Gender Roles in Mexico free essay sample

This essay explores a number of issues relating to Gender Roles in Mexico. I have tried throughout to maintain an academic tone and reference accordingly, but in reality this is a reflective piece on a subject about which I feel strongly, and I’m sure it will read as such. In terms of research, I have used a combination of academic texts, a group interview and my own experience. The interview was conducted in a conversational manner with three Mexican women. They are all university students between the ages of eighteen and twenty-two, from reasonably well off families, and as such I cannot claim that they are in any way representative of the Mexican population as a whole. One of the points raised during the interview was the idea that, while Mexico still has a long way to go in terms of gender parity, things are in a constant state of change. We will write a custom essay sample on Gender Roles in Mexico or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page For this reason I decided to investigate some of the historical developments that have created the situation we see today. Gender roles, and more generally the family unit, are deeply ingrained within Mexican society, and whole volumes could be written about their origins and development. The analysis here, however, will be restricted to two policy changes during the 20th century which have been identified by feminist scholars as particularly important in shaping the norms that define the modern Mexican family. Vaughan (2000) notes that during the first half of the twentieth century Mexico was relatively progressive in throwing off nineteenth century patriarchy. She cites a worldwide trend away from a completely male centric model towards a more modern archetype, in order to cope with seismic changes in the global economic system. Jargon aside, it was recognized that basic levels of education and agency for women were now an economic necessity rather than a high minded ideal. Mexico’s relative progress in this area, according to Vaughan, was due to a need to control and placate a rebellious peasantry. It’s important to note here that this was a change purely in policy, and not representative of popular opinion at the time, but it did provide the beginnings of a legal framework in which a degree of female emancipation was possible. We can perhaps see these themes continuing in modern Mexico, which to an outside observer could seem very progressive: many women in higher education, a female presidential candidate, but that does not necessarily have the underlying cultural values to match. A second policy event occurred n the late 1950s, when a series of judges ruled in favour of women complaining against the treatment they had received from their in-laws (Varley 2000). Prior to this point, a married woman in Mexico became part of their new husband’s family; it was common for married couples to live with the husband’s parents, and in many cases women were treated as little more than servants. This ruling at first glance appears to give women greater agency, and to a certain extent that is true, but as Varley points out, it has also helped to define and strengthen the nuclear family that is so central in Mexican society today. This family structure in turn solidifies gender roles and has made further emancipation more difficult. Academic works such as the two cited above can often lose connection with the real world as their authors theorise and pontificate It should also be noted that neither are written by Mexican scholars and that feminist theory is one of the academic areas that has suffered the most from outside academics misinterpreting what they see in other countries . As such, their conclusions should be taken with a certain pinch of salt. However, I do think that the trends that these events helped to initiate can be seen in society today: an outward progressivity underpinned by some very conservative ideals and an overwhelming emphasis on the nuclear family unit. With the historical background addressed, albeit briefly, how then can we characterize the modern Mexican family unit, and the predefined roles within it? For me, one of the most interesting aspects of gender roles within Mexico is those pertaining to work. An article on the World Bank’s website highlights the growing number of working women in Latin America, in all levels of employment (World Bank 2011). This is corroborated by my interviewees, who feel that families in which both parents work are increasingly common in Mexico, indeed all three have working mothers. As discussed above, however, this does not necessarily signify a fundamental change in the way gender roles are viewed in a society. The women I interview are adamant that the mother in a family is still the one that ‘looks after the kids’. The World Bank raises this point too, pointing to the challenges faced by working mothers at all levels of society. The interviewees concur with my own observations of Mexican family life when they suggest that this distinction is one brought on from a very young age. Certainly by her late teens, a Mexican girl is subject to completely different pressures and expectations from her parents than a Mexican boy. The women tell me that the main expectation for a son is to find work and to support himself, and that, while families also hope for jobs for their daughters, this falls some way behind marriage and a family in terms of priorities. Relationships are hard enough to define within individual families, let alone on a general level. For example, one of the women says that she feels closer emotionally to her father than her mother, and yet still says that her mother has been the one charged with childcare and education. The general