GENDER INFLUENCED BY CULTURE

Alexandra Ziglar, Xiaochi Ge, Summer Stephens, and

Camila Galeano

Professor Israel­Trummer

PSC/WGS­3043­001

May 13, 2016

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to examine if or how culture influences gender.

Specifically, if or how culture influences ideas, beliefs and perspectives on gender. This research

uses Eastern and Western cultures, specifically China and the United States, to examine if each

of these culture’s familial upbringings and institutions plays an influential role in ideas on

gender. This research employs existing findings that validate the relevance of our research

inquiry. We use these existing findings as a backbone and guide for further exploring our

research.

Apart from the existing findings, we also conduct a survey. This survey reaches a wide

range of respondents, allowing us to examine 19 countries. Questions in the survey are framed

with the intentions of analyzing our respondents’ view on gender. The results in our survey

validate our hypothesis that culture does influence gender to some extent. Although we cannot

confirm with absolute assurance that culture influences gender, after conducting a cross

tabulation we find several significant relationships.

To reach a solid and absolute conclusion that culture influences gender is not likely, due

to the inability to survey every human being in every culture. Though this question is not likely

to ever be answered, scholars, and students like us, continue the quest. Our research is simply a

small perspective on a big phenomena that influences us daily from our interactions to our belief

systems and most importantly, our understanding of the world.

Gender Influenced by Culture |1

Gender

Throughout many societies, gender is important in individual self­expression,

establishing hierarchies, and maintaining social order. Although gender is universal, many

people have the wrong definition of what gender is and/or how it is created. The definition of

gender according to (Nobelius 2010) is: “Gender describes the characteristics that a society or

culture delineates as masculine or feminine.” Gender is different from sex because it is socially

constructed, and not biological. Some scholars think of gender as a combination of biological

factors and social constructs, which is also plausible.

Biological factors such as chromosomes, sex organs, and hormonal profiles possibly

contribute to how gender is socially constructed. Both sexes tend to take on the gender role that

matches their biological components. These roles are behaviors and characteristics of how a

culture believes sexes should act according to gender. For many cultures, being a “real man”

means an individual is born with male internal and external sex organs and exercises a masculine

social role. For females, being a “real woman” is the combination of female sex organs and a

feminine social role. Cultures vary across all hemispheres, creating different gender roles

depending on the social norms that a “real woman” and “real man” must fill. (Nobelius 2010).

The assumption that cultures and gender norms vary, prompted our research question:

How do cultural norms in familial upbringing and institutions influence gender? Our hypothesis

states that if individuals in cultures participate and adhere/enforce strict gender roles, then their

gender attitudes are influenced by those cultural norms. If our hypothesis is correct, we will see a

difference in gender attitudes between Eastern and Western cultures. If our hypothesis is invalid,

Gender Influenced by Culture |2

there will be no difference in how Eastern cultures perceive gender norms versus Western

cultures’ perceptions.

Cultural Influence

Overview

Some scholars use independent culture and interdependent culture to distinguish between

Western and Eastern norms (Bagozz, Wong, and Yi, 1999). Their research shows that Western

cultures are based on logic and the real. People who live under independent cultural

circumstance “treat logic as laws of thought with the result that people in West are led by reason

to true beliefs about things in general” (Bagozz, Wong, and Yi 1999, 644). From this point of

view, independent culture can be summed up in facts and truth in Western culture. Bagozz,

Wong, and Yi (1999) found that people’s personal emotions under Western cultures are based on

self­concept or self­awareness. This concept leads to people using their self­awareness to

characterize single individuals as independent objects. Therefore, people who have independent

culture backgrounds will show their unique characteristics in society (Bagozz, Wong, and Yi

1999, 645).

Meanwhile, in interdependent cultures, people focus on the whole society more than each

single individual. In other words, society puts a relative heavy burden of responsibility on each

person as a social being rather than individuals living in a society. Steven John Simon (2001),

who comes from Florida International University, defined this cultural norm in Eastern countries

as a “collectivist society” (23). It seems that people who grow up under Eastern cultural

surroundings need to undertake more responsibilities from both families and society. In China,

children were taught to pay attention to the collectivism value and association conception from

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primary school. All schools in China, from primary school to universities, have fixed classes or

classrooms. Students do not need to go to different places to take different classes with different

classmates in China, because teachers will go to classrooms and teach the same group of

students. Therefore, students in the same classroom form a basic and simple collectivity. There

will be some competition in different classes within a same school. Each student represents his or

her own classes at school. This is how Chinese cultivate children’s awareness of collectivity in

society. That is why people who come from a same cultural background share the same values,

awareness and activities toward the world.

