Gender

Question 1

What is sex

Answer 1

biologically determined by their genetic makeup , namely chromosomes

Question 2

what do chromosomes influence?

Answer 2

hormonal and anatomical differences that distinguish males and females

Question 3

what is gender?

Answer 3

described as male or female. it reflects all the attitudes, behaviors and roles we associate with being male or female

Question 4

What is GID?

Answer 4

A gender identity disorder when their biological sex does not reflect the way they feel inside.

Question 5

What are sex role stereotypes?

Answer 5

They are shared by a culture or group and consist of expectations regarding how males and females should behave.

Question 6

are there any biological reasoning for sex role sterotypes

Answer 6

no

Question 7

What is androgyny?

Answer 7

the appearance as being neither male or female. They have a mix of both male and female characteristics personality.

Question 8

What is the research into androgyny

Answer 8

Bem suggested that high androgyny is associated with psychological wellbeing. Individuals who have this are better equipped to deal with a range of situations.

Question 9

How do you measure androgyny?

Answer 9

BRSI. 20 Masculine objects which include competitive and athletic items. 20 Female objects. 20 neutral objects.
Participants use a 7 point rating scale (1 never me) (7 very me)
masculine categorization
feminine categorization
androgynous classification - high score on both male and female
unclassified - low score on both.

Question 10

AO3 for androgyny and BRSI

Answer 10

LIMITATION - individual differences
LIMITATION - cultural validity
LIMITATION - temporal validity
LIMITATION - questionnaires are subjective and bias

Question 11

what is the role of chromosomes?

Answer 11

they are made from DNA. 23 pairs. The 23rd pair determines gender. Female is XX male XY. The Y chromosome has a gene called the SRY. This causes the testes to develop and androgens to be produced in male embryo.

Question 12

What is the role of hormones?

Answer 12

Hormones act upon the brain and cause development of the reproductive organs.
Males and females produce the same hormones just at different levels.
Testosterone controls the development for males
oestrogen for females
Women produce oxytocin in larger amounts as it stimulates lactation post birth, reduces the stress hormone cortisol. Facilitates bonding.

Question 13

AO3 for chromosomes and hormones

Answer 13

STRENGTH - research support, dabbs found that in prison those who had committed violent or sexually motivated crimes had higher levels of testosterone.
Limitation - over emphasis of nature
Limitation - oversimplified
Limitation - research Ticker gave men a weekly injection of testosterone or a placebo, no significant increase in aggression found.

Question 14

What is Klienefelters syndrome

Answer 14

1/750 males have it. They have a male anatomy but have an extra X chromosome. Physical characteristics - reduced body hair. Breast development.
Psychological characteristics- poorly developed language skills. passive and shy.

Question 15

What is Turners syndrome?

Answer 15

1/5000 females. Caues by an absence of an X chromosome. they have 45 chromosomes instead of 26. Physical characteristics - no menstrual cycle, broad chest.
psychological characteristics - higher than average reading skills, socially immature.

Question 16

AO3 for turners and klienfelters syndrome

Answer 16

LIMITATION - cause and effect
Strength - nature nurture debate
STREBNGTH- research support, diagnosing early can improve psychological imact
LIMITATION - not traeted the same as peers. exaggeration beta bias

Question 17

KOHLBERGS THEORY - a cognitive developmental approach

Answer 17

Cognitive because a child’s thinking about their gender is emphasised. Developmental because it is concerned with changes in thinking overtime.

Question 18

KOHLBERGS THEORY - what are the 3 stages

Answer 18

STAGE 1 - children are able to identify themselves as a boy or girl. By 3 years they are able to identify others as boys or girls. Their understanding of gender is limited to labelling and they have no sense of the permanence of gender.
STAGE 2 - 4 years old. Children realise they stay the same gender. They still find it challenging to apply this to other people and situations
STAGE 3 - 6 years old. Children understand gender completely.

Question 19

KOHLBERGS THEORY - what does kohlenberg say

Answer 19

That once a child has a fully developed and internalised concept of gender at the constancy stage they look for evidence which confirms it.

