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Running head: COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT 1

Community Problem Report:

Relationship of Marriage Equality and Business Administration

applied to El Paso County

Paola A. Ornelas

1301 RWS

November 12, 2017


COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT 2

Abstract

This paper explores eight different scholarly sources that analyze the evolution in the concept of

marriage equality in the society as a result of multiple factors such as, access to education,

legalization of same-sex marriage, and the participation of women in the workforce. The authors

cited in the present paper provide different points of view, allowing the reader to arrive to a

conclusion using critical thinking. The legalization of same-sex marriage by the Supreme Court

of the United States brought a different application of the concept of marriage equality within the

sexuality context. Blanton (2000) argued that with the participation of women in the labor

sphere, contemporary marriages establish their own hierarchy, different from the patriarchal

hierarchy featured in many traditional marriages. This paper also examines Arber and Ginn

(1995), who claimed that the participation of women in the workforce brought inequality

between men and women inside and outside marital relationships. The focus of this paper is the

application of worldwide instances to the community of El Paso, Texas.

Keywords: marriage equality, same-sex marriage


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Introduction

The concept of marriage equality has been a highly debated subject among various

authors and scholars. The opposition to the application of equality between husband and wife

inside a marriage, or the equality between homosexual and heterosexual couples, has created a

social problem that many have tried to solve. The application of equality inside and outside

marriage depends on many social, economic, and politic factors. The understating of the

connection between these factors will ultimately lead to the solution of the problem. As a result

of the legalization of same-sex marriage and the inclusion of women to the labor and education

sphere, men and womens sex-role attitudes have changed, causing an evolution in the concept of

marriage equality inside communities such as El Paso County.

Discussion

The Controversy of Marriage Equality

Gender equality has been a controversial issue throughout the history of society,

especially in regards to the allocation of roles between man and women inside the family. The

marital relationship between a husband and a wife is determined by the participation that each

member has inside and outside of the household. According to Inglehart and Norris (2003), with

the modernization of society came cultural changes that supported liberal gender equality (p. 3).

However, contrast between womens life around the globe continue to exist, affecting the

equality inside a marriage. The worlds modernization took place in two phases. The first phase

was the transition from an agriculture-based economy to an industrialized society. During this

phase, women started participating in the public realm taking subordinated positions. The second

phase was the postindustrial modernization era, in which gender equality started taking place in

terms of family, work, and politics (p. 6). The inclusion of women in the public realm brought
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changes to the household. In developed countries, men started to see women as their equals,

allowing marital relationships to become egalitarian.

Social, political, and economic changes have influenced the way husbands and wives

relate to each other. Mikkola and Miles (2007) claimed that education is an important factor that

helps understand the connections that exist between the role of women in society, economic

growth, and cultural norms (p. 15). Marriage equality is included in the latter, showing the

relationship between the evolution in society and the household sphere. When women have

access to education, inclusion in the workforce, liberty over their sexual and reproductive rights,

as well as participation in the political system, equality tends to be present inside their marriages

(p. 17). The active participation of women in society made a transcendental change in marriages

all over the world, leaving behind the traditional vision in which women had no voice.

As time passes, expectations and stereotypes of marriage have changed, opening the door

to gender equality within marital relationships. With the reformation of social stereotypes and

preconceptions, gender equality has become a more popular and accessible term to everybody. In

2000, Blanton used a psychoeducational approach to study marital relationships between men

and women. This approach is called Adlerian perspective and through a series of studies, he

arrived to the conclusion that with the participation of women in the labor sphere, contemporary

marriages establish their own hierarchy, different from the patriarchal hierarchy that most

traditional marriages have (p. 414). With the provision of this information, society can strive to

become more egalitarian. However, Arber and Ginn (1995) argued that the inclusion of women

in the workforce brought marriage inequality, manifested in unequal earnings and job

opportunities, in which men are always favored (p. 21). In contrast to Arber and Ginn, the

scholars Mikkola and Miles (2007) found out that womens rights in marriage on the other hand
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do not seem to be associated with income (p. 20). The authors arrived to this conclusion through

a series of cross-country studies that analyzed the effect of equality on growth. While income

differences lead to more or less gender equality in society as a whole, it did not show an impact

in marriage equality. Each of the approaches provide a different focus to contemporary marriages

and present society.

Marriage Equality within the Sexuality context

The legalization of same-sex marriage led to a reconstruction of the concept of marriage

equality. Up until the 2000s, the concept of marriage equality enclosed the presence of gender

equality inside a marital relationship. After the Supreme Court ruled in favor of homosexual

marriage nationwide in 2015, the concept of marriage equality started being used to defend the

equality between homosexual and heterosexual marriages. The legalization of same-sex

marriages brought the construction of many prejudices, discrimination norms, and disputes.