Families are directly responsible for influencing gender based on their cultural norms. In

a chapter on gender as structure from Risman (1998), she claims that sex­role socialization and

reinforcement theory are explanations for how families and institutions influence gender.

Sex­role socialization states that gender is beyond nature, and that the family helps create a

society with femininity and masculinity. One variety of this theory is the reinforcement theory. It

is the most commonly accepted explanation as to how adults develop their gender. It suggests

that feminine women and masculine men are created by their parents reinforcing cultural norms

of what their gender should look like (Risman, 1998).

Starting at infancy, girls are given praise for interest in the “mother role.” This means

that more attention is given to the girls who take an interest in dolls, the color pink, dresses and

skirts, and cooking. Girls are taught to pursue domesticity. However, the amount of domesticity

varies by culture. White American girls in the 1990s were taught to not only value motherhood

by playing with dolls, but to also pursue careers. African American girls, on the other hand, have

always been socialized to pursue paid work and motherhood (Risman, 1998).

Gender Influenced by Culture |4

At the same time, there is no doubt that language is a fundamental part of culture, Proof

of this is the fact in every language, and it is not enough simply knowing how to express a given

sentence grammatically or linguistically correct. However, we must take into account at the time

of expressing said sentence, others aspects such as the status of the people involved in the

process of communication and the purpose of the conversation.

The Sapir­Whorf hypothesis is the theory that an individual's thoughts and actions are

determined by the language or languages that the individual speaks. As aforementioned language

is a fundamental component of culture (Davis, Jerett, and Corbett 1998,26), according to this

hypothesis, different languages produce different ways of thinking, and language affects how

individuals perceive reality. One survey of 111 countries found that those where gendered

language is spoken, meaning the nouns and grammar have gender, have less gender equality than

countries that have neutral gender or genderless languages.

Eastern Culture

Confucianism played an essential role in both national and familial for thousands years in

Eastern Asia, such as China, Japan, and Korea. Confucianism helped maintain social order, and

focused on interdependence within the family. The teachings affected and shaped how women’s

social status looked like in society. Because of its influence, Confucianism seemed as a type of

constraint of democracy and women’s rights in the history of East Asia, especially in China. At

one time, a majority of China’s population held Confucianism as a guideline to parenting. Each

member had a role to fulfill, many of those roles chosen due to sex. Children learned at a young

age how they are supposed to act according to what their gender is. For sons, they had a close

Gender Influenced by Culture |5

relationship with the father, for they were more important. “Fathers are the ‘master of the

family’” (Chuang and Tamis­LeMonda, 2013). Meaning, they are the primary source of income.

Historically, men have always been held at a higher status than women because they are

socialized to be that way within and outside of the household. .

Confucianism helped uphold these norms by stressing “Three Obediences and Four

Virtues” for women. Three obediences mean that women were required to obey their father

before marriage, her husband during marriage, and her son in widowhood. Four virtues represent

fidelity, physical charm, propriety in speech, and efficiency in needlework. Confucianism uses

three obediences and four virtues to limit women’s behaviors in ancient China, which also reflect

men’s absolute reputation in society. The roles of girls and women were at a lower status than

men. The mothers raise children and take care of the household chores. Mothers are meant to be

warm and nurturing. They supervised the children while the father was distant, respected, and

feared. China’s traditional views of gender led to women being excluded from education.

Instead, young girls were trained to be dedicated mothers and submissive wives (Chuang and

Tamis­LeMonda, 2013).

“Family state” was important in Japanese society (Edwards and Mina 2004, 130),

because the father held the dominant role and final say in the family. For instance, in Japanese

family, children may not listen to their mother's command, but children have to follow what their

fathers said. Additionally, wives have to follow what their husbands said. This hierarchy is much

like what was seen in China. The main idea of the traditional Confucianism is the supremacy of

emperors and the supremacy of patriarchies (Edwards and Mina 2004, 130). Those values

construct the basic social principles about gender in Eastern Asia.

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In China, views on gender have changed dramatically over time. In 1950, China passed

the Marriage Law of 1950 that allowed women to choose their partner for marriage. Although

the traditional role of women being wives and mothers still existed, the passing of this law

dramatically changed the family structure for some people. Polygamist and child marriages were

officially outlawed, allowing women to not be viewed as objects. Instead, marriage became a

personal choice and there was more equality between husband and wife. In late 1970s, China

implemented a “one­child policy” in order to solve their population problem.

