Breaking Boundaries : Societal Expectations of Women
Gender Pay and Wealth Gaps Remain
work and family responsibilities and that , as a result , they enter traditionally female dominated occupations that offer greater flexibility and fewer work hours .
Yet , we have seen an increase in the number of women entering traditionally male dominated professions over the last few decades . Are more women entering male dominated professions regardless of the work-family challenges they impose and merely conforming to the demands of the professions ? Or have some professional institutions changed to offer more workplace flexibility , thus enabling greater work-family balance for women ?
In today ’ s gender wealth disparity , women have less access to wealth and therefore autonomy and power , which can bleed into future generations ’ access to financial freedom and economic stability . Diversity not only makes a company more attractive for future employees , but it makes companies more profitable , less risky and more innovative . Equality in gender wealth has been demonstrated to have better economic growth and development outcomes as women tend to reinvest more of their income into their families , their communities , and things that are better for the world . Women ’ s prosperity benefits everyone including those future generations .
In summary , some things we can do to help close this gap is overall awareness , being an ally at work and being an open participant to the discussion of gender wealth opportunity . Women can fight the good fight by regularly asking for a raise or promotion ( unapologetically ), looking out for themselves when changing jobs , investing more , and practicing financial wellness .
SOURCES
Ellevest Team . “ What ’ s the Gender Wealth Gap , and How Can We Close It ?” Ellevest . March 14 , 2022 . https :// www . ellevest . com / magazine / disrupt-money / closing-the-gender-wealth-gap #:~: text = True % 20gender % 20wealth % 20 equality % 20has , is % 20demonstrably % 20good % 20for % 20everyone
Kent , Ana Hernandez . “ Gender Wealth Gaps in the U . S . and Benefits of Closing Them .” Federal Reserve Bank of St . Louis . Open Vault Blog . September 29 , 2021 . stlouisfed . org / open-vault / 2021 / September / gender-wealth-gaps-us-benefits-ofclosing-them
Buchmann , Claudia and McDaniel , Anne . “ Motherhood and the Wages of Women in Professional Occupations .” RSF : The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences , Vol . 2 , No . 4 , A Half Century of Change in the Lives of American Women . August 2016 . https :// www . jstor . org / stable / 10.7758 / rsf . 2016.2.4.05
Kochhar , Rakesh . “ The Enduring Grip of the Gender Pay Gap .” Pew Research Center . March 1 , 2023 . Pewresearch . org / social-trends / 2023 / 03 / 01 / theenduring-grip-of-the-gender-pay-gap
Versaci , Mary Beth . “ HPI : Women make up growing percentage of dental workforce .” ADA News . March 30 , 2021 . https :// adanews . ada . org / adanews / 2021 / march / women-make-up-growing-percentage-of-dental-workforce /
“ The Gender Pay Gap in Medicine , Law and Dentistry .” ( Video ) March 2017 . https :// www . ada . org / resources / research / health-policy-institute / dentalpractice-research / the-gender-pay-gap-in-medicine-law-and-dentistry
Breaking Boundaries : Societal Expectations of Women
While expectations are slowly changing , today ’ s society continues to have very different gender expectations that dramatically impact everyone . If you are male , you may have a sister or a daughter who is coping with these expectations . A few examples of society ’ s expectations for women include :
• Be emotional but not allowed to be angry .
• Get married by age 30 ( at the latest ) and have children .
• Be the primary caregiver and an involved parent .
• Change their last name when they get married .
• Wear makeup , paint one ’ s nails and be nurturing and kind .
• Defy the normal process of aging and that aging diminishes a woman ’ s worth .
• Be the event coordinator , send household thank you notes and purchase holiday gifts .
Societal expectations on women lead to gender inequalities that may cause unnecessary stress , negatively impact self-esteem and create anxiety . It is important for everyone to dismiss expectations and allow people to live life on their own terms .
20 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2023 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL