This study investigates the disciplines that help create boundaries of appropriate behavior between the genders in a Japanese university club, Ôendan (the Cheering Club). Using both survey and interview data, it focuses on the power over the female body and women's perception of the obvious preferences that men receive in most formal social situations in which physical power and political authority dominate the interaction. The results reveal a situation that delineates gender boundaries by the perceived differences in physical strength between men and women. The men's customs, which could be harsh, were in direct opposition to those practiced by the women. The practices of each gender-divided section helped to define and create what most students believed was appropriate gender-related behavior in the club, and in Japanese society.
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