Economic and social causes of sexism and of the exploitation of women

Psychologists have neglected the role of the social, economic and political systems in determining behaviour. Rather, our field, consciously or unconsciously, has been instrumental in upholding the status quo. We have accepted society's ruling ideas that perpetuate exploitation, especially of women in the world of work. Women are often the last to be hired and the first to be fired. They are employed part-time and fired early to avoid the cost of fringe benefits and retirement costs. Ideas about women's roles, generated by capitalism and patriarchal religions, are responsible for widespread sexism and the exploitation of many powerless groups, but especially girls and women. This paper reviews several examples of sexist exploitation that have an economic base. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.