Gender Differences Flashcards
Sex vs Gender
Sex - Biology (Reproductive system, genes)
Gender - Non-bio attributes, characteristic, behavs
Emphatic accuracy
- Positively associated with?
Gender and emphatic accuracy study
- Watched vid of woman being interviewed after receiving negative academic feedback
- Instructed to infer thoughts and feelings of woman
- Sympathy questionnaire before or after task
- What does money condition do?
Capability to accurately infer what another person is feeling or thinking
- Familiarity + motivation to be accurate
Women show more empathy when taking questionnaire before task
- Women more motivated to perform well since they’re expected to
- But men perform equally well if money reward for correct answer introduced (increases their motivation too)
Challenges to evolutionary perspective of gender and attraction (2)
Social role theory
- Attractiveness can be culturally determined
- Assumes women rely on men for resources
Diff bio leads to diff role adoption and socialization to encourage role-consistent traits
- Ex: Male role often assoc w/ status and power; Women’s direct route to access high status resources was thru male mates
- Social expectations drive the diffs, which tends to support male dominance
True or false?
Sex diffs in preferences for status is reduced in more female empowered cultures, but not for attractiveness
True
Study: Social role theory evidence
- Participants envisioned themselves as parents w/ children either as homemaker or provider
Preference for provider vs homemaker skill sets are malleable
- Therefore, they’re learned
Study: Short vs Long-term romantic partner ideals
- Completed surveys for preferences for 23 traits in short term sexual relationship partner vs long term
Women - Places greater importance on social status
Men - Places greater value on sexual desirability
Men (3) vs Women (6) friendships
Women:
- Emotional sharing, self-disclosure
- Spend more time talking on the phone
- Talk more about relationships, personal issues
- Provide each other w/ more emotional support
- Express more feelings of affection
- Report more closeness and intimacy
Men:
- Revolve around shared activities, companionship, fun
- Talk more about impersonal interests
- Less emotional disclosure and more on shared exp or common interests
Key diff between cross-sex and same-sex friendships?
Cross-sex has potential for sex
- But men tend to think sex would be good idea and women underestimate how much their male friends would like to have sex
Study: Do men and women differ in form of infidelity (sexual vs emotional) that triggers most distress?
- Asked participants to imagine they discovered their partner has fallen in love with someone else and is having great sex with them
- Would sexual or emotional infidelity upset participant more?
Men - Sexual
Women - Emotional
Why do men have higher rates of infidelity than women?
Men more sexually unrestricted (have more positive attitudes about casual sex)
- Also tend to be higher in sensation seeking
True or false?
Women tend to have more romantic attitudes than men
Men are more cautious about who they fall in love with, feel passion more slowly
False
Women appear to have greater erotic plasticity than men
- What is erotic plasticity?
- Evidence (3)
Degree to which one’s sex drive can be changed by cultural or social factors
1) Women report more changes in sexuality over time (fantasies, attraction, orientation)
2) Greater influence of sociocultural factors on women’s sexuality (more cross-cultural variation, influence on education/religion/peers/parents and less of genetics)
3) Women show physio sex arousal to both sexes (most men don’t)
Diffs in same-sex relationships in sex and household chores
Contextual diffs that may impact relationship? (3)
- More sex for gays, less for lesbians
- Housework divided more evenly
- Differ in degree they’re out of the closet
- Criticism and hostility from society can cause stress
- Less social and familial support
Monogamy
Consensually non-monogamous (CNM) or non-exclusive
- Polyamory
- Open relationships
- Swinging
- Monogamish
One romantic/sexual partner at a time
Mainly practiced by sexual minorities
- Multiple romantic partners
- Sexual exps w/ others outside primary relationship are allowed
- Monogamous except for swinging contexts; can have casual sex w/ both partners in attendance
- Largely monogamous w/ some exceptions (threesome, hall pass, area-code rule)
Evolutionary basis for non-monogamy
- Good genes hypothesis (dual mating strategy