gender selection ETHICS
History attests to the fact that couples from Royal families down to rural peasants have shown preference for a male child leading to numerous problems for the girl child and creating a sex ratio imbalance in some traditional societies. When preference for a male child is more pronounced and obvious, any method that can allow a couple to choose the gender of their unborn child is likely to create tremendous potential for gender discrimination and sex-ratio imbalance. Sex-selection or gender-selection as it is commonly known as is one such method that threatens to put female children at risk of being outnumbered by their male counterparts. The pre-conception gender selection techniques along with some other means of choosing the gender of the unborn child has come under severe criticism because of the ethical issues they raise. We must understand that while preference for a specific sex is limited or mild in the United States and other western countries, it is nonetheless present and may appear in several cases in subtle ways. However the preference for a male child is more pronounced and unmistakable in traditional societies of China and India.
Both contemporary medicine and folklore reveal a widespread social desire to attain children of a preferred sex. Discussions of sex selection have been traced as far back as 2000 B.C. In China. Until very recently the only sure way to achieve it was through infanticide. This method was followed in the 1970s with fetal sexing and sex-selective abortion. By the 1990s it became possible to detect the sex of an embryo ex-utero and, it is claimed, to sort male- and female-determining sperm. In many cases, sex selection per se is not the primary aim of contemporary reproductive technologies but instead is a necessary or accompanying factor in prenatal diagnosis and the identification of male fetuses or embryos at risk of sex-linked disorders. Worldwide, however, these technologies are increasingly being used to identify, select, and, in some cases, destroy embryos that display no other "defect" than the fact of being female." (Mathiot-Moen: 23)
Sex-selection raises some serious ethical issues, which cannot be discarded or dismissed as mere unfounded fears. There have been several cases especially in Asian and African societies that attest to the validity of these concerns. The first most important ethical concern is the preference for male child that has been exhibited by many societies and is believed to exist across cultures. In India for...
Name changes, surgery or even legal birth certificate changes on this subject are scrutinized, difficult to attain and never really expressly respected as legitimate proof of someone's sex or gender, once they have occurred. (117) Denmark and Nielson, in their International handbook on Gender Roles characterize the U.S. As a multi-cultural nation that is demonstrative of social change with regard to gender roles and yet they go on to say
Gender Differences in Leadersdhip Gender Differences in Leadership Is it possible to have different women and men leaders? This is a question surrounded with substantial controversy. However, the notion that there is a difference in the way men and women lead is dominant in management literature, which provides information for practicing managers. Some scholars who support this difference suggest that women have a "female voice" overlooked in theory and research. On the
Gender in Poetry / Literature Lesson Lesson Duration mins Rational: This is an introduction to the gender issues which were so prevalent in the Victorian era, and a backdrop to show why they still exist today and the harm they can inflict. Syllabus Outcome: This part of the lesson helps meet outcome 1, or the ability to interpret meanings and themes within texts. By using abstract thinking processes, the students will make connections between
References Anderson, I. (2007). What is a typical rape? Effects of victim and participant gender in female and male rape perception. The British Psychological Society, 46, 3225-245. Anderson, I. & Lyons, a. (2005). The Effect of Victims Social Support on Attribution of Blame in Female and Male Rape. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 35(7), 1400-1417. Davies, M. & McCartney S. (2003). Effects of Gender and Sexuality on Judgments of Victim Blame and Rape
271-272). This section claims that fathers tend to invest more in terms of time and money to their newborn baby boys than girls. When seen in the light of the patriarchal paradigm, I suppose it could be understood that more value is attached to baby boys than girls. Nonetheless, I find it surprising from my own point-of-view, since I would have thought that all children are equally important in
Gender The role of stereotypes in the selection and acceptance of female leaders. As Carter & Silva (2010) point out, there are several stereotypes about women's behavior and goals that influences the selection and acceptance of female leaders. Some of the stereotypes about women include the myth that women will leave their positions to start families; the myth that women don't actually aspire to upper management; and the myth that there are
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