The Hunger Games: What Will Each Participant Prove?
An Ethnographic Study of the Relationship Between Gender and Food
What is one thing you cannot live without? Most people answer with love, television, or music, but what about something as obvious as food? Food is such an ingrained part of our daily routine that we tend to forget about its significance, both biologically and culturally. Consider the amount of time and resources spent on obtaining and consuming food. Food does more than just satisfy our physiological needs; it is also a means to facilitate social interaction and to convey identity. Many view food just as a simple material item that serves to sustain our survival, but in reality, it is a complex concept that is connected to our beliefs, history, and environment. In my ethnographical study, I aimed to study what our eating habits and choices are influenced by, focusing on the similarities and differences that may exist between men and women and what accounts for them. So many stereotypes exist around how much and what kinds of food men and women should eat and by eating with, observing, and talking to college students of both sexes, I hoped to see if there was any validity in these stereotypes. For instance, many people believe men eat more quantitatively and eat more meaty foods compared to women, which has created the perception of eating more as a masculine activity and the association of meat with strength. Women are assumed to be healthier because they supposedly eat more “feminine” types of foods, such as vegetables and fruits. These stereotypes are not formed based on real data; they are cultural constructs fabricated through widespread observation and inference. To test whether or not gender influences diet and nutrition, I looked at the eating habits and choices of five males and five females by recording the amount of food and types of food they consumed for each meal for three days and asked them questions about factors related to food, such as fitness, to look at variables that may affect habits and choices. My investigation reveals that many gender stereotypes about food tend to be true, but the explanations or causes for them are not as apparent.
METHOD
For three days that were spread throughout a week, I followed five females, including myself, and five males to each meal they ate and recorded all the food and the amounts they consumed. I sat with the participants and noted the amount and types of foods they placed on their plate and what they actually ended up eating. During observation, I considered the setting of their meal, such as the people they ate with and where they ate. If the participants were with other people, I observed how this variable affected their choice of foods and amounts (if it did) and how they ate. I considered the amount of foods that were available to the participants; for example, eating in the dining halls, where there is an the unlimited supply of foods, may encourage people to eat more as opposed to eating in a restaurant, where you have to pay for the amount you eat, may prompt people to eat the minimal amount possible in order to spend less.
In addition to the observation period, I also asked the participants questions about their eating habits between the meals I observed, their level of fitness, and concern for fitness to give background to the raw data I gathered through observations. The questions I asked were:
1) How often do you eat out? Where do you typically go/what do you typically eat?
2) How often do you snack? What do you typically snack on?
3) What foods do you keep in your dorm room/fridge?
4) How often do you go grocery shopping?
5) Do you exercise? If you do, how often?
6) How much do you weigh?
7) When you eat, are you concerned about gaining/losing weight? Does this concern/lack of concern influence your choices/habits?
In addition to the observation period, I also asked the participants questions about their eating habits between the meals I observed, their level of fitness, and concern for fitness to give background to the raw data I gathered through observations. The questions I asked were:
1) How often do you eat out? Where do you typically go/what do you typically eat?
2) How often do you snack? What do you typically snack on?
3) What foods do you keep in your dorm room/fridge?
4) How often do you go grocery shopping?
5) Do you exercise? If you do, how often?
6) How much do you weigh?
7) When you eat, are you concerned about gaining/losing weight? Does this concern/lack of concern influence your choices/habits?
