Gender Flashcards
difference between sex and gender
Although sex and gender are terms often used
interchangeably in everyday life, many psychologists now
distinguish between them.
sex
the biological differences between males and
females such as chromosomes, hormones and anatomy
gender
the psychological and cultural differences
between males and females such as attitudes, behaviours and social norms
primary sex characteristic
organs for reproduction
secondary sex characteristics
deeper voice
body hair
sex
nature
pre-determined
gender
nature/nurture
fluid
previously names ‘sex change’ changed to ‘gender reasingment’
sex-role steryotpes
Sex-role stereotypes: a set of beliefs and preconceived ideas
about what is expected or appropriate for males and females
in a given society
sex-role steryotypes examples
These stereotypes are usually communicated and transmitted
through society, reinforced by parents, media and other
institutions
- long/short hair
-war
Although some of the stereotypes have some aspects of truth,
they’re often harmful in real life (sexism)
examples of gender steryotypes that haven’t been proved to be true
Poor drivers
Love shopping
Love sad movies
Take hours to get ready
Full time child carers
Breadwinners
Hate shopping
Obsessed with sex
Commitment phobics
Leave the toilet seat up
valid sex-role stereotypes
Some popular sex-role stereotypes have scientific backing – Multi-tasking.
- Used MRI to map connections in the brains of 949 men and women
- They found that women’s brains made much better connections across the hemispheres of the brain, whereas men’s brains showed most intense activity in specific parts of the brain e.g. the cerebellum (which controls motor skills)
- They concluded that the female brain is more able to cope with multiple tasks at once whereas the male brain is better at focusing on one complex task at a time
gender dysphoria
previously known as gender identity disorder
gender identity doesn’t match up with biological sex
E.g. a biological male may feel more feminine than
masculine and may conform to gender norms more
associated with females
This can lead to choosing gender reassignment surgery to
align one’s sexual identity with their gender identity
The Batista family
Imperato-McGinley et al. (1974) studied the Batista family
from the Dominican Republic. Four children from the family
were biologically identified as girls at birth and raised as girls
but it was later identified that they were affected by a rare
genetic disorder which caused their male genitalia to grow
internally instead of externally (they were biologically XY
male)
(extra: in the womb, a crucial hormone DHT –
Dihydrotestosterone was not introduced, responsible for
externalising the male genitalia)
By puberty, their vaginas closed over and male genitalia
appeared and grew to normal size. They decided to live their
lives as males, in line with their sexual identity
- Interestingly, the Batista boys seemed to abandon their
female gender identities very easily with few problems
adjusting
findings:
Interestingly, the Batista boys seemed to abandon their
female gender identities very easily with few problems
adjusting
They quickly adapted to new roles as boys and men
what does Batista boys case suggest
Gender identity is fluid (flexible) and not fixed
Sex identity may play a powerful role in gender identity –
specifically, the role of hormones (a later topic)
androgyny def
Displaying a balance of masculine and feminine characteristics (traits and attitudes) in one’s personality and behaviour
androgyny
- This is another term used to distinguish between everyday
understanding and psychological understanding of gender - In recent years, Western studies have observed a blurred distinction
between masculinity and femininity, with more people (particularly
young) claiming to be more androgynous in their attitudes and
behaviours - Androgyny is not about women displaying excessive masculinity or
vice-versa, it is about having a roughly equal balance of masculine
and feminine traits, regardless of your biological sex
Sadra Bem
Sandra Bem developed a method to measure androgyny and theorised that high androgyny was associated with better psychological well-being.
