At the end of this lesson, you should be able to discuss gender roles in Philippine society from pre-

colonial to the present era.

How do gender roles vary across cultures according to a particular culture’s beliefs and expectations
concerning men and women’s roles?

Find out the answer in this lesson!

Gender and Gender Roles

People play different roles in society depending on age and occupation. There are jobs that require a
specific gender to perform tasks while other jobs are open to both men and women.

Gender
 Gender refers to social, cultural, and psychological characteristics or traits related to males
and females based on certain social contexts.
 It is different from sex, which refers to the biological characteristics that distinguish a male
from a female.
 Thus, sex makes a person male or female, while gender makes a person masculine or
feminine.

Gender Roles

 Gender roles refer to attitudes and behaviors that the society expects a person to exhibit
based on his or her sex.
 For example, in traditional Philippine society, women are expected to be plain housewives
and take care of their children, while men are expected to be professionals and provide the
needs of their family.
 Another example is that society expects women to be more emotional and sensitive while
men are expected to be strong and capable of doing things that women cannot do.

Gender Roles in Pre-colonial Philippine Society

In pre-colonial Philippines, males and females enjoyed the same rights and privileges. Different social
functions were assigned to different members of society. There were functions that were specifically
given to males, females, or both.

Aside from being a priestess, the babaylan was also considered a healer, an adviser, and a seer.
Gender Roles in Philippine Society During the Colonial
Period
Gender roles during the colonial period changed drastically. Women were restrained from other
activities outside their homes, while men were given more social functions. These roles also changed
as the Philippines was occupied by new colonizers.

 With the coming of the Spaniards and the introduction of Catholicism, the babaylan lost
their role in the religious life of the community. This role was taken over by Catholic priests.
Women were relegated to doing household chores and taking care of children. More often
than not, young women were not sent to school but instead trained to be good wives and
mothers for their future families. Some women were also forced to marry for economic and
political gain.
 During the American period, women had more freedom in society. They were allowed to
study and work in any field they wanted. They also adopted American values. Men and
women became equal in the sense that it became acceptable for both genders to have jobs
and be educated.
 Although men and women were able to maintain their status in society during
the Japanese period, women were usually kept inside their houses to protect them from
abusive Japanese soldiers. Men also became busy defending the country, with most of them
serving as soldiers.
Gender Roles in Current Philippine Society
At present, Philippine society is more open to allowing both men and women to perform different
tasks not based solely on gender, but on an individual’s capabilities and strengths. For example,
fields like engineering, architecture, and medicine, which are often associated with men, have long
been open to women. Likewise, there are also lots of male teachers, nurses,chefs, and hairdressers
nowadays.

Keypoints!
Gender is a set of characteristics that pertains to a person’s masculinity or femininity while biology
determines sex. For example, a man is male because he has male sex organs. He, however, can be
considered effeminate because the things he likes are often associated with women.

 Gender refers to social, cultural, and psychological characteristics or traits related to males
and females based on certain social contexts.
 Gender roles refer to attitudes and behaviors that the society expects a person to exhibit
based on his or her sex.
 In pre-colonial Philippines, males and females enjoyed the same rights and privileges.
Different social functions were assigned to different members of society. There were
functions that were specifically given to males, females, or both.
 Gender roles during the colonial period changed drastically. Women were restrained from
other activities outside their homes, while men were given more social functions. These roles
also changed as the Philippines was occupied by new colonizers.
 The present Filipino society has become more open in allowing people of different genders
to do things not based on their sex but based on their capabilities.