‘Glass Ceiling’
Despite the progressive erasure of gender roles, stereotypes, and discrimination in society, there is a ‘glass ceiling’ phenomenon in social life. The term ‘glass ceiling’ in the theory of gender studies was introduced in the early 1980s (Niemi 80). It describes an invisible and formally unmarked barrier that limits the advancement of women through the ranks for reasons unrelated to their professional qualities. The main obstacles on the way of women to high and responsible positions are the traditional personnel policy of firms stereotypes suggesting that a woman is not suitable for the role of leader. From a sociological point of view, this phenomenon can be explained using feminist theory, the concept of social roles, control, and mobility.
Feminist Theory
First of all, the concept of the ‘glass ceiling’ must be considered from the point of view of a feminist theory. Within the framework of the feminist theory social roles, discrimination and objectification, oppression and patriarchy, and stereotypes in modern society, art and aesthetics are explored. Feminism associates the concept of the ‘glass ceiling’ with the priority of patriarchy, stereotypes about the role of women in society, and discrimination. Thus, a striking example of patriarchal power is the historical right of men to decide how women dress and look (Rubin). The existence of the ‘glass ceiling’ from the point of view of feminism lies in the set of social rules also dictated by the patriarchy.
It is generally accepted that a woman copes with leadership worse than a man, a woman will take maternity leave, family is more important than work, politics is not a woman’s business. As a result, women are often not appointed to high posts. The reason is that this set of stereotypes is beneficial for men – competition with women in certain areas of activity is eliminated, and it is also convenient when there is no need to choose between a career and a family.
Social Roles
The ‘glass ceiling’ is directly related to the social roles in the community. A social role is a model of human behavior that society recognizes as appropriate for the holder of certain status. That is, a set of actions that a person occupying a certain status must perform. For many people, the stereotypical role of a woman is still the role of wife, mother, and housekeeper. These roles are difficult to correlate with high positions and positions of responsibility. In addition, motherhood is traditionally considered a female duty and a female privilege. Gender stereotypes directly follow the established idea of social roles.
Social Control
Less obvious than the two previous theories, however, the existence of the ‘glass ceiling’ is linked to the notion of social control. The development of the state-monopoly organization brought to life an extensive system of spiritual and psychological influence on the individual (Heylighen et al. 2). In modern American sociology, this mechanism is called social control. The essence of social control is not to put the main material relations and processes, the macrostructures of economic life, under the control of society but to regulate the behavior of the agents of bourgeois practice.
The ‘glass ceiling’ is beneficial to ordinary men and the entire state apparatus. It acts as a means of deterrence, using social stereotypes to achieve the authorities’ goals. It is beneficial for the state to give a group of the population certain roles that do not imply the achievement of career heights. Under the existing order, women are forced to give up their careers in favor of the family, which allows the state to save money and resources.
Social Mobility
Finally, the existence of the ‘glass ceiling’ is linked to the concept of social mobility. Social mobility is a change by a person or group of the place in the social structure, the transition from one social stratum to another or within one social stratum. Sharply limited in a caste-class society, social mobility increases significantly in an industrial society. However, social mobility in the United States is lower than in many other countries (Department of Economic and Social Affairs 49). Women’s chance of social mobility is much lower than that of men. Caring for the family and children does not allow women to be as mobile as men of the same level and status.
Correlation of the Concepts
Feminist theory, the concept of social roles and social control, and social mobility are intertwined in the ‘glass ceiling’ discourse. All four concepts are associated with developing gender stereotypes, which cause career inequality. From the point of view of feminism, the ‘glass ceiling’ is explained by the priority of the patriarchal system. The theory of social roles can explain discrimination by a set of prescriptions established in the public mind for each object of society. Social control theory can explain stereotypes as a tool of the state apparatus. The concept of social mobility explains a number of limitations, due to which not everyone succeeds in achieving the desired position. Thus, all concepts in one way or another explain the existence of gender stereotypes, which lead to the ‘glass ceiling’ for the female part of the population.
Understanding the Phenomenon
Discussing the root causes of a phenomenon always contributes to a better understanding. The study of four theories that explain the concept of the ‘glass ceiling’ did not change my understanding of this phenomenon; however, it helped me to understand better that this phenomenon is rooted in society. The ‘glass ceiling’ is beneficial for the patriarchal society and the state apparatus. That is why it is so hard to get rid of this phenomenon, despite the efforts of social activists. The situation will likely take a long time to improve, during which there will be shifts in the public understanding of social roles. In addition, the support and efforts of the state will be required to change the system from above. Sociological research has made obvious both the existence of the ‘glass ceiling’ phenomenon in a developed society and the need to overcome it at the personal, social, and state levels.
Works Cited
Department of Economic and Social Affairs. World Social Report 2020: Inequality in a Rapidly Changing World. United Nations.
Heylighen, Francis, et al. “Social systems programming: Behavioral and emotional mechanisms co-opted for social control.” Manuscript submitted for publication. Web (2018).
Niemi, Johanna. “Promoting Gender Equality.” Nordic law in European context. Springer, Cham, vol. 73, no. 1, 2019, 79-95. Web.
Rubin, Alissa J. “From Bikinis to Burkinis, Regulating What Women Wear.” The New York Times, 2016, Web.