She believed that those with both masculine and feminine traits were better equipped to adapt to a range of situations because they have more traits to draw on than those who are predominantly masculine/feminine
Bem developed The Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) to measure levels of androgyny
The Bem Sex Role Inventory
The BSRI is a scale containing 20 ‘masculine’
characteristics, 20 ‘feminine’ characteristics and 20
‘neutral characteristics’ (60 items in total)
Respondents had to rate themselves on each item using a
7-point rating scale – 1 meaning ‘never true of me’ to 7
meaning ‘always true of me’
High and low scores on each set of characteristics would
then classify respondents into 1 of 4 groups:
Masculine, Feminine, Androgynous or Undifferentiated
BSRI findings
High masculine + low
feminine = Masculine
Low masculine + high
feminine = Feminine
High masculine + high
feminine = Androgynous
Low masculine + low
feminine =
Undifferentiated
What exactly are chromosomes?
Found in the nucleus of living cells and carry information in
the form of genes
The role of chromosomes
Sex is determined at conception by chromosomes
Of the 23 pairs of chromosomes, the last pair contain the
instructions for a zygote’s sex
The ovum (egg) can only supply an X chromosome whereas
the sperm can supply either an X or Y chromosome
If the 23rd pairing is XX the zygote is genetically female
If the 23rd pairing is XY the zygote is genetically male
The role of chromosomes
Zygotes develop into embryos that have the exact same
genitalia for the first 8 weeks of development
The Y chromosomes in males carry a gene called
‘sex-determining region Y’ – the SRY gene
This gene instructs the testes to develop
At 8 weeks, the testes produce androgens (male hormones)
that stimulate the development of remaining male genitalia
Genetic females do not produce these androgens, so female
genitalia develops instead
XX
girl
XY
boy
SRY gene
sex determining region Y
At 8 weeks, the testes produce androgens (male hormones)
that stimulate the development of remaining male genitalia
Genetic females do not produce these androgens, so female
genitalia develops instead
hormones
a biochemical substance that circulates in the blood
and affects target organs
the hormones role
Hormones are produced in large quantities but disappear very
quickly – regardless, they are very powerful
During pre-natal development, hormones affect brain development
and cause reproductive organs to develop
They also cause the development of secondary sexual characteristics
at puberty
Males and females produce the same hormones but at different
concentrations
The three hormones most relevant in sexual development are
testosterone, oestrogen and oxytocin
teststerone def
A hormone from the androgen group produced mainly in the
testes, associated with aggression
testosterone
Although testosterone is a ‘male’ hormone, small quantities
are produced by females in the ovaries
Testosterone controls the development of male sex organs
So even a genetic XX female could produce high levels of
testosterone in the womb and develop male genitals
Testosterone is associated with aggression – this is suggested
to be an evolutionary adaptation
Aggressive males are better adapted to compete for mates and
win, as well as protect their young from other predators and
successfully hunt for prey
Oestrogen def
The primary female hormone that regulates the menstrual cycle
and reproductive system
oestrogen
Oestrogen determines female sexual characteristics
(prenatally and during puberty) and menstruation
This hormone can cause feelings of irritability and
heightened emotionality during the menstrual cycle
(known as premenstrual tension or PMS…)
Although PMS has been disputed as a medical disorder, it
has been successfully used in courts to defend shoplifting
and murder
oxytocin def
A hormone that causes contraction of the uterus during labour
and stimulates lactation
steryotype threat
conform to steryotypes
intro
The influence of culture and media
This content goes hand in hand with SLT (observational
learning) but it is not a theory
We have covered all of the explanations for typical
gender development
This is an essay topic on a body of research, not an
explanation for how gender development
def
Culture
the ideas, customs and social behaviour of a
particular group in society
def
media
communication channels (TV, film, books) that
Gender roles
a set of behaviours and attitudes
considered appropriate for each gender
(appropriate for one gender but not appropriate for
another)
Influence of culture of gender roles
- Studying cultural similarities and differences in gender-role
behaviour across cultures can help separate the influence of
nature and nurture on gender roles - nature: Where we see gender-role behaviours being consistent across