sense, however, seems to be of mothers teaching their daughters to do as they’ve done: that their chief responsibility in life is as a mother. The response to this problem in the World Bank’s article leaves me deeply uncomfortable. The article calls for flexibility in working hours and increased childcare provisions to help working mothers. This is obviously a great idea as a short term solution, but I cannot help but think that it only serves to further legitimise the already concrete family model that is the underlying source of the problem. Policies such as these accentuate existing divisions, separating men and women into two distinct individuals within the work place. One that does the ‘proper work’ and another that requires flexible hours and special treatment to be able to perform paid work alongside her true, god given task of raising children. Surely a far superior approach would be to encourage paternity leave, and flexible working hours for both genders. I stress again that in the short term, such policies are clearly better than nothing, but it concerns me that an organisation such as the World Bank makes no mention of any sort of long term strategy to address underlying norms. Apart from anything else, these tactics seem reminiscent of the policies from the fifties mentioned above, addressing symptoms rather than core problems, and ultimately serving to strengthen the values that are causing the problems in the first place. Momsen (2004) argues that additional pressures for women at work are felt particularly acutely in rural households. Many such households continue to subsist at least partially on home grown crops and animals, and this, more often than not, is considered to be part of the domestic sphere, leading to the following assumptions: firstly, it is women’s work and secondly, it does not count as ‘real’ work and therefore is expected to be done alongside formal employment. This leads to working women shouldering enormous workloads as they work full time weeks before coming home to more work in the form of childcare and household agriculture. A point that comes up during our group interview is the idea of jealousy over wages. The machismo inherent within Mexican culture means that for a man to earn less than his wife is a source of considerable shame. While at first glance this may not seem a particularly important problem, it can lead to considerable tension within the household and could arguably be a source of the domestic violence that my interviewees claim is rife within Mexican families. Momsen (2004) goes as far as to suggest that it is this jealously that provides the underlying motivation for the pandemic of femicide killings that has been occurring for years in Mexico, particularly in and around the northern city of Juarez. When this suggestion is put to my interviewees they reject it, but fail to provide an alternate solution. For my part I think it would be naive to suggest wage jealousy as the only cause, or even the main cause of the femicides, but it is not hard to imagine, in an area dominated by factories with a largely female workforce, how a culture of resentment could arise which could later lead on to the tragedy occurring today. As previously mentioned, the women I interview are all between the ages of eighteen and twenty-two, and one of the things they are keen to emphasise is the lack of freedom they are given compared to their brothers and male peers. It appears that in terms of freedoms (going out, relationships, sex) men and boys have the vast advantage in the Mexican family. Fathers, I’m told, tend to be particularly jealous and protective of their daughters. It is also very uncommon to see women of any age walking the streets at night. I ask how much of this is cultural, and how much is practical safety concerns. It seems to me fairly obvious that a large part of the father-jealousy-protectiveness-norm is simply a symptom of a macho, patriarchal culture, and the women agree, but at the same time, they do admit to feeling unsafe on the streets. This, of course, is a common theme in even the most progressively feminist countries, but it is interesting that the conversation then moves on to the practice of men shouting things at women in the street. I’m talking of course of the ‘compliments’ (for want of a better word) and ‘chat up lines’ that are endemic around the city, and Mexico as a whole. It brings back a memory from my own experience that I find particularly telling. During my first week in Mexico, Tec organised a tour of the city run by a local tour guide. During the tour one of the students asked the guide about this practice, explaining that she’d already been subject to quite a bit of shouting despite having only been there for a week. The guide, a middle aged man, smiled ruefully and told her she should take it as a compliment, that it was simply what Mexican boys and men did. This to me seems representative of the attitude taken by much of the male population to what is basically just verbal harassment: it is just a bit of fun, what is the problem? What conclusions can be drawn from all of this? In terms of equality within gender roles, Mexico is clearly improving. More and more women have access to education and are entering the work force. It also seems from my conversation with the three women that awareness and dialogue relating to feminist issues and gender roles is increasing. However, I cannot shake the feeling that despite all the good work being done, underlying inequalities are not being addressed. From the short sightedness of the World Bank to the attitude of the Guadalajara guide, it appears to me that despite all the change on the surface, something fundamental is not changing, or at least, not changing fast enough.

