Gender, Power, And Meat Consumption
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As meat is seen as a symbol of power, it might be the reason women adopt vegetarianism at double the rates of men due to the hierarchical way gender roles are established.
This article provides an overview of vegetarianism and the characteristics of vegetarians based on replicating earlier studies gathered by the International Social Survey Program. Discussion focuses on the social and political psychology of vegetarianism.
Across all cultures, meat is symbolically tied to wealth and power. Consequently vegetarians hold low social and political dominance. Women adopt vegetarianism at twice the rate of men, which may be due to the hierarchical way the gender roles are established. The author claims that there are between 6 and 30 million vegetarians in the U.S. representing between 3% and 10% of the population.
Citations:
Keith Rozendal, ISPP 31st Annual Scientific Meeting, 2008