Since the traditional China relied on many children to help with the family, their

structures changed once again. Both female and male children were expected to help with all

aspects of the family, and their roles weren’t as gendered. Fathers became more focused on their

child, and a new China was born—for most people. Although the birthing policy helped soften

the strict gender roles families once had, it did not eliminate men’s high status. For some

families, it intensified parents’ need to have a son over a daughter. This belief kept women in

their lower status, and doing their gender.

Since Chinese families began to relax their assumptions of men and women’s gender

roles in the ‘70s, access to education and women in the workforce became more prevalent. In

2004, females comprised almost half of junior and senior middle schools. China also adopted

gender equality policies to uplift women. Because of this and young girls being socialized into

working professionals, they have one of the highest employment rates of women. Young girls

and boys are taught to take initiative, be self­confident, and to be assertive. They have shied

away from the interdependence and obedience older generations had previously taught (Chaung

and Tamis­LeMonda, 2013).

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Schools also help implement the new gender roles for females by incorporating

independent activities. Schools allowed students to choose their extracurricular activities based

on their own interests, and not based on outdated expectations of gender norms. Today, Chinese

cultural norms influence gender in a completely different way than it used to when Confucianism

structured the family. Mothers and fathers share the responsibility of parenting, household

chores, and pursuing careers. The thousand year old idea that men were the masters of the family

is no longer relevant with gender norms changing with the culture (Chuang and Tamis­LeMonda,

2013).

Marriage is another cultural norm in familial upbringing and institutions that influences

gender in Eastern Asia. In Japan, wives not only need to follow what their husbands say but also

what their mother­in­laws say. The old saying in China, that “a married daughter is spilt water”

proves that marriage can change a woman’s life because a daughter is deemed to join another

family in marriage. If a daughter’s parents want someone to care for them when they are old, it is

better to have a son rather than a daughter. Palriwala and Uberoi (2005) argue that marriage can

be seen as migration in Asia (vii). In most Asian societies, women must live with their husband’s

family after marriage in order to adapt to their husband’s family and kin. Kinship rules are

extremely important in Asian cultures (viii), as marriage can provide an upward mobility to

women in society. Because of these benefits of marriage, women tend to cater to men’s beliefs

about gender roles in society.

Eastern and Western Culture Implications

Davis, Greenburger, Charles, Chen, Zhao and Dong (2012) conduct a study that analyzes

how gender influences the intensity of emotional responses of individuals from Eastern and

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Western cultures. Participants include Chinese men and women and American men and women.

The authors hypothesized that American participants would have more intensity in their

emotional responses than Chinese participants. Additionally, the authors hypothesized that

American women would display the highest ratings of emotional intensity across all groups, and

that Chinese men would display the lowest ratings of emotional intensity across all groups (et al.,

232).

For this study, participants were divided into groups of two and presented with three

horrific, gory and off putting pictures. One group was asked to “just feel” and rate their natural

emotional responses on a Likert scale, 1 being not affected emotionally, and 9 being extremely

affected emotionally (et.al, 233). The authors’ hypothesis was confirmed: Americans, on

average, have more intense emotional responses than the Chinese. Additionally, American

women take the lead in heightened emotional intensity, and Chinese men take the lead in

lessened emotional intensity across all groups. (et al., 233­234). The figure below shows the

results of this finding:

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These results explain an important finding between culture and gender. In both cultures,

women are more expressive of their emotions than men. However, the principles of moderation,

control, and suppression Eastern culture teaches is clearly displayed here. Thus, we can state that

the cultural norms of Eastern and Western culture influence gender. The authors conclude,

“These results confirmed our main hypothesis that culture and gender interact to predict emotion

experience” (et al., 237).

Chan and Ng (2012) analyze how young Chinese women perceive their gender roles in

Eastern culture. This study consisted of 355 Chinese female participants aged 12­19. The

participants were asked to complete a survey with questions that asked about gender roles,

Gender Influenced by Culture |10

gender identities, and brand preferences, and then asked to comment on a series of pictures. One

example Chan and Ng provide for the gender identity and gender role portion of the survey is:

“Females should pursue their dreams” (Chan and Ng, 523). Participants were asked to rate their

feelings about these statements on a Likert Scale, 1 being strongly disagree, and 5 being strongly

agree (Chan and Nig, 523). Next, participants were asked to rate how relatable they felt to the

woman portrayed in each image on a Likert Scale, 1 being completely not relatable and 5 being

completely relatable. The behaviors and lifestyles displayed in this series of images varied from,

“cute, sporty, homemaking, career­oriented, gorgeous, and sexy…” (Chan and Ng, 523).

