Male domain
A male domain describes areas of society that are shaped or influenced almost exclusively by men or in which predominantly men are active. Usually the term refers to the world of work, but can also include the area of recreational activities and volunteering . The term is mainly used in the description of social systems and in gender research. Areas that are almost exclusively dominated by women are called women's domains .
Often the term is not used as a self-description of an area, but is used when women break into the so-called male domains.
Male domains in fields of work
Scope of work
Male domains within the world of work relate to certain sectors of employment as well as to certain hierarchical levels within an occupational field . A characteristic of a male domain is, for example, the predominant supply of full-time positions, in contrast to typical female professions, in which mostly part-time positions are often offered. The proportion of men in part-time employment in 1999 was only 13% of all jobs with reduced hours, while this form of employment is typical for women.
working area
A typical feature of male domains can be found in the gender-specific distribution of career choice and occupation.
Certain occupational groups and areas of work are almost exclusively performed by men. This includes large parts of primary production such as the occupations of agriculture and forestry and the industrial sector , which includes the manufacturing occupations, the handicrafts and the construction industry. In the field of academic education, the overlap between male and female roles has become stronger, but subjects such as nutrition and social education are considered female, while agricultural engineering and nautical science , for example, are still considered male subjects. Here, the focus of typically female employment is on the area of so-called household-related services , which are often characterized by a high proportion of part-time positions, while the upper hierarchical levels are filled full-time by men.
In some countries, the proportion of women in IT professions is very low ( see: Article “Cyber society”, section “Gender roles” ).
Legal regulations
In the “ Third Reich ”, the employment of women was set tighter than before. In 1940 it was stipulated that women were allowed to lift and carry a maximum of 15 kilograms; this decree became invalid after the end of the “Third Reich”. In 1938 it was ruled that women were not allowed to work as truck, bus and tram drivers; this regulation remained in place in the Federal Republic of Germany until 1971. Later, the West German ordinance on the employment of women on vehicles provided for specific regulations restricting the activities of women. For example, women, but not men, were required to have a health check-up every 18 months, the result of which was whether or not they could keep their jobs. Women were not allowed to lift more than ten kilograms on vehicles and inland waterways; they were forbidden to load cardboard boxes "weighing more than ten kilos without mechanical aids". In many other areas too, regulations from the Third Reich relating to women’s work remained in place for a long time, and newer regulations - such as the Workplace Ordinance , the Inland Ship Inspection Ordinance and the Seafarers Act - provided for restrictions that were intended to protect women, but often as training - and professional obstacles for women worked.
Male domains in non-professional areas
In addition to the fields of work, there are also classic male domains in the area of voluntary work and leisure activities, which are mainly used colloquially. These are, for example, tasks in the area of the volunteer fire brigade or the technical relief organization or interests and sports such as football, hockey or model making.
literature
- Daniela Rastetter: Sexuality and Domination in Organizations: A Gender Comparative Analysis . Westdeutscher Verlag, 1994, ISBN 3-531-12604-0
- Barbara Thiessen: Re-formulation of the private: professionalization of personal, household-related service work . VS Verlag, 2004, ISBN 3-531-14402-2
- Hans-Peter Blossfeld, Heather Anne Hofmeister: Globalization, Uncertainty And Women's Careers . Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006, ISBN 1-84542-664-9
- Nanneke Redclift, M. Thea Sinclair: Working Women: International Perspectives on Labor and Gender Ideology . Routledge, 1991, ISBN 0-415-01843-9
Web links
- Helmut Kerscher: Snow White Senate. Men's Domain Constitutional Court . Süddeutsche.de, September 5, 2006
Individual evidence
- ^ Stefan Hradil: Social inequality in Germany. 8th edition. VS Verlag, ISBN 3-8100-3000-7 , page 193f.
- ^ Rudolf Tippelt: Handbuch Bildungsforschung. VS Verlag, 2002, ISBN 3-8100-3196-8 , page 413
- ↑ a b Just too difficult . In: Der Spiegel . No. 38 , 1980 ( online ).