DATA
Food actually consumed by participants for meals:
(highlighted in blue=breakfast; red=lunch; green=dinner)
(highlighted in blue=breakfast; red=lunch; green=dinner)
Observations made during participants’ meals:
· Males tend to get more food than they can actually end up eating
· Females tend to finish all the food on their plate first, and then get more food if they are still hungry
· In general, males do eat more than females do
· Both males and females tend to eat more when they eat with others (with males or females)
· When participants (both males and females) eat outside of the dining halls, they usually eat relatively unhealthy foods and the same types of foods
· Both males and females eat more food when they eat in the dining halls (if the foods available that day are appealing) than when they buy food
· Neither males nor females’ diets are very diverse
· Data makes it seem like males eat breakfast more often, but the number of meals participants ate depend more on the amount of free time they had than on their gender; those who woke up later did not have breakfast and the males who participated in this study happened to have classes that started later in the day, so they were more inclined to have lunch as their first meal
· Food choices tend to be based on what is readily available because of limitations, such as unappealing options in the dining hall and price of foods sold in restaurants/stores
Participants’ answers to the questions listed above:
· Males tend to get more food than they can actually end up eating
· Females tend to finish all the food on their plate first, and then get more food if they are still hungry
· In general, males do eat more than females do
· Both males and females tend to eat more when they eat with others (with males or females)
· When participants (both males and females) eat outside of the dining halls, they usually eat relatively unhealthy foods and the same types of foods
· Both males and females eat more food when they eat in the dining halls (if the foods available that day are appealing) than when they buy food
· Neither males nor females’ diets are very diverse
· Data makes it seem like males eat breakfast more often, but the number of meals participants ate depend more on the amount of free time they had than on their gender; those who woke up later did not have breakfast and the males who participated in this study happened to have classes that started later in the day, so they were more inclined to have lunch as their first meal
· Food choices tend to be based on what is readily available because of limitations, such as unappealing options in the dining hall and price of foods sold in restaurants/stores
Participants’ answers to the questions listed above:
Observations made from participants’ responses:
· When eating out, both males and females buy cheap, fast food
· Both males and females snack on and store similar unhealthy foods in their dorm rooms
· Food stored in both males and females’ rooms are foods that can usually be stored for a long time, cheap, require no/short preparation time, and can be bought in bulk
· Those who weigh more tend to eat more (males typically weigh more than females)
· Those who are concerned about their weight are always concerned about gaining weight, never about losing weight
· Those who are concerned about their weight do not really let that concern influence their eating habits/choices (continue to eat whatever they want)
· No difference in diet between those who exercise and those who don’t, but those who exercise do tend to eat more
· When eating out, both males and females buy cheap, fast food
· Both males and females snack on and store similar unhealthy foods in their dorm rooms
· Food stored in both males and females’ rooms are foods that can usually be stored for a long time, cheap, require no/short preparation time, and can be bought in bulk
· Those who weigh more tend to eat more (males typically weigh more than females)
· Those who are concerned about their weight are always concerned about gaining weight, never about losing weight
· Those who are concerned about their weight do not really let that concern influence their eating habits/choices (continue to eat whatever they want)
· No difference in diet between those who exercise and those who don’t, but those who exercise do tend to eat more
REACTIONS
The data was easy to obtain, as the activity I was observing was a social gathering that I normally would have participated in anyway; the only element that was different for this ethnographic study was that I was more attentive to the actions that were related to food. I was comfortable with asking others for their permission to be a part of my study and my participants were very comfortable with being observed because we are all excited about the subject of food. Food is a frequent topic between my friends and I; we see eating as not just a means of sustenance, but also as a way to de-stress, to experience new cultures, and to socialize. Our enthusiasm for food and for everything that it represents made this ethnographic study a universally engaging one that sparked the participants to consider their personal relationship with food. Detailed observation of and participation in food consumption from the perspective of an anthropologist made me much more aware of the influence food has on various aspects of society, including self-image, health, and finance. Most of the participants were aware of the gender stereotypes that exist and believed they were true, but could not think of any other explanations for them besides the prominent masculinity/femininity argument; their interest in what my study would reveal inclined people to take part.
ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEME & ANALYSIS
I chose to study food because it is a concept and item that effects and attracts everyone. Food has a much larger impact on our lives than we believe; it influences our mood, the intimacy of social interaction, and how we view a particular culture. During lecture, we discussed the common gender roles assigned to food collection and preparation, but we did not discuss the differences in food consumption between men and women and the implications of that gender distinction. Consumption is very closely related to the concept of gender stratification, which describes the unequal distribution of rewards between men and women, reflecting their different positions in a social hierarchy. For centuries, women have often been viewed and treated as inferior to men and their social ranking has been and is exemplified in marriage, employment, property ownership, domestic violence, political power, and the double standards for sex. The idea that women should be submissive to men and that their needs are secondary to those of men is harmful, prevalent, and closely linked to notions of masculinity and femininity.
