Sexism in the family

Sexism in the family starts with the development of gender roles. Children begin to learn about gender roles through parental influences and toys. This continues to develop with the jobs parents have and also through media influences. The family is an institution that is responsible for the social reproduction of traditional gender roles that in turn contributes to sexism in society.
Parental influences
Parents have an on gender-based stereotypes. This is often through the colors that are assigned to rooms, the toys given their children, and in household chores. These stereotypes are also learned through the work and lives of the parents. If a mother is a stay at home mom, then it is more likely that her children will believe that women should stay at home and take care of cooking, cleaning, and the kids. A mother that works outside of the home is more likely to have children that do not hold as tight to gender stereotypes. In addition, the father can influence the view of gender stereotypes through his role in the home. The more time the father spends doing household chores and helping with child care, the less likely it is that gender-based stereotypes develop with his children.
Stereotypes are ingrained in children at a very early age. Before the onset of preschool, most children can tell you what behaviors are appropriate for their gender. Recent studies have started to look at the role of stereotypes in adolescent children and have done so in relation to their household chores. Household chores are another area in which parents tend to promote traditional gender stereotypes. In many families, females cook and clean while males are responsible for outdoor work for the home such as mowing the lawn and raking leaves. It has been found that applying these chores to adolescents contributes to stereotyping in future generations.
Working parents
With more women in the workplace than ever before, the functioning and structure of modern families has changed drastically. "Between 1950 and 2000, the labor force participation rate of women between 25 and 55 years of age more than doubled. Today, more than 75 percent of these women are in the labor market." The existence of sexism in the workplace has negative consequences for family life. There has been a shift from the traditional family structure (where the man is the breadwinner and the woman takes care of domestic responsibilities (e.g., cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.) and child-rearing) to a more modern family structure of dual-earner families, where both parents are in the workforce. "Dual-earner families now constitute almost two-thirds of all married couples". The combined problems of women being paid less than men and women being in and out of the workforce puts dual-earner families at a disadvantage. In regard to one of the several financial disadvantages for dual-earner families, Strassel, Celeste, and Goodman (2006), state "Because Social Security taxes are levied on all earnings until capped at a high-income level, dual-earner households generally pay considerably more in taxes than single-earner households, but they will get only a minimal increase in Social Security benefits." Strassel, Celeste, and Goodman also mention that "Both men and women workers pay the same unemployment insurance taxes, but because women are more likely to work part-time and because they voluntarily move in and out of the labor market more frequently, they are less likely to receive any benefits in return for the taxes they pay" Recently, such as in the movie Frozen, Disney has produced female characters that are more assertive and independent. These characters, however, do still fit some stereotypes. For example, the character of Belle in Beauty and the Beast is intelligent, but is viewed as strange because of her intelligence and her love of books. Furthermore, she is sought after by the character of Gaston only because she is the most beautiful girl in town. The sexualization of women in disney movies is contended in modern society. Female characters in the films are beautiful, but overtly sexualized. The princesses have relatively small waistlines and large breasts that are accentuated by clothing. This portrayal of females is emphasized by the stares of men. Male characters, such as Gaston, gaze at the princesses and use objectifying terms in reference to them, such as baby doll, cutie, sweet cheeks, and so on. For example, they may be a mother, teacher, or even a secretary. Typically, these are positions in which the female is meant to be submissive to a male character. Not only are women submissive, but they are also dependent on men because women are emotional, irrational, and clumsy.<ref name= "Tsao"/>

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