Interestingly, each statement and picture in this study contained an underlying gender

identify factor. These factors include: active agency, caring, professional, housekeeping, natural

outlook, marriage and motherhood, perfect body and skin, independent, career and community

service (526). The participant’s ratings were averaged in correspondence to their gender identity

categories, and based on these averages, participants were categorized into four groups: “Middle

of the roaders,” “Achievers,” “Conservatives” and “Inactives.” The “Middle of the roaders”

category contained responses congruent with 40% of the individuals in this study. These

participants believe that it is not important for women to pursue professional statuses (Chan and

Ng, 524­526).

The “Achievers” category represents 11.5% of the participant’s responses. These

individuals believe that women should pursue professional and academic careers, and have

financial independence. These participants also believe that it is acceptable for women to hold a

single status. The “Conservatives” category represents 34.9% of respondents. These individuals

believe that marriage and having domestic features, such as taking care of the household, are a

Gender Influenced by Culture |11

necessary part of life. The “Inactives” category represents 13.5% of participants in this study.

These individuals do not have strong or weak opinions about any of the issues presented in this

survey. These individuals are arguably indifferent about their gender identity (Chan and Ng,

524­526). The results of this study are included in the figure below:

The results of this study show that cultural norms influence how children perceive their

gender roles, as the participants in this study fall between the ages of 12 to 19. This study reveals

that 74.9% of young Chinese women believe that it is not important for women to pursue

professional roles or be financially independent. Only 11.5% of young Chinese women believe

Gender Influenced by Culture |12

that women have the right to be career­oriented and not marry. In this study, cultural norms of

Eastern culture directly influence how children perceive their gender roles and gender identity.

The majority of young Chinese women identify with a gender role that is domestic and

subservient to men. Chan and Ng (2012) conclude, “… gender roles and identity seems to be a

major determinant of females’ endorsement of values and lifestyles…” (528).

Methodology

Our research purpose is to explore how gender norms in cultures influence gender

attitudes in Eastern versus Western cultures. We hypothesize that in cultures that participate and

adhere/enforce strict gender roles, gender attitudes are influenced by those cultural norms. In

order to have a foundation of what the relationships of gender and culture are, we analyzed

existing data of completed surveys, experiments, focus groups, and interviews. Research done by

Bagozz, Wong, and Yi (1999) introduced the idea that the dependency of Eastern and Western

cultures vary, causing familial upbringing and other social institutions to provide individuals

with different experiences. Their work helped us analyze if, how, and why Eastern and Western

cultures affects gender attitudes differently. Other literature and concepts also contributed to how

we analyzed our research such as: Risman (1998), Chuang (2013), Davis, Greenburger, Charles,

Chen, Zhao and Dong (2012), Chan and Ng (2012), the dependency theory, the reinforcement

theory, and the Sapir­Whorf Hypothesis.

Survey

In addition to previous research, we conducted a survey to gather new data about

gender/culture relations. It consisted of 34 questions, and was distributed through numerous

channels. Social media was primarily responsible for the number and demographics of

Gender Influenced by Culture |13

respondents. We used E­mail and verbal promotion of our survey as well. The survey reached

231 people in 19 countries in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres. Both genders were

evenly represented, with females outnumbering males by less than ten percent. However,

proportions of race and country of origin were not equal. The majority of our respondents are

from the United States, and only 24 were from China. The other countries represented include

Mexico, Honduras, Colombia, Uruguay, Ireland, the UK, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Germany,

Italy, Nigeria, Zambia, South Africa, Malaysia, the Philippines and New Zealand, and had at

least 10 or fewer respondents.

Our independent variable is cultural norms, and our dependent variable is gender

attitudes. We did not manipulate the independent variable in the sense that we changed cultural

norms. Instead, we provided examples of cultural norms of gender and gender roles, and

evaluated the respondents’ answers to determine how their culture might have influenced their

choices. Since our survey consisted of an “other” option as well as multiple choice and yes/no

questions, our dependent variable was difficult to analyze. To correctly measure what culture is,

we asked basic questions that contribute to culture. We then measured and compared our

variables to what each member of our research team agreed was a gender norm of her culture(s),

and existing theories, explaining why there might be variation. Since our research team is a

diverse group, we utilized each student’s social background and literature to determine what

questions to ask, and what the “correct” answer would be according to that specific culture. For

example, we asked the question: Do you believe the father should be head of the household, or

“breadwinner?” This question was chosen because all cultures represented in our research team

Gender Influenced by Culture |14

and the literature we studied, found that the father being at the top of the family hierarchy was

fairly common across most cultures.