Superiority is rooted in men’s physical size and the potential provided by their larger physique; their ability to perform tasks that require more strength demonstrates their power and men use this power to assert their dominance. Men’s common position as leaders and financial providers provide them with authority over women, who often hold positions in the domestic sphere. Food has been extremely significant in determining these gender roles; physical strength is dependent on how much and what one eats, which has generated the common belief that the more one eats, the bigger, stronger, and better one will be. The consequence of this way of thinking is that diet affects the way that others perceive ability and status. Men who are able to eat more and eat more meat, which provides more energy than vegetables and fruits do, are viewed as more masculine and women view masculinity as a positive trait, creating the perception that masculine men are more attractive and more likely to have reproductive success. I witnessed the pervasiveness of this idea in my study when all the male participants almost always placed more food on their plate than they were able to finish; men may consciously or subconsciously be getting more food than they need to indicate their ability to eat a lot of food so as to sustain their supposed strength that their quantity and quality of food would suggest. Women also demonstrated this idea by getting as little food as possible so as to show they are not as big and do not need as much energy, which often reassures men because it supports men’s position as the main provider and reinforces their power and status. Food is inextricably connected to concepts of dominance and gender relations, and whether or not gender stereotypes are true are not as important as what they imply about the subjects and subjects’ relationship to each other.
Superiority is rooted in men’s physical size and the potential provided by their larger physique; their ability to perform tasks that require more strength demonstrates their power and men use this power to assert their dominance. Men’s common position as leaders and financial providers provide them with authority over women, who often hold positions in the domestic sphere. Food has been extremely significant in determining these gender roles; physical strength is dependent on how much and what one eats, which has generated the common belief that the more one eats, the bigger, stronger, and better one will be. The consequence of this way of thinking is that diet affects the way that others perceive ability and status. Men who are able to eat more and eat more meat, which provides more energy than vegetables and fruits do, are viewed as more masculine and women view masculinity as a positive trait, creating the perception that masculine men are more attractive and more likely to have reproductive success. I witnessed the pervasiveness of this idea in my study when all the male participants almost always placed more food on their plate than they were able to finish; men may consciously or subconsciously be getting more food than they need to indicate their ability to eat a lot of food so as to sustain their supposed strength that their quantity and quality of food would suggest. Women also demonstrated this idea by getting as little food as possible so as to show they are not as big and do not need as much energy, which often reassures men because it supports men’s position as the main provider and reinforces their power and status. Food is inextricably connected to concepts of dominance and gender relations, and whether or not gender stereotypes are true are not as important as what they imply about the subjects and subjects’ relationship to each other.
FINDINGS
The observations collected during this study reinforced many of the concepts of unequal gender relations that I learned about in the anthropology class. Even something as seemingly normal and safe as food can have implications of differences in status and of what motivates us to behave in certain ways, such as exhibiting masculinity or femininity, to fit a certain body type. I learned that broad generalizations, such as men eat more than women and men eat more meat while women eat more vegetables, should not be made because even if they are accurate, they neglect to address the variables and issues that are correlated to them. So many factors influenced each participant’s choice of foods and amount consumed each day that even though variations were not very large between the three separate days that I observed the participants for, they did exist and could not be attributed to a single cause. Diet and nutrition may not always be a matter of choice; many people assume people who consistently eat unhealthy foods do not care about their health or fitness, but their consumption of unhealthy foods may be a result of limited access to or funds for healthier foods. While gender does seem to have an effect on how we perceive eating habits and choices, it is not the only element that guides how and what we eat. Personal choices are shaped by observations we make of our environment and goals we set for personal reasons, and to ascribe one part of our culture to a single influence would ignore the interrelated nature of our complex society.