Answer to Question #236650 in English for Vee

Question

Explain the impact of racial or gender stereotyping in South Africa in an essay form

Answer 1

The intersectionality approach was developed in response to the observation that theories of gender and racial inequality had focused almost exclusively on the viewpoints and experiences of white women and African American men, respectively (e.g., hooks 1981; Hull et al. 1982). Kimberlé Crenshaw (1991) first employed the term intersectionality to describe the impact of multiple identities and forms of oppression on experiences of inequality. Focusing on African American women's location at the intersection of disadvantaged gender, racial, and class statuses, advocates of this perspective argue that the oppressions associated with each of these disadvantaged statuses combine to produce linked forms of injustice that are not captured in mainstream research (Collins 2000). According to Choo and Ferree (2010), an “inclusion-centered” intersectional analysis is one that focuses on social processes and patterns within groups that are multiple minorities, gaining insight from their unique standpoint into both majority power and minority disadvantage. This strategy reveals mechanisms of inequality operating in the lives of women of color, in particular turning the lens on processes occurring within race-gender subgroups and shifting their experiences from the margins to the focal point (Collins 1990).

An inclusion-centered study of the social stress process facilitates identification of risk factors that are influential among women of color, but may be imperceptible in studies of stress and mental health where minority and majority groups are aggregated and race and gender are employed as independent control variables. In addition, this strategy promotes an in-depth understanding of the domains of risk that pose the greatest threat for individuals in unique positions of disadvantage at the intersection of gender, race, and low socioeconomic status. An inclusion-centered approach also permits an examination of the various ways that stressors rooted in systems of racial and gender inequality are related to more traditional individual-level stressors (e.g., divorce, job strain, serious illness) that presumably impact members of both minority and majority groups.

Pearlin et al. (1981) developed the now-classic model of the stress process to explain the etiological role of social stressors in health and illness. Sources of stress may be either discrete adverse events or chronic strains, and these may work in conjunction such that major life events exacerbate preexisting strains or introduce new ones (Pearlin et al. 1981; Williams and Mohammed 2009). Most stress research focuses on these individual stressors, but there is growing concern with social stressors like racial and gender discrimination that are rooted in broader systems of inequality (Meyer 2003; Pearlin 1999). Recent research suggests that comprehensive conceptualizations of stress that include both individual and social stressors provide a more powerful explanation for racial/ethnic, gender, and socioeconomic health disparities (Turner and Avison 2003). Individual and social stressors are associated with psychological distress and other adverse health outcomes, particularly if stressors threaten self-concept or require adaptation. However, social support, mastery, and self-esteem are mediating resources that may neutralize the adverse effects of stressors or reduce their impact on health.

Because social inequality is a central aspect of the stress process, considering stressors from an intersectional viewpoint is a natural extension of existing theory. Sociologists argue that the organization of social life, systems of oppression, and political and economic opportunity structures in the United States results in predictable patterns of risks and stressors that advantage powerful groups (Aneshensel, Rutter, and Lachenbruch 1991; McLeod and Owens 2004; Thoits 2010; Turner, Wheaton, and Lloyd 1995). Cultural values, behaviors, and attributes of less powerful groups are frequently undervalued or even at odds with the dominant culture, leading to persistent threats to the self-concept and identity of women, people of color, and those from low socioeconomic backgrounds (Walker 2007; Walker et al. 2008). Exposure to and internalization of stereotypes and prejudices may lead to low self-esteem, sense of mastery, and motivational deficits for individuals in low-status positions (Jang et al. 2003; Keyes 2009; Pearlin et al. 1981; Rosenberg and Pearlin 1978). Also, disadvantaged status groups often have limited access to resources for avoiding stressors and opportunities for managing emotional consequences of stress (Brondolo et al. 2009). Finally, social stressors like sexism and racism are experienced exclusively by women and members of minority groups, and these types of stressors may be more threatening and require greater adaptation than individual stressors (Grollman 2012; Meyer 2003; Thoits 2010).