Gender Geography

GENDER GEOGRAPHERS, prominent in the discipline since the 1980s, focus their research on the differences between men and women in virtually all aspects of social, economic, and political life and the resulting inequalities that result. The sub-discipline of gender geography has grown dramatically over the past two decades and there is a specialty group within the Association of American Geographers (AAG), the main professional organization, which has gathered significant numbers of researchers: the Geographic Perspectives on Women specialty group (GROW). This organization is well represented at national and regional AAG meetings and it has its own newsletter and website.

Gender geography has its roots in the compelling women’s rights movement of the 1960s and the emergence of feminist theory in the social science disciplines. Gender research examines the ways in which gender inequality has emerged. In particular, the focus in gender geography is on the oppression of women, as evidenced in the differences seen in the attitudes and behaviors of men and women in the traditional settings of home, workplace, and social situations.

The capitalist economic system underwent significant changes in the 1980s. These changes brought about equally significant changes in the traditional relationships that existed between men and women. The workplace began to open up to more women and more women sought and gained political office. Women in middle-management positions began to strive for loftier roles in their organizations. In many cases, they encountered what is called the “glass ceiling,” a limit to how high they could rise in the leadership of an enterprise.

Prior to the dramatic economic changes seen in the 1980s, women’s roles were clearly identified. The work world predominantly found in urban places was the realm of men, while home and a neighborhood or suburb were the places for women. As such, women were marginalized with limited access to opportunities outside the home.

A woman with preschool-age children was even more restricted. In order for her to engage in the workplace, she needed to find adequate day case for her child and ensure that she had an automobile for the trip to and from work. If the family had only one automobile, tradition held that the man would have preference for its use. The male workplace in the city in many cases was in a building that was unsafe for women to approach and enter. Relatively inaccessible entries and long, unattended corridors put women in a position of perceived danger. The work of gender geographers focused on these situations, brought them to light, and advocated for change.