Gender Role In Relationships

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The issues presented within this family dynamic have implications that they are derived from systemic gender role expectations, social impact and religion. Alice and Charles are in a constant struggle with the distribution of power in their relationship and it is negatively affecting their communication and wellbeing. Many externalized and internalized issues have played a ponderous role in their current circumstance, so in order to assess the root of their issues we must understand how these influences aided in their current turmoil. Gender Role Dysfunction To fully understand the issues presented by this couple, we need to explore their views and expectations of gender roles. At first interpretation, their main concern was poor communication…show more content…
Alice is struggling with this power differential, as she has only known a world where women have their own identity and strengths apart from a man. Pinderhughes (2002) notes that power in the home is a paramount topic amongst couples, specifically for males as society has defined a male's role as being in a position of power and dominance over his partner. Equality is then hard to achieve within the context of the a relationship. To Goodrich (2003) point on the distribution of power in relationships, women are not completely vulnerable in relationships, the problem is most women do not bear the same amount of power in a relationship as their partner, and it is even more taboo for a women to want or sustain more power than her husband. This is evidenced by Charles struggle to see Alice as an equal part of the relationship. Moreover, African American men will typically want to preserve traditional sex-role power and dominance more than their female or white male counterparts (Pinderhughes, 2002). Their issues are embedded in gender stereotypes, especially Charles. This is essentially a war between the old and the new, the tradional realtionship versus the modern one. Alice has adopted her views from a more progressive world, where women are increasingly becoming educated and dominating the workforce and they are able to easily sustain themselves. Charles comes from a world where men were sole providers and women were passive. This role reversal has created a strain in their communication and

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