cultures, we can conclude that they are innate - nurture: Where we see gender-role behaviours being specific to a
particular culture (culture-specific) we can conclude that they
are due to social learning
The content is focused on what research has shown when
investigating gender-roles across cultures
The influence of media on gender roles
Media provides the role models that children identify with and eventually imitate – models for children are likely to be
same-sex models
Through role models, media provides two things:
Rigid stereotypes – Furnham and Farragher (2000)
analysed TV adverts and found that men were more likely
to be shown in professional contexts with autonomous
roles whilst women were more often shown in domestic
settings with familial roles
This shows that media reinforces stereotypes about
gender-role behaviour
Self-efficacy
def
One’s belief in their capacity to reach a certain goal
self-efficacy explanation
Role models not only reinforce gender-roles, but they also show that they are possible the carry out – increasing the child’s belief that they can do the same in the future
Atypical development – gender dysphoria
Formally known as gender identity disorder
Those with gender dysphoria tend to dress like, use
mannerisms and display characteristics often associated
with the opposite gender
It is classified as a psychological disorder on the DSM-V,
characterised by expression of discomfort with one’s own
gender with desire to change it for at least 6 months
and it must cause significant distress or impairment to
social functioning
Biological explanations
explanations for gender dysphoria
Brain structure (brain sex theory)
Genetics
social expectations
Explanations for gender dysphoria
Social constructivism
Psychoanalytic theory
Atypical chromosome patterns
Any sex chromosome pattern that deviates from the usual XX/XY formation,
often associated with physical and psychological symptoms
(XXY)
Klinefelter’s Syndrome (XXY)
(XO)
Turner’s Syndrome (XO)
Klinefelter’s syndrome
A syndrome affecting males where the genotype has an extra X chromosome (XXY)
It affects 1/600 males and 10% of cases are identified before birth. Despite this, 2/3 men are not aware that they have the syndrome
Diagnosis is usually accidental via a medical exam or unrelated conditions
There are a number of physical and psychological characteristics associated with it
Gender schema theory
An organised set of beliefs and expectations related to gender that develop
from experience
This is another cognitive-developmental theory that suggests
that understanding of gender develops with age
Another similarity with Kohlberg’s theory is the idea that
children actively develop their understanding of gender
(it is not a passive process e.g. imitating role models)
Gender identify develops
at the age of 2-3
they will start to search their environments for information
that will encourage the development of their gender schema
This then guides their understanding of their own gender and
gender appropriate behaviour
gender schema reinforced by steryotypes
e.g. boy liking trucks
girls liking dolls
Kohlberg’s theory of gender development
is a cognitive-developmental theory
that suggests one’s gender identity develops and becomes
more sophisticated with age
kholberg
how does gender develop
This is not due to experience developing with age (learning)
but it is due to biological maturation
As the brain develops during childhood, thinking matures along
with it (so gender identity develops in parallel with intelligence)
As children mature, so does their understanding of gender
roles and the attitudes and behaviours that come with them
Kohlberg describes this in stages to explain how gender
development is a transitional, gradual process
Stage 1: Gender identity ~2yrs
When a child recognises that they are boy or girl and can label
others in the same way
By age 2, children can identify whether they are boy or girl
and by around age 3, they can identify other people as male or
female
E.g. if you show them a picture of a man and woman, they can
identify which is most similar to them (based on sex)
Although they can identify, they don’t properly understand
gender
E.g. they do not understand that sex is permanent
A boy may say ‘when I grow up I want to be a mummy’
Stage 2: Gender stability ~4yrs
When a child understands that their gender is fixed
Children recognise that they will keep the same gender over
time, but they cannot yet apply this understanding to other
people
External appearances are confusing – e.g. a man with long hair
may still be identified as a woman
They believe other people’s gender changes based on their
observable behaviours. E.g. a male nurse may be understood
to be a woman due to nurses often being associated with
women
Stage 3 – Gender constancy ~6yrs
When a child realises that gender remains the same over time and in
different situations
