CNL-525 Topic 4: Influence of Gender and Sexual Orientation Interview Sheet
Directions: Find an individual with a gender different than your own in a career that interests you. In a brief interview find the answers to the questions listed below. Include proper in-text citations as well as a reference note below as appropriate. Please note that for personal communications, you will only need to include an in-text citation and not a reference note.
Note: American Psychological Association (APA) ethical guidelines indicate that interviewees have the right to refuse to answer any question posed to them by an interviewer. Please ensure that your interviewees are aware of this, and do not force them to answer where the opportunity to reply has been refused.
1. What got you interested in your current career?
Currently, I am working as a marriage therapist. Since my childhood, I have been disgruntled by the high rates of divorce, separation, and murder among couples. We are living in a society where our tomorrow is determined by our today’s state in terms of mental, physical, emotional, and relational health. Seeing a couple walk away freer, lighter, and jovial to live their own personal injury after healing from disorders, wounds, and obstacles in their path is what drives me in this career.
2. How did your gender influence your career choice?
Well, we as women suffer a lot of pain, wounds, and hopelessness when a divorce or separation comes. Due to our vulnerable state, other women even commit suicide. I have observed many victims of divorce, and women struggle a lot as they try to bring up their children. Research shows that once men divorce with women, they only take responsibility over children’s basic needs if compelled by law. I took this career to particularly help women and guide them on the best ways to coping with divorce or separation.
3. Did you have any same gender models or mentors that encouraged your career development? If not, was this problematic?
Well, Yes. When I was a little girl, I met with one of America’s marriage counselor. She was a victim of divorce and I was really moved by her progress, achievements, and successes even without support from his ex-husband. At that point, she was running her own counseling psychology clinic for women who were victims of divorce and separated where she had helped more than 6,500 clients. Since then, I have kept close contact and eye to her developments; and this is why I am what I am today.
4. Did you observe any barriers in your education, employment, or advancement based on your gender?
Yes and No. Initially, I wanted to practice my career on both male and female clients. Under my first employer, I was really discriminated against and could not be allowed to handle male clients. However, this did not put me off but gave me an additional drive and motivation to explore more options to advance by career. In education, I have never witnessed any barrier, prejudice, and discrimination. Both male and female professors treated students the same regardless of gender. Professionally, I have fought many barriers and that is why I’m here today.
5. Which gender appears to have an easier time getting into and establishing a career in this area?
This is quite difficult to answer. I think it all depends with one’s passion, hard work, determination, and efforts. In marriage therapy, no gender is immune to success (Merder, 2010). There are great men and women who have succeeded in this area, and who have really made this career attract more learners across the world. Personally, it has not been easy for me to establish and market myself as a marriage counselor in this field of divorce. But, because of passion, hard work, and determination I’ve established myself and have over 5,000 clients now.
6. Which gender most often holds the positions of power/influence/authority within this field? How does this compare to the male/female ratio?
Well, counseling is largely associated with women. Naturally, women are associated with more tender, love, concern, and responsibility than men. Just like other types of counseling careers, women hold more positions of influence, power, and authority in marriage therapy. Research by (Ragins, 2004) shows that 73.3% of counselors are female, making women the common gender in this profession.
7. Have there been any changes that have impacted the employment of males/females within the career?
Yes, the recent employment trends associate the marriage therapy career with women (Ragins, 2004). As a career, marriage therapy is dominated by more females than men. Research shows that women understand family affairs better than men, and that this career depends on real-life experiences than class theories as people think. We boast of this career, and I will passionately continue to discharge my counseling roles with diligence and utmost professionalism.
8. How does sexual orientation impact a career in this field?
Through experience, sexual orientation in terms of gay, lesbian, and bisexual impact divorce counseling. Around 20% of the clients I’ve handled, their divorce or separation is caused by sexual orientation preferences. Some women quote the love of anal sex by their husbands as a source of separation and divorce. Others quote their desire to masturbate makes them lose interest in sexual activity with their husbands. As a professional in this field, one must be able to distinguish these factors and have the knowledge over how to address these matters amicably.
9. Have you observed any overt or covert discrimination based on gender/sexual orientation? Is it a common or rare occurrence?
Yes, overt discrimination is a common issue in this career and profession (Merder, 2010). As a black American, some white clients come seeking for counseling only to cancel the session on realizing that a black therapist will be treating them. There is this trend of undermining people based on their color, and a stereotype that we cannot deliver quality treatment like the whites. However, this has never made me stop going, insofar I’ve good white clients.
10. With regard to gender/sexual orientation, what is the one thing you would like to change within the field?
I believe that marriage counseling is a super career for both men and women. The one thing I would like to change within this field is the negative stereotype that men have on counseling as a carrier. I want to campaign for this profession, a campaign geared to breaking these negative and ill-minded stereotypes. The world must know that no career was made for a certain gender; all of us are capable to bring something new into each field of profession.
References
- Merder, I. D. (2010). The need for an expanded role for the attorney in divorce counseling. Family Law Quarterly, 80-95.
- Ragins, B. R. (2004). Sexual Orientation in the Workplace: The Unique Work and Career Experiences of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Workers. Research in Personnel and Human Resource Management, 23, 37-120.