The Airline Industry essay

The Airline Industry essay The Airline Industry essay The Airline Industry essayMarketing focuses on matching customers with the products or services that satisfy some of their needs. Essential elements of marketing include analysis of the target market, market segmentation, targeting the chosen customer segments, positioning of products and services, etc. The purpose of this paper is to consider marketing in the context of airline industry: to discuss key external factors influencing airline industry, to identify market segments in airline industry and explain these segments using the marketing concepts of segmentation, targeting and positioning, and comparing the positioning and target markets of two airline companies: JetBlue and Southwest Airlines.Key external factors affecting airline industryAirline industry consists of several segments: passenger airline industry, military, cargo carriers, etc (Structure of the airline industry, n.d.). In the context of this paper passenger airline industry will be considered. The groups of exter nal factors affecting airline industry can be classified according to PEST framework: economic factors, political factors, social and technological factors (Doole Lowe, 2005).The key economic factors influencing airline industry are changing fuel prices and stage of economic development (recession or revival) which affects the purchasing ability of customers. Political factors include international airline fees and regulations, airline alliances, the regulations for security measures. Key social factors include the growth of demand for business class trips and the increase in leisure travel (Cento, 2008). Greater requirements towards passenger comfort can also be viewed as an external factor influencing airline development. Technological factors include the development of telecommunications, new construction materials and advanced airline designs (Rothman Jasper, 2011).Major airline market segments SegmentationAccording to Doole and Lowe (2005), segmentation is defined as the anal ysis of target customers and identification of customer groups which have similar needs. There exist various segmentation bases in marketing. In the context of airline industry, market segmentation is commonly performed according to the schedule (regular flights, charter flights), geography and purpose of flights (international, federal/national and local flights) and the combination of service and price (economy class, business class, first class). Customer segmentation is performed according to demographic characteristics (age, family status, gender), occupation, purpose of flight. TargetingIn the context of marketing, targeting is defined as developing the criteria for assessing the attractiveness of market segments and focusing on particular market segments. There exist different approaches to targeting: companies can focus on specific market segments or offer products for all segments; furthermore, companies can deliver segment-specific products/services or offer the same produ cts/services to different market segments. In airline industry, the most frequently used approach is to target different market segments by offering differentiated services (Cento, 2008). PositioningPositioning denotes the choice of marketing mix for every market segment selected during the targeting stage. The choice of positioning depends on customer preferences. In airline industry the preferences of customers depend on various factors such as pricing, schedules, flight frequency, destinations, procedure of reservation, ticketing, staff attitude and quality of service, safety measures, various options offered on board, check-in process, brand image, etc. Wen and Yet (2010) classify these factors into such categories as brand image, safety, on-board amenities, price and flights, and ground services. These categories are used for market positioning in airline industry and are matched with customer preferences. For example, for young customers airline companies offer economic flight s with transfers, and for business travelers maximum speed and comfort of flight is offered at a premium price.Comparison of JetBlue and Southwest Airlines Target marketThe focus of Southwest Airlines is on domestic market of the United States, while JetBlue targets international market. At the same time, Southwest Airlines covers the majority of states and offers a convenient flight schedule of local flights. JetBlue focuses both on local flights (covering about half of all states) and international flights (more than 10 international destinations) (Cento, 2008). Southwest Airlines tends to expand its local network by acquisitions, while JetBlue actively participates in international flight alliances.In terms of financial position, Southwest Airlines is stronger compared to JetBlue as its liquidity is higher, and its turnover ratios are superior as well. JetBlue has higher debts while Southwest Airlines has larger revenues. At the same time, profit margins of JetBlue are higher.In terms of pricing, JetBlue on average charges higher prices, but this difference is explained by the differences in target geographic locations of these companies. Therefore, target customers of JetBlue are primarily entertainment-loving young and middle-age people willing to travel locally and abroad at a reasonable cost. JetBlue also specifically targets families: the company offers various family-friendly services.Southwest Airlines targets the customers willing to travel across the United States at the lowest cost. The strategy of