Belize is generally relaxed and practical about gender roles, so travelers will see women and men working, socializing, and sharing public space with little expectation that one gender should behave in a very formal or separate way. In more traditional families and rural communities, however, older ideas about respectability and modesty can still shape dress, flirting, and who speaks first in mixed settings, especially in communities with strong
Creole,
Mestizo,
Garifuna, or
Maya traditions.