Strand 2: Units 5 & 6

Unit 5: Women on the Internet

The digital gender divide focuses on the inequity of women's access to and use of communication technology on a global basis. Before widespread participation in CMC, women have historically had little access to communication technologies.  Such technologies are controlled by men, therefore women are prohibited access in many regions.  In CMC early developments, men were almost exclusively the inhabitants of cyberspace; however, women online are now the norm rather than the exception.

Women who try to enter the world of computing and computers often report feeling isolated and/or intimidated.  To generate more participation by women, technology-oriented training programs, computer classes and entertaining websites have been implemented.  These websites use gender stereotypes to promote a gendered style of technology participation.  Stereotypes are also associated with women in chat room because women appear to enjoy the ability to use emoticons and other visual images to express emotions.

Women are the vast majority of victims of violence and harrassment, in both the physical and virtual world.
Let's look at the types of cyber violence:

• Online contact leading to offline abuse
• Cyberstalking. Tracking someone's actions online with illegitimate intent
• Online harassment
• Degrading representations through images that is disrespectful and/or harmful

To 'feminize' the Internet and CMC, women oriented web communities have been adopted to reach women around the world.  The Institute for Women and Technology (INSTRAW) is seeking to raise awareness about the gendered nature of access to communication technologies.  Some feminine gendered sites are incorporating women-oriented styles of communicating.  These efforts make CMC more gendered-balanced.

Women access to technology ranks as the third most important issue facing women, after poverty and violence. 


Unit 6: Interpersonal Attraction, Cybersex and Cyberporn

Sex and pornography are central issues in internet studies and the study of CMC.  They are also the most frequently talked about aspects of cyberspace as well as the most popular.  It's not all about sex though.  Much of the online interpersonal attraction is about love and romance.  The internet facilitates romantic exchanges through online dating sites.  The promise of future interaction, together with similarity, humor and self-disclosure is a good recipe for finding someone potentially attractive in cyberspace.  However, where there's attraction, there's the potential for sexual attraction as well.

Sex is normally defined as a mutual attraction and desire as well as the gratification of these desires.  Then we have cybersex, which is suggestive or explicit erotic messages or sexual fantasies exchanged via the computer with others who are online at the same time.  Last but not least, there's vsex, a creative sexual outlet in the form of interactive personalized erotica, providing mental and physical stimulation. Sexual encounters on the internet are some of the least understood aspects of interpersonal relationships in cyberspace.  Sex and pornography are ultimately about relationship and identity, and as such constitute important topics for discussion in CMC.

"At the end of the day, the internet invariably reflects the sexual desires and romantic aspirations of its users and the societies to which these people belong."