Question 20

KOHLBERGS THEORY - AO3

Answer 20

STRENGTH- biological approach
LIMITATION - nurture side of the debate
LIMITATION - validity. Children’s understanding may be more developed than they can articulate.
LIMITATION - SLT challenges

Question 21

Cognitive explanations GST - AO1

Answer 21

GST suggests that a child actively structures their own learning of gender.
Gender scheme contains what we know in relation to gender and appropriate behaviour.
Martin and Halverson - child establishes gender identity at 2-3 years, the child then starts to look around for further information to develop the schema.
This idea states that a child looks for information much younger than kohlenburg suggested
By age 6 Martin suggests that the child has a fixed stereotypical idea of gender.
Children pay more attention to and have a better idea appropriate behaviour to the same gender as them (in group) than those of their (outgroup)
At age 8 they develop a full understanding of gender.

Question 22

Cognitive explanations GST - AO3

Answer 22

STRENGTH - explains why children have fixed ideas, schemes and in groups
LIMITATION - individual differences
LIMITATION - beta bias
LIMITATION - no link between schemes and behaviour

Question 23

Psychodynamic approach - AO1

Answer 23

The psychosexual stages - oral, anal, phallic, latent and gentail.
Phallic stage - 3-6 years Oedipus complex and Electra complex
Boys get jealous of their dads
Girls get jealous of their mums.
Resolution of conflict is through identification with the same sex parent.
Little Hans - 5 year old with a fear of being bitten by a horse. His fear started when he saw a horse collapse and die in a street. Freuds interpretation was that Hans fear of horses was actually that his dad will castrate him because of his love for his mother. Through displacement.

Question 24

Psychodynamic approach - AO3

Answer 24

LIMITATION- Lack of support for the Oedipus complex
LIMITATION - individual differences
LIMITATION - freuds methods of investigating arnt scientific
LIMITATION- disagrees with other theories in gender

Question 25

Social learning theory - AO1

Answer 25

The role of social context in gender development.
Gender behaviour is learnt by observing others and being reinforced for the imitation of the behaviour.
Differential reinforcement - why girls and boys learn distinctly different gender behaviours - they are reinforced for different behaviours, which they then reproduce.
Vicarious reinforcement - if the consequences of another’s behaviour are favourable, that behaviour is more likely to be imitated by a child.
Vicarious punishment - if the consequences of behaviour are seen to unfavourable, behaviour is less likely to be repeated.
Children identify with role models: attractive, same sex
behaviour is modelled
Mediation also process - attention, retention, motivation, motor reproduction.

Question 26

Social learning theory - AO3

Answer 26

STRENGTH - can explain changing gender roles.
LIMITATION - Does not explain the developmental process
LIMITATION - psychodynamic approach
STRENGTH - psychodynamic approach

Question 27

culture and gender roles- AO1

Answer 27

Nature - If a gender behaviors consistent across cultures we consider it innate or biological.
Nurture - If a gender behavior is culturally specific we consider this is due to the influence of shared norms and socialisation.
Buss 1994 - found consistent mate preferences in 37 countries, in all countries:
Women sought men offering wealth and resources
Men looked for youth and physical attractiveness.

Question 28

The media and gender roles

Answer 28

Children are most likely to imitate role models who are the same sex as they are are and engaging in gender appropriate behavior.
Bussey and Bandura:
Media provides clear stereotypes
men are independent ambitious and advice givers.
women are dependent unambitious and advice seekers
It was found that children who were more exposed to popular forms of media tend to display more gender stereotypical views in their behavior.

Question 29

Culture and the media in gender roles A03

Answer 29

STRENGTH - culture Meads research - tribal groups supported the cultural determination of gender roles.
Arapesh - gentle and responsive
Mundugumor - aggressive and hostile.
Tuchambuli - women were dominant.
LIMITATION - MEDIA films like baby daddy challenge sterotypes.
LIMITATION - CULTURE nature nurture debate.
STRENGTH - media can explain changes in gender roles.

Question 30

Atypical gender development - A01

Answer 30

GID - a mismatch between a persons biological sex and their gender identity.
It is still possible GID has a biological basis.
Zhou et al - brain sex theory
studies the BSTc which is 40% larger in in males than females.
Post mortem studies of six male to female transgender indivgiduals had a BSTc of the typical female size.

Question 31

Atypical gender development A03

Answer 31

LIMITATION - psychoanalytical theory - suggested that GID is caused by a child expirencing extreme seperation anxiety before gender identity was established.
limitation - BIOLOGICAL THEORY, found that 39% of their sample for MZ twins were GID. but none for DZ
LIMITATION - Biological over simplidies
LIMITATION - individual differences.