Gender-biased frames in the discourse of Building Construction: a study of undergraduates’ perceptions

Joaquín Santiago

Spain

Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Ana Mª Roldán Riejos

Spain

Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Submitted: 2010-10-06

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Accepted: 2010-10-06

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Published: 2010-10-06

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4995/rlyla.2009.744
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Keywords:

gender, socio-cognitive frame, building construction, discourse

Supporting agencies:

This research was not funded

Abstract:

This article is part of a larger scale, multi-faceted project, aimed at analysing the presence of socio-cognitive frames in the discourse of architecture and construction. The main objective of this research is to assess the prevalence of gender-motivated models as experienced by a target group of students of Building Construction. Secondly, it aims to identify and establish the extent to which gender stereotypes may influence a population of young students (aged 20-26), and hence contribute to orienting their professional decisions. A sample population of 40 participants (20 female, 20 male) was asked to read a collection of texts describing authentic job-history profiles of architecture-related professionals. All gender references had been previously omitted in the texts so that, after examining them in detail, each informant should assign a feminine or masculine identity to the profiles, and also write a commentary justifying their choice in each case. Analysis of results suggests the presence of gender stereotypical patterns both in profile attribution and in the selection of professional abilities.
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