Once the survey was closed, we were able to gather demographic information of the

respondents as well as find some significant relationships between culture and gender. Basic

questions asking gender, age, race/ethnicity, and family structure helped us identify who the

respondents were. Although race/ethnicity influences gender in and of itself, we felt it was

necessary to include this category. By including it, we are assuming people within the same

culture are of the same race. Our research team knew many of these respondents, and can

confirm this idea to some extent. However, when considering the actual population and race

demographics of the world, most countries also consist of individuals who are not the majority

race or are mixed race.

An exception to our interpretation of race and culture is the United States. Since most of

our respondents are from the US, this question would not be relevant when analyzing race as a

part of culture and the effect it has on gender attitudes. Although not an aspect of culture, we also

decided to include age in our survey because we have research showing that cultural norms

change over time for some countries. Since we included reputable research about cultures

evolving, age is significant in views of gender. According to Chuang (2013) China has

progressed tenfold in their views of gender equality. If we want to get an honest snapshot of

Chinese culture and gender norms, we must look at the age of respondents.

When prompted with questions expressing what we believe are gender stereotypes in

Eastern and Western cultures, respondents have the choice of agreeing with the stereotype,

disagreeing, or having no opinion at all. Respondents were also given questions that ask about

Gender Influenced by Culture |15

gendered items, such as “boy” and “girl” toys and colors. With those prompts, respondents could

choose from four options: a gendered stereotype of colors and toys for males and females, a

neutral option, and a choice of all options could be associated with both genders. If more of the

respondents chose the stereotypical answer and were from the same area, we can deduce that

their culture might be a factor in their attitudes toward gender.

Although very important and a support for our hypothesis, we didn’t factor in the

Sapir­Whorf hypothesis when conducting our survey. We were able to reach people from all of

the world, including countries where English is not the first language. Since English is a complex

language, due to slang and other factors, respondents from cultures where it is not the first

language, may have been confused by some of the question wording. The language barrier might

have caused them to unknowingly answer opposite of their true feelings, or not answer honestly

due to misunderstanding. However, it is important to note that the United States is one of the

only countries in the world where most of its citizens are not bilingual. Throughout Europe and

parts of Africa, english is considered an official language. To relate back to the hypothesis, we

compared our results to what the Sapir­Whorf hypothesis predicts should happen between

differences in culture and gender.

Results

After gathering all our data, we tested for significance in the relationships of gender

attitudes and culture. Although we did find some relationships, many were not as significant as

we thought.

Gender Influenced by Culture |16

Figure 1

Gender Influenced by Culture |17

Figure 1 shows the significant relationships between culture and gender according to

p­values. The columns represent questions asked about perceived cultural norms, and the rows

are the demographic information. Out of the 34 questions asked, only 13 about gender attitudes

were significant. Some questions were significant only in male stereotypes and some only in

female. Deeper issues that are usually gender­biased toward favoring the male were very

apparent in the data, especially among religious identifying people. Gender and family structure

were not as significant as we expected, but are still relevant. The most significant correlations are

between religious identification, age, birth country, and race/ethnicity. These relationships are

portrayed in the following figures:

Gender and Religion

71% said yes

Gender and Birth Country

73% think gender is biologically assigned 128 out of the 160 people from the U.S. said gender is biologically assigned 16 out of the 34 people from China said gender is biologically assigned

Gender Influenced by Culture |18

Race/Ethnicity and Gender

62% said they don’t believe women should stay at home and take care of the children

3 out of the 5 American Indian/Alaskan Natives said no 29 out of the 36 Asian Pacific Islanders said no 4 out of the 6 African Americans said no 14 out of the 17 Hispanics said no 86 out of the 150 Caucasians said no

Gender Influenced by Culture |19

Summary and Conclusion

Across all cultures, men were more likely to think gender is biologically assigned,

whereas females were twice as likely to believe it is socially constructed. Men were also more

likely to think they should pursue careers to take care of the family. When examining the

relationship between religious­identifying respondents and gender attitudes, we discovered they

were more likely to have a dominant father figure in their home, and were more likely to uphold

male gender stereotypes than female. This was made apparent by the fact that more religious

identifying people agreed with men aspiring to provide for the family and not taking care of the

kids, than women staying home with the children and not pursuing a career. They were also more

likely to have their mother and father share dominance within the home, reinforcing the idea that

women should not solely be housewives.

