Communication Between Cultures

What constitutes displays of gender identity varies across cultures and is constantly

changing. For instance, the normative U.S. male appearance in the 1960s was char-

acterized by long hair, often accompanied by beards and mustaches, as typified in the

counterculture rock musicalHair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical. Today,

however, style dictates short or no hair, which is evident in the many advertisements

for men’s fashions. The growing number of men opting for colored nails, including

toenails, is another indication of changing male gender appearance.^21 In Japanese cer-

tain words are traditionally reserved for use by women exclusively, while men use

entirely different words to express the same meaning. In English there is little or no

distinction between male and female vocabulary.

A culture’s gender norms can also influence career decisions. For instance, male

flight attendants are common on U.S. airlines, but in Northeast Asia the occupation

is almost exclusively the domain of women. Traditionally, most people in the United

States viewed nursing as a woman’s occupation.^22 This was evidenced by the 1970

statistic reporting that only 2.7 percent of all U.S. registered nurses were male. How-

ever, in another indication of changing attitudes about gender roles and identity, by

2011 the figure had risen to 9.6 percent.^23

In contrast to the rigid, binary classificationsofeithermaleorfemaletraditionallyused

in the United States, many European nations, and the Middle East, there are a few cultures

that offer a socially acceptable middle ground for transgender individuals. Some Native

American Indian tribes historically held transgender individuals in high esteem, consider-

ingthemtobeblessedwiththespiritofbothmanandwoman.^24 Thailand’skathoeys,or

“lady boys,”do experience some discrimination but enjoy more social acceptance than their

U.S. counterparts.^25 In South Asia, theHijras, generally men who assume feminine identi-

ties, are viewed as neither male nor female but rather as a third gender.^26 In the United

States, public media shows, such as the comedy-dramaOrange is the New Black,haveraised

awareness of the country’s approximately 1.5 million transgendered individuals and eroded

the conventional societal idea of gender as being only male or female.^27

Gender identity refers

to ways particular

cultures and co-

cultures differentiate

masculine and

feminine roles.

Dennis MacDonald/PhotoEdit

Gender Identity 249

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