Social base of forming of gender identity

Abstract

New tendencies in gender sphere is typical for modern society in Kazakh­ stan: liberalization of gender and social norms and increasing power of ideol­ ogy leading back to traditionalism. National ideology produces and transmits the function of gender roles of national ideology and cultural partners, where women show ethnic/national differences as a focus and symbol of ideological discourse. Despite the idea of modernization public opinion holds traditional gender order. On the one hand, globalization, market conditions stimulate consolidation of traditional gender hierarchy in society, on the other hand it leads to reconsideration of standards of masculinity and femininity. Gender identity is the feeling of self­identity, understanding of being a certain sex by category of masculinity and femininity, gaining correspond­ ing forms of behavior and formation of personal characteristics. Gender identity is revealed by the categories of “masculinity” and “femininity”. Man’s gender identity is oriented on subject: a woman is apprehended as an object and has significance only in the context of active subject. This approach implicitly includes the relation of power. Gender socialization is built in the context of real gender relations of equality and inequality. Representation of gender images in curricula, litera­ ture, mass media, popular discourse is the background of socialization pro­ cess reflecting and enhancing the changing in gender patterns in the society. National idea of independent Kazakhstan defines the model of gender behavior and samples for copying to decrease the global effect by keeping the distinctive traditions. Features of gender identity have ambivalent con­ ditionality: on the one hand distinctive ethno­cultural forms and rules of gender relations influence them; on the other hand, process of integration which introduces new tendencies of gender orientation. Important parts of this process become secularization, increase of ethno­cultural compound,westernization and liberalization.