(July 6, 2015 at 1:40 pm)robvalue Wrote: Out of interest, what would people say are the main reasons for gender segregation in nudity situations? Is this a hangover that isn't needed anymore? Possibilities:
Stopping embarrassment? Stopping groping/sexual assault? Children seeing... stuff?
Who would be OK with everyone thrown in together? Obviously cubicles is preferable for stopping any kind of problem, but they take up more space.
Maybe I'm missing something obvious.
My guess is that some men would harass women if everyone changed together. It could be particularly problematic if at some time one man and one woman happened to be otherwise alone, so the man would have deniability (unless there are cameras in there, which would involve yet more problems), and even worse if there are a group of like-minded men and one woman. My guess is, most women would not approve of everyone changing together. But, and this is very important for this issue, this sort of thing may be variable such that in some cultures this may not be a problem. So it might be fine in some countries. But I think it would be a problem for women at least occasionally in the U.S. Often enough that I think we should keep changing rooms separate.
As far as children seeing stuff goes, in the U.S., it is common for women to take tiny children of either sex into women's restrooms. This is done up to the age when they are considered old enough to go to a public restroom on their own.
Anyway, in the U.S. at least, I think it is a good idea to have separate changing rooms at gyms for men and women.
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.
