Gendered Spaces Online from a Liberal Feminism Perspective (Essay Sample)

Research Proposal: Gendered Spaces Online from a Liberal Feminism Perspective
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Introduction
For some time now, social scientists have studied gender differences in internet usage, agency and representation (Royal, 2008). Despite the internet being initially viewed as more equalizing than previously existing media, due to its ease of access, there have emerged distinctive facets of it that are predominantly accessed by women. Some sites have adopted women’s magazine models structured on feminist stereotypes to promote their content (Royal, 2008). Consequently, such sites have emerged as gender spaces online for women. Sites such as iVillage.com deal with issues such as parenting, beauty, health, relationships, homes and money, among others. These are issues deemed to be important to women hence the site adding the slogan "Internet for Women" (Royal, 2008).
Moreover, some studies attribute this gender divide to the relatively low level of digital knowledge among females compared to males. According to Cindy Tekobbe (2013), the gender gap referred to is, in actual sense, a construct of measuring digital literacy between the sexes. Females are disadvantaged in this construct since most of the legacy knowledge that governs the technology field is fabricated and managed by males. In other words women use the internet differently because they are not properly exposed to this legacy knowledge and it is not designed to suit them. Furthermore, sites such as Pintrest tend to attract more women than men since they employ collaborative elements of conversation that are regarded as passive in general conversation (Gantz, 2013).
Problem Statement
This proposed study sets to find out whether the attraction of females to sites such as iVillage.com and Pinterest are indeed based on insensitive constructs by males in designing most other sites on the internet. In doing that the paper employs a Liberal Feminism Perspective. The Liberal Feminist theory posits that women are suppressed in society on the basis of unjust discrimination (Rosser, 2005). This determines how they behave and what they relate to in their social settings. The particular setting considered here is the virtual world of the internet.
Research Question
Does gender discrimination in site design and use predispose women to be attracted to certain sites like iVillage.com and Pintrest?
Scholarly Articles for the Study
In this secondary research, the following books and journals will be used to gather important insights for the study. Cindy Royal’s (2008) article "Framing the Internet: A comparison of Gendered Spaces" in Social Science Computer Review Vol. 26 No. 2, provides important insights into the presence and reasons for gender spaces on the internet. It also offers information and explanations on feminine interest in iVillage.com.
Another article: "A Site for Fresh Eyes: Pinterest’s Challenge to ‘Traditional’ Digital Literacies”, by Cindy Tekobbe (2013) in Information, Commun...