Isn't the issue not so much whether gender is a filter for *your* interactions with others, as whether gender is a filter for their interactions with you/others (both men & women)?
Bit of both, innit. If I'm not using gender as a primary filter, it's much less likely that I'm going to think "this is because I is female" -- and that surely influences the way I deal with other people, and the way they deal with me.
I do think that there's a bunch of gender-based expectations/beliefs/cognitive structures/etc that aren't necessarily conscious
I'm not arguing with that; but I also think there's a bunch of things that people do/think/believe that are conscious, which they can change/influence. That people can consciously override subconscious expectations/beliefs/etc, that they can decide how to treat other people rather than just letting the animal instincts take over.
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Date: 2008-03-26 03:04 pm (UTC)Bit of both, innit. If I'm not using gender as a primary filter, it's much less likely that I'm going to think "this is because I is female" -- and that surely influences the way I deal with other people, and the way they deal with me.
I do think that there's a bunch of gender-based expectations/beliefs/cognitive structures/etc that aren't necessarily conscious
I'm not arguing with that; but I also think there's a bunch of things that people do/think/believe that are conscious, which they can change/influence. That people can consciously override subconscious expectations/beliefs/etc, that they can decide how to treat other people rather than just letting the animal instincts take over.