Gender Roles, Norms, and Socialization
Gender Roles, Norms, and Socialization And How These Aspects Affect Society One topic that often comes up in a sociological conversation is socialization. How is it spread? Who spreads it? What makes a specific piece of material socialization? Many sociologists agree that the media has a large roll in socialization and spreading it on a wide scale. The purpose of this paper is to explore the media and see where and how it is spreading its own form of socialization. Sociological research suggests that Three men’s magazines and three women’s magazines were chosen in order to find key gender socialization themes produced in them. The men’s magazines that were chosen were GQ, Men’s Health, and Esquire. These three men’s magazines were chosen because they not only have socialization themes in them, but they are three of the most subscribed to magazines in the United States. The magazines all have relatively the same themes in them, however some focus on specific themes more than others. I chose GQ because it is the epitome of men’s magazines. It contains everything a man could ask for. From sports, to news, to fashion tips, and even beautiful women, this magazine has it all. GQ focuses on fashion, style, and culture. The current editor of GQ is Jim Nelson and the current publisher is Peter King Hunsinger, who both acquired their GQ job in 2003. Men’s Health was also chosen for this paper for the reason that it mostly revolves around fitness, style, and fashion. These are three of the biggest“norms” that society sees and deals with on a daily basis. Men see these characteristics as important to their daily lives. When a man wakes up, he tries to dress in what is fashionable to the time period. A man might go to the gym before or after work in order to get/stay in shape and looking good. Also, like GQ, Men’s Health usually has a section specifically focused on the opposite gender, what women want, and sex. The last men’s magazine I chose was Esquire,