomed to be responsible women. He denied having experienced any issues with class or gender when growing up and that he has never been stereotyped at his workplace. He also denied having experienced any harassment. He reported that he sometimes finds it difficult to understand the gender constructs of other cultures due to the difference in culturally communicated gender roles.

Issues or Relevant Information

The interview revealed some similarities and differences in cross-cultural perceptions of gender-related issues. While there were consensual findings on the definitions of gender and how gender roles differ, a point of divergence was apparent on gender-related issues. The female interviewee was vocal about the existence of gender-related issues and even cited gender-based violence as one of the pertinent gender-related issues in contemporary societies. Several gender-related issues exist in the modern society. Stewart et al. (2021) note that gender inequality, gender-based violence, and gender bias in healthcare are some of the gender-related challenges in modern societies. While these problems may affect both the male and female gender, the female gender is disproportionately affected. Regardless, these issues are a risk factor for individual suffering and require addressing.

The prominence of gender-related issues differs across cultures. In Westernized societies, gender-related issues are not as pronounced as they are in other minority cultures, such as the Asian and African cultures (Naz et al., 2021). These differences are informed, in part, by the differences in cultural communication of gender roles in diverse cultures. Rimjhim & Dandapat (2022) report that gender-based violence and other gender-related issues are more prevalent in African and Asia cultures compared to Westernized cultures. This high prevalence is mostly attributed to the differences in perception of gender roles within these societies. In societies where the position of women and girls is depressed in any way, these issues are likely to predominate. The findings from the interview affirm these findings. Reports from African-American and Asian interviews reveal some form of role specification and position depression for women in these cultures.

Comparison of Own Responses with the Interviewee’s Responses

There is a consensus on the definition of gender. Gender is based on the phenotypical appearance at birth and is defined as female, male, transgender, or non-binary. There are differences in gender roles and perceived issues related to gender identity. Gender roles differ and are heavily defined by culture. Whereas some cultures limit the roles of women and confine them to household-related roles, others don’t cap the societal role of women, as evident in Westernized cultures. These findings are aligned with the theoretical postulates on gender constructs and definitions of gender. Per the theoretical postulates on gender definition and roles, gender identity and perceptions are rooted in culture, with variations informed by cultural communications on these concepts.

References

Naz, F., de Visser, R. O., & Mushtaq, M. (2021). Gender social roles: A cross-cultural comparison. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 32(2), 189–200. https://doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2021.1878971

Rimjhim, & Dandapat, S. (2022). Is gender-based violence a confluence of culture? empirical evidence from social media. PeerJ Computer Science, 8. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj-cs.1051

Stewart, R., Wright, B., Smith, L., Roberts, S., & Russell, N. (2021). Gendered stereotypes and norms: A systematic review of interventions designed to shift attitudes and behavior. Heliyon, 7(4). https://doi.org/10.1016/

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Instructions
Course Project

For your course project, you will conduct three interviews in Week 3 based on the interview format described below. In Week 5, you will analyze the interview content, support your analysis with a literature review, and submit your course project.

This week, for conducting interviews, identify three individuals who would be willing and have the time to speak with you, and schedule interviews with them. Plan; do not procrastinate in securing individuals for this interview. Select individuals from different age groups and cultural backgrounds than your own. The three individuals should be from the following age groups:

Exploring Perspectives Across Generations and Cultures- A Qualitative Interview Study

20–35
36–49
50–65
Your task is to learn about each individual’s sense of gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and understanding of gender roles and the various forces and experiences that have shaped his or her beliefs and behaviors. You can ask questions on gender, gender-related development, and sexual topics. Note that this may be considered personal or private information, which not everyone is comfortable discussing openly and honestly. Be open to accepting information respectfully, especially if an individual has set limits to conversational topics.

For conducting the interviews, follow these guidelines:

First, locate individuals whom you plan to interview. Call each of them or send a letter to each to make an appointment. Introduce yourself as a student of South University. Explain that you need to interview him or her as part of a class project.
Conduct a one-on-one interview with each individual.
Record each interview or take detailed notes. This will help in your analysis.
Besides answers to the questions, record or note other relevant information shared as well as the mood of each interviewee during the interview process.
The interview format should be based on the following types of questions:

Demographic questions: This is common in interviews and questionnaires. Typically, demographic questions include questions regarding age, gender, race or ethnicity, marital status, education level, career title (job), and the types of jobs held. Do not include questions that identify an individual, that is, questions regarding name, address, and relationship to you.
Interview questions: Personal interview questions differ from a questionnaire or a survey in that they are much less structured. They are open-ended and lead to a narrative of the normative and nonnormative life events of an individual. For the interview, you will need to ask four to five questions on various topics. However, be prepared to ask follow-up questions to further probe into the topic area, if needed.
Topics: You can base your questions on the following topics:
Examine gender identity across the lifespan.
Identify issues expressed on gender constructs.
Identify any sexism, stereotyping, or discrimination experienced.
Examine culturally communicated gender concepts.
Examine the issues of class and gender on each interviewee’s development.
Examine career expectations and any issues of gender stereotyping each interviewee may have experienced in his or her workplace.
Discuss any sexual harassment concerns or experiences at each interviewee’s workplace.
Discuss cross-cultural issues in reference to the expression of gender traits.
Document the responses you receive during your interview sessions, with detailed notes and specific attention to what you might observe (nonverbal actions) during the interviews.