Society was not ready to accept homosexuality out in the open. However, same-sex marriage

started creating controversy before 2015. In November 2008, California voters passed

Proposition 8 legalizing same-sex marriage in that state. Faderman stated that this action would

make amends to the States Constitution (para. 1) alluding the fact that in California, marriage

between two individuals of the same sex became legal. This historical fact, aroused confusion

and the beginning of an ongoing debate between defenders of same-sex marriage and those

opposed to it. In 2011, Williams described marriage as a collective right for heterosexual and

homosexual couples (p. 589). The author claims that the prohibition of same-sex marriages is an

issue in regards to equal rights. In order to defend his argument, Williams said that marriage is

an intrinsically collective institution that couples enter; therefore, their right to marry abandons

the circle of individual rights to become a collective right (p. 593). The notion of collective rights
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employed by Williams, favors the use of the concept of marriage equality to state that same-sex

marriages have the same rights as heterosexual marriages.

Labor Sphere and the Evolution of Marriage Equality

The rising inclusion of womens participation in society has caused an evolution in the

concept of marriage equality, affecting the access to education. Scanzoni (1978) claimed that

womens sex role attitudes have considerably changed from the mid-1960s to the present day (p.

8). These changed attitudes have a direct influence in the goals that women and men seek from

each other inside a marital relationship. If those goals change, group patterns are likely to

change, pushing the society to accommodate itself into accomplishing those new goals. The

awakening of womens desire to actively participate in the labor sphere of society, caused

schools, especially colleges, to accommodate to those goals by giving more opportunities to

women. The latter claim is exemplified in Figure 1, retrieved from the United Nations website,

which shows that the access to education for women has increased worldwide. When gender

Figure 1. Access to Education for Women around the Globe. Reprinted from The Worlds Women, by United
Nations, 2015, Retrieved November 12, 2017, from https://unstats.un.org/unsd/gender/Infographics.html

equality exists in the society, marriage equality is more likely to exist. Through a series of

studies in 1977, Chapman and Gales arrived to the conclusion that preconceptions and
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stereotypes imposed by society have changed, consequently women are starting to demand an

egalitarian society (p. 414). Having said that, Chapman, Gales, and Scanzoni agree that the

active involvement of women in society has led to a profound change in the labor and education

sphere.

Marriage Equality and Womens Labor Participation in El Paso, Texas

El Paso is one of the counties that experience most marriage inequality in Texas. Even

though women have experienced a breakthrough in the labor sphere worldwide, their job

opportunities and wages are affected by marriage inequality. According to Brenners 50-year

longitudinal perspective study of El Paso (2001), women tend to take part-time and low-skill job

opportunities due to childcare (p. 29). Women are more likely than men to take time off work to

take care of their children, mostly because men prioritize their breadwinner status over their

partners opportunities to participate in the labor sphere. Usually childbearing is associated with

taking care of children; this mindset gives rise to marriage inequality. It is only over the past 20

years that womens participation in the labor force in El Paso has increased (p. 28). However,

instead of reflecting marriage equality, it accentuates inequality between partners. Only a few

percentage of married women have a higher-paying professional, technical and managerial job.

The reason for this is that women usually have to split their time between taking care of

household chores and their job, whereas men only dedicate their time to their jobs. The

participation of women and men outside the household provides an insight to marital

relationships.

Conclusion

Social changes such as the inclusion of women in the labor sphere, the legalization of

same-sex marriage, and the active participation of men inside the household sphere, have created
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an evolution in the application of the concept of marriage equality. According to the above,

many authors agree that many factors influence the marital relationship and the allocation of

roles inside of it. The more women participate in society, the more marriages become equal.

Along with the inclusion of gender equality in marital relationships, the application of the

concept of marriage equality encloses the sameness, in terms of rights, of homosexual and

heterosexual marriages. The concept of marriage equality alludes to the defense of individual and

collective rights by allowing women to become more active in public life, and giving voice to a

segregated group, such as homosexuals. Despite womens breakthrough in the labor sphere,

inequality between men and women inside marriages continues to exist. El Paso Countys

community provides an insight to marriage inequality and states it as a social and economic

problem.
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References

Arber, S., & Ginn, J. (1995). The mirage of gender equality: Occupational success in the labour

market and within marriage. The British Journal of Sociology, 46(1), 21-43.

doi:10.2307/591621

Blanton, P. W. (2000). The Adlerian perspective in the context of contemporary marriages.

Journal of Individual Psychology, 56(4), 411.

Brenner, C. T. (2001). Educational trends and income in El Paso: A longitudinal perspective El

Paso, Tex. : Institute for Policy and Economic Development, University of Texas at El

Paso, 2001.

Chapman, J. R., & Gates, M. J. (1977). Women into wives: The legal and economic impact of

marriage. Beverly Hills : Sage Publications, c1977. Retrieved from http://0-

search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat04704a&AN=nug.b242

7996&site=eds-live&scope=site

Faderman, L. (2015). The mainstreaming of marriage equality. The Gay & Lesbian Review

Worldwide, (2), 34.

Inglehart, R. & Norris, P. (2003). Rising tide: Gender equality and cultural change around the

world (1st ed.). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

Mikkola, A. & Miles, C. (2007). Development and Gender Equality: Consequences, Causes,

Challenges and Cures: discussion paper to the Helsinki Center of Economic Research,

https://ethesis.helsinki.fi/julkaisut/eri/hecer/disc/159/developm.pdf

Scanzoni, J. H. (1978). Sex roles, womens work, and marital conflict: A study of family change

Lexington, Massachusetts : Lexington Books, c1978. Retrieved from http://0-


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9722&site=eds-live&scope=site

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