- This realisation starts between ages 6-7
- They are no longer confused by external appearances
- They begin to identify with others that share their gender
- They seek out same-gender role models that they can
identify with and eventually imitate (SLT) - They then actively search for evidence that
confirms/reinforces their gender identity - This is the age when gender stereotypes are learned
Gender schema
An organised set of beliefs and expectations related to gender that develop from experience
- This is another cognitive-developmental theory that suggests that understanding of gender develops with age
- Another similarity with Kohlberg’s theory is the idea that children actively develop their understanding of gender
- (it is not a passive process e.g. imitating role models)
- Once a child has established their gender identity (age 2-3) they will start to search their environments for information that will encourage the development of their gender schema
- This then guides their understanding of their own gender and gender appropriate behaviour
How gender schema informs behaviour
The gender schema can include a range of behaviours and personality traits
- Young children will initially rely on gender stereotypes to build their schemas
- E.g. boys like trucks and girls like dolls
- This enables them to identify with and carry out behaviours associated with their gender ‘I play with trucks because I’m a boy’
- By age 6, understanding of gender-appropriate behaviour is fixed – anything that deviates from their constructed gender schema is disregarded
In-group vs out-group schemas
Children are better at remembering and understanding the gender schema that matches their own
gender
- Boys know more about gender-appropriate behaviours for boys (the in-group) than for girls (the out-group) and vice-versa
- This is because children pay more attention to information that is relevant to their own gender identity, so their ‘own-gender’ schema is more sophisticated
- This also helps develop their self-esteem
- Only by age 8 do children develop elaborate schemas for both genders
AO1: Freud’s Psychoanalytic theory
- Gender identity doesn’t exist until stage 3 phallic stage
- Phallic stage – age 3-6 – pleasure focuses on genitals
Boys: Oedipus complex – castration anxiety causes
identification with the father
Girls: Electra complex – penis envy – blame on mother for
suspected castration – accepts unfortunate fate and identifies with the mother
Identification – same meaning from SLT
Internalisation – same definition from conformity
Evidence: Little Hans – fear of horses is fear of castration in disguise
Androcentrism
Freud’s theory has been critiqued for placing too much
focus on male development with very little offered on
female development
- He wrote extensively about the Oedipus complex but
admitted women were a mystery to him - It took Carl Jung to develop the theory of the Electra
complex
-Penis envy reflects a male-focused perspective where
males are seen to be the more powerful/superior sex
- It is socially sensitive to explain female gender
development as a consequence of failing to be a man
def
Gender schema
An organised set of beliefs and expectations related to gender that develop
from experience
gender schema
This is another cognitive-developmental theory that suggests
that understanding of gender develops with age
Another similarity with Kohlberg’s theory is the idea that
children actively develop their understanding of gender
(it is not a passive process e.g. imitating role models)
Once a child has established their gender identity (age 2-3)
they will start to search their environments for information
that will encourage the development of their gender schema
This then guides their understanding of their own gender and
gender appropriate behaviour
How gender schema informs
behaviour
The gender schema can include a range of behaviours and
personality traits
Young children will initially rely on gender stereotypes to build
their schemas
E.g. boys like trucks and girls like dolls
This enables them to identify with and carry out behaviours
associated with their gender ‘I play with trucks because I’m a
boy’
By age 6, understanding of gender-appropriate behaviour is
fixed – anything that deviates from their constructed gender
schema is disregarded
gender schema
by age 6
understanding of gender-appropriate behaviour is
fixed – anything that deviates from their constructed gender
schema is disregarded
In-group vs out-group schemas
Children are better at remembering and understanding
the gender schema that matches their own gender
Boys know more about gender-appropriate behaviours for
boys (the in-group) than for girls (the out-group) and
vice-versa
This is because children pay more attention to
information that is relevant to their own gender identity,
so their ‘own-gender’ schema is more sophisticated