Like predicted, age had some bearing on gender perspectives. Individuals ages 18­24 are

more likely to have their mother and father share a dominant position. The older generations, 25

years of age or older, were more likely to have the father as a dominant figure. All ages did not

believe baby dolls, building blocks, or sand pits were gendered to be specifically male or female,

which is not what we expected based on cultural norms of what is and isn’t masculine. Contrary

to toys not being gendered, colors overwhelmingly were. Pink dominated as a feminine color

over blue, white, or all other feminine colors. When prompted with the question of whether or

not a man is feminine, that is, if he wants to take care of his children then he is considered

feminine, some 18­34 year olds do believe this is a feminine desire of men, but a majority

disagreed as well.

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When comparing birth country and race/ethnicity, there was a significant differences in

the findings. Only four relationships between race and gender attitudes were significant, and two

did not correspond with significance of birth country. This falsifies our original assumption that

our respondents of similar races, corresponding with similar birth countries, would have similar

gender attitudes. Regardless of race, people from the United States are more likely to think

gender is biologically assigned, and not socially constructed. People from the United States are

almost evenly torn between upholding the stereotype of a father having the highest status in a

family and the role being shared between mother and father. Other countries were almost three

times more likely to believe the role should be shared than to have the father dominate.

The number of Hispanics living in predominantly Hispanic countries and Chinese living

in China who agree with gender equality in the home is more than any other country. The US is

more likely to think men and women are capable of providing for a family more than any other

country. When respondents answered the question regarding gendered toys, the masculine toy

stereotypes were upheld more than female. Four out of 221 respondents, 0.02%, did not think

that baby dolls were acceptable male toys. However, they were only 30% likely to think that

building blocks—the “right” answer—was associated with maleness. Instead, 60% of the United

States and China think both baby dolls, building blocks, and the sand pit (neutral toy) could all

be considered male toys.

We cannot confirm that culture is the causation of gender norms, but there are some

correlations between the two. What we can deduct from the information is that aspects of culture

affects gender attitudes, validating our hypothesis. However, we had some limitations in

conducting our research. Although 231 respondents is a somewhat large sample size, the ratio

Gender Influenced by Culture |21

between the respondents of Eastern and Western countries were not evenly proportional. We had

more respondents from the United States than anywhere else. We based most of our cultural

research on the East by reviewing China’s norms of gender, but were only to reach 24

individuals living in China. As mentioned previously, we did not consider a language barrier

when distributing our survey, and that could have affected our data.

To our surprise, family structure was the least influential on views of gender. There many

existing studies that prove family impacts gender attitudes greatly. Our data shows that family

structure was only important in reflection questions such as: Do you think your culture as strict

notions about gender; was your father the dominant person in the household? Our small sample

size and choices of questions could explain why familial structure did not have a large impact on

attitudes.

Although our research question revolved aroundhowcultures influence gender and not as

much why, we can predict a possible reason why cultures are influential. We believe an

explanation for some differences between cultures’ gender expectations is because individuals’

experiences differ depending on culture. However, in order to test this, we would have to ask

more intimate questions about class and home life, instead of basic demographic questions.

We recognize that our experimental design did have some limitations. A small sample

size, unsymmetrical numbers of respondents from each birth country, the language barrier, and a

disproved theory about the relation of race and birth country possible affected our survey results.

However, we are able to make an assumption based on our analyses, and proving our hypothesis

to be correct. Culture does influence gender attitudes and there are differences between Eastern

and Western cultures. Since English has less gendered words than Spanish, Mandarin, or

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Cantonese, countries where English is the first language should be less gender biased. To our

surprise, China was more liberal in their views of gender than any other country represented.

This finding does correspond with literature about the progression of China’s gender

norms, but we did not expect them to be more progressive than the US. This conclusion also

goes against the Sapir­Whorf hypothesis. Although our hypothesis is correct, we expected there

to be a widely conspicuous difference between Eastern and Western cultures. That was not the

case. There were more significant relationships between all countries and gender attitudes, versus

a specific difference because of location. We encourage this research to be expanded on, with

more studies testing differences in culture causing or correlating with differences in gender

attitudes.

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