Southwest Airlines is centered around on eliminating all extra services and options in order to reduce costs. At the same time, Southwest Airlines pays a lot of attention to cabin staff and to the quality of customer service. Brand image of Southwest Airlines is not so vibrant as that of JetBlue, yet it is frequently chosen by middle-aged customers and older who want to save money; young people who tend to choose economic flights are also target custome rs of Southwest Airlines. PositioningBoth JetBlue and Southwest Airlines position themselves as lowcosters. JetBlue company offers high-quality service combined with low fares. The company has new aircraft and offers various entertainment services on board such as Live TV (Cento, 2008). The company has a corporate culture focused around customer interests and safety. JetBlue emphasizes the importance of flight experiences and offers personalized entertainment services. Furthermore, JetBlue offers a variety of extra services such as food, diapers and strollers, and allows to check-in various special items.Southwest Airlines exists for almost 30 years longer than JetBlue as it was founded in 1971. This company also pays a lot of attention to delivering superior customer service and customer experience. Core advantages of Southwest Airlines are local flights available at low prices and convenient schedules. Southwest Airlines is known as the cheapest provider of local flights, and such cost leadership is the key competitive advantage of the company.ConclusionThe analysis of airline industry shows that key external factors influencing it are fuel costs, international regulations, safety concerns, technological changes and customer preferences. There are different approaches to market segmentation in airline industry; the most frequently used segmentations are demographic, geography-related, purpose-related and price/quality-related. Airline companies tend to offer differentiated services customized for different market segments.JetBlue and Southwest Airlines both belong to the category of low-costers, but these companies are quite different from the marketing perspective. JetBlue targets both international and local customer segment, while Southwest Airlines focuses on local flights. Southwest Airlines offers services for price-sensitive customers and positions itself as a convenient provider of local flights at the cheapest cost. JetBlue targets families and youn g people and positions itself as the provider of modern flight services with many entertainment features and superior customer experience at a reasonable cost.

Business to Business Marketing Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business to Business Marketing - Term Paper Example The paper tells that the Business to Business marketing is rigidly structured in nature, i.e. it is less flexible in comparison to the Business to Consumer market. As the consumers, in this context, are business people having higher bargaining power, the company who is involved in this section needs to put more effort to attract the customers. To attract the customers, personal selling is more preferable rather than advertisement in this type of marketing, as the organizations rarely pay attention to the advertisement. The customers in this context are mostly organizations themselves and tend to know the very marketing trick which stands as one of the reasons to avoid advertisement. Here, the intermediates have no role to play as it mostly involve with direct selling or direct channels to its customers. It is worth mentioning here that relationship made with the customers is usually long lasting and very complex in nature which plays a significant role in the Business to Business mar keting. Competition level experienced is high in this process due to which the organizations dealing with Business to Business operations attempt in establishing effective and interdependent relationship with its customers so as to secure its position in the market. Goods which are produced for Business to Business marketing are very different from those goods which are produced for general consumers in the market. This is because the need of the goods and the customers themselves are very different in both the cases, but the intention remains same i.e. selling the products and attaining significant customer satisfaction. Various ways are being followed for the purpose of classifying these types of goods (Brennan & et. al., 2010). They are as follows: Entering Goods In this context, finished goods of one organization tend to become raw material of other organization. For instance, aluminum can be used by the company, which is producing electronic products, as raw materials (Brennan & et. al., 2010). Here, finish goods of one company is the raw material of the other which are necessary as the resources used by the later organization to manufacture its product. Foundation Goods Foundation goods are those goods which are used by other organizations (customers) as a support for making their own goods. This includes goods which are installed or used as accessories by the other organization, such as car producing company uses tyre manufactured by other companies (Brennan & et. al., 2010). Here, tyre has not been used as the raw materials but the part of the finished goods as a much necessary substance. Facilitating Goods Goods which are purchased by the company with an intention to achieve its goals and objectives are known as facilitating goods. These goods are not used in manufacturing purpose by the purchasing company. For instance, BPO