Pamela Fishman

Pamela Fishman

Pamela Fishman's research theorized the 'division of labour in conversations'. Her research stretched across the 70's and the through the 90's. She looked specifically into the way men and women interacted - she stated the way men and women contribute to conversation varied and women tended to 'work hardest' to enable conversation to take place.

She analysed several hours of the conversation of white, American , middle- class heterosexual couples and categorized the variation between men and women across four main features of interaction. In terms of topic initiation, women were not always taken up in the conversation whereas men were always successful and supported by the women. Women used phrases like 'd'ya know what' to gain husband's attention, whereas men made little or no use of attention getters. Also, women used supportive minimal noises to show interest, whereas men either delayed them or didn't.

 Pamela Fishman's theory contributed to the Dominance Model ( - This is the theory that in mixed-sex conversations men are more likely to interrupt than women. It uses a fairly old study of a small sample of conversations).
 

Pamela Fishman’s Theory, Experiment and Results:

 Pamela Fishman conducted an experiment and involved listening to fifty-two hours of pre-recorded conversations between young American couples. Five out of the six subjects were attending graduate school; all subjects were either feminists or sympathetic to the women’s movement, were white, between the ages of twenty-five and thirty-five. Fishman listened to recordings and concentrated on two characteristics common in women’s dialect, including tag questions for example ”you know?”

Fishman begins by examining the use of tag questions being asked and states that women frequently use tag questions ‘isn’t it?’ or ‘couldn’t we?’ following a thought or suggestion. For females questions are an effective method of beginning and maintaining conversations with males. Fishman argues that women use questions to gain conversational power rather than from lack of conversational awareness. She claims that questioning is required for females when speaking with males; men often do not respond to a declarative statement or will only respond minimally.

 

Fisherman also says this example is part of a malfunctioning conversation, where the women is struggling to keep the conversation going but is receiving no support from the male participant. Men delay their minimal responses to gain control in conversations; Fishman said that this study  proved that women do more 'interactional shitwork' than men.

The conclusion drawn from Fisherman's research was that women became drawn in to lower-status in the conversation, encouraging the men's topic and utterances. Fisherman suggested her findings were reflective of a wider dominance model of society.

Feminism

Feminism

Socialisation is always being conditioned by society . For example:  which gender should play with which gender?
However socio-historical circumstances have changed the views of gender and society through feminism for example;

The first wave of feminism:

1. Took place in the nineteenth and twentieth century.
2. Fighting for equal rights for women - particularly to vote.
3. Main rights included suffrage, right to themselves, to have an education etc.
4. The wave formally began at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, when 300 men and women rallied to the cause of equality for women.
5.  Discussions about the vote and women's participation in politics led to an examination of the differences between men and women as they were then viewed. Some claimed that women were morally superior to men, and so their presence in the civic sphere would improve public behavior and the political process.

However, when the second wave of feminism hit:

1. It took place in the 1960's and 1970's
2. In 1960 , the contraception pill was invented - Now women could decide when to have children and how many children the could have for the first time ever.
3. Also for the first time ever women could have careers and not just jobs.
4. In 1979 the first female product of having a career was the first prime minister - Margaret Thatcher.
5. This phase began with protests against the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City in 1968 and 1969.
6. Whereas the first wave of feminism was generally propelled by middle class white women, the second phase drew in women of color and developing nations, seeking sisterhood and solidarity and claiming, "Women's struggle is class struggle."
7. In this phase, sexuality and reproductive rights were dominant issues, and much of the movement's energy was focused on passing the Equal Rights Amendment to the constitution guaranteeing social equality regardless of sex.

Nonetheless, till this day feminism still exists and people are fighting for it everyday. Women haven't truly deserved their equal rights and are still being put behind men. Men are still being paid more than women even if they have the same job. Men also have superior title than women in the business world.

Moreover why is it that there is feminism and no Masculinism? Men have never had to fight for their rights, so why have women had to?
Women have always been seen naturally as weak and have been put down and are viewed as housewifes.
A traditional housewife would:

1. Have to look after the children 
2. Not work - relying on the husband
3. As a cleaner (always cleaning the house with no-one help)
4. A taxi
5. A cook for the husband and the children.

In the modern mind- the views of women being a housewife is diverse. They are now seen to be:

1. Lazy - spending lunch with their friends 
2. Having the choice to marry who she wishes to marry 
3. Spending her husbands money on her likes 
4. Being able to go out e.g. the hairdresser 
5. Part- time work

If a women is not seen as feminine she is seen as a tomboy.  If she is seen as a tomboy they why is she all of a sudden referred to be seen masculine when she is clearly a women?