This also helps develop their self-esteem
Only by age 8 do children develop elaborate schemas for
both genders
AO1: SLT
- Nurture based explanation for gender development – children learn
gender-related behaviour via observation of parents, peers, teachers, culture and media - Direct reinforcement – children are directly reinforced (e.g. praised)
for gender-appropriate behaviour - This is usually differentiated based on gender, reinforcing gender identity
- Vicarious reinforcement – children imitate behaviours that they see
to be reinforced and do not imitate behaviours they see to be punished (e.g. boy painting nails gets told off) - Identification – children imitate those they identify with (which doesn’t have to be based on gender) – role models
= Modelling is demonstrated by the role model (e.g. a mother) and modelling is demonstrated by the child (when they imitate the
behaviour)
- Mediational processes applied to gender (attention, retention, motor reproduction, motivation)
Atypical development – gender dysphoria
def
Strong, constant feelings of identification with the opposite
gender and discomfort with their assigned sex
Atypical development – gender dysphoria
Formally known as gender identity disorder
It is classified as a psychological disorder on the DSM-V,
characterised by expression of discomfort with one’s own
gender with desire to change it for at least 6 months
and it must cause significant distress or impairment to
social functioning
Explanations for gender dysphoria
Biological
Brain structure (brain sex theory)
Genetics
Explanations for gender dysphoria
social
Social constructivism
Psychoanalytic theory
gender dysphoria
Biological explanations
Biological explanations for gender dysphoria do not
include already-established explanations for atypical sex
development (e.g. Klinefelter’s and Turner’s syndrome)
These explanations focus on gender development only,
regardless of one’s biologically determined sex
gender dysphoria
Brain sex theory (structure)
This theory suggests that differences in brain
structure cause gender dysphoria
In particular, the Bed nucleus of the Stria
Terminalis (BST/BNST) – also referred to as the
extended amygdala
It is involved in emotional responses and sexual
behaviour in male rats
The BST is sexually dimorphic – (it differs in
males and females)
The size of the BST is twice as large in males than
in females
Evidence for the role of the BST
Size differences in the BST have also been found in
transgender males and females
Kruijver et al. (2000) found that transgender females
(male to female) have a BST more similar to size of
biological females
Zhou et al. (1995) also found that transgender males had
a BST more similar to the size of biological males
These findings suggest that the size of the BST
determines gender identity, regardless of biological sex
Genetic factors
Twin studies suggest that genetics may play a role in the
development of gender dysphoria
Heylens et al. (2012) compared 23 pairs of MZ twins and 21
pairs of DZ twins, where at least one twin was diagnosed with
gender dysphoria
The concordance rate for MZ twins sharing GD was 39%
whereas the concordance rate for DZ twins was 0%
Although the percentage is fairly low, the difference indicates
that genetics do play a role in the development of GD
Social explanations
gender dysphoria
Please note that social explanations are not necessarily
learning explanations
Social explanations focus on how the role social
relationships and other members of society can
determine the development of gender (dysphoria)
gender dysphoria
Social constructivism
This theory suggests that gender identity is not biological, but
it is a concept invented (constructed) by societies
Because most societies consider gender to be male or female,
people are forced to choose one
Therefore, the ‘confusion’ experienced by those with gender
dysphoria is not a result of a pathological condition, but it’s a
result of societal pressures forcing them to ‘pick a side’
Gender dysphoria therefore shouldn’t be a diagnosable
disorder, it is just a deviation from social norms (less socially
sensitive than biological explanations)
social constructicism def
This theory suggests that gender identity is not biological, but it is a concept invented (constructed) by societies
Because most societies consider gender to be male or female,
people are forced to choose one
Therefore, the ‘confusion’ experienced by those with gender
dysphoria is not a result of a pathological condition, but it’s a
result of societal pressures forcing them to ‘pick a side’
Gender dysphoria therefore shouldn’t be a diagnosable
disorder, it is just a deviation from social norms (less socially
sensitive than biological explanations)
Evidence for social constructivism
The Sambia tribe of New Guinea (a small island of Australia) is
home to many individuals with a rare genetic condition
Some biological males inherit a condition (5-alpha-reductase
deficiency) that causes the development of a labia and clitoris at
birth
At puberty, the genitals start to change due to an influx of
testosterone – testes descend and the clitoris enlarges into a
penis
As this condition became well known among the Sambia, they
classified gender in 3 ways – men, women and kwolu-aatmwol
(female-then-male)
However, since having contact with the West, kwolu-aatmwol
is now considered a pathological disorder – a form of GD
This demonstrates that gender dysphoria is a social construct
Psychoanalytic theory def
Ovesey and Person (1973) suggest that social relationships
with family members cause GD before gender identity
develops
If young boys experience extreme separation anxiety from
their mothers, they will fantasise about ‘becoming/fusing
with’ their mother to reduce anxiety
They essentially ‘become’ the mother and adopt a female
gender identity…
(this explanation only applies to biological males with GD)
Research by Stoller (1973) found that males with GD display
an ‘overly close’ relationship with their mothers, which leads
to identification with the mother’s gender identity
social constructisism
real life application
Social constructivism is applicable to real life cultures and
how gender identity is understood/defined within them
Many cultures recognise there to be more than two
genders (e.g. the Sambia)
And more and more cultures are moving away from the
categorising gender as just ‘male’ or ‘female’ (e.g.
non-binary) – suggesting that social norms regarding
gender are changing within societies
The fact that cultures are constantly ‘catching up’ with
new ways in which gender is understood suggests that it
is a social construct and not biologically fixed or fact
psychoanalystical
gender bias
The psychanalytic theory only applies to biological males
that experience GD – there is no adequate explanation
for females that experience GD
This goes hand in hand with the role of the mother
always being of central importance to a child’s
development
A girl experiencing separation anxiety from the father is
unlikely to cause ‘fusion with the father’ as the father is
usually the secondary caregiver – more gender bias!
Cultural differences Mead
Mead (1935) studied gender roles in
different cultural groups from the island of
Samoa
- The Arapesh were gentle and responsive
- The Mundugumor were aggressive and
hostile - The Tchambuli women were dominant
leaders and the men were passive and
‘decorative’
What does this suggest about gender roles?
The biological relationship between sex and gender may not be as strong or direct as we think – gender roles are likely to be culturally
determined
Furthermore, although Mead found in later research that many gender-typical behaviours seem to be universal, they are still likely
to be learned via cultural norms rather than being innate
Buss
Cultural similarities
Buss (1995) investigated mate preferences across
cultures and found consistent patterns across 37
countries from all continents
In all 37, women preferred men with more wealth and
resources whilst men preferred women with more youth
and physical attractiveness
This suggests that some gender-role behaviours may be
innate, despite the influence of culture
Munroe and Munroe
cultural similarities
also found that in most
societies, labour is divided using gender
(men are the breadwinners, women are the nurturers)
This suggests that some gender-role behaviours may be
innate, despite the influence of culture
How does media influence gender roles?
Media provides the role models that children identify with and eventually imitate – models for children are likely to be same-sex models
Through role models, media provides two things:
- Rigid stereotypes – Furnham and Farragher (2000)
analysed TV adverts and found that men were more likely
to be shown in professional contexts with autonomous
roles whilst women were more often shown in domestic
settings with familial roles
This shows that media reinforces stereotypes about
gender-role behaviour
- self-efficacy
mira et al
self efficacy
Mitra et al. (2019) analysed the attitudes of ppts in India
after watching a 78 episode detective drama aimed at
challenging deep-rooted gender stereotypes
Girls who’d watched the show saw themselves as more
capable of working outside of the home than girls who
hadn’t watched the show
This shows that media can increase self-efficacy in
adopting gender-role behaviours
cultivation theory
Cultivation theory suggests that the more time one spends
‘living’ in the media world, the more likely they are to
believe it reflects reality
why does ross agree with his father with reference to Oedipus complex
- he identifies with his father
- he internaises is fathers views/ values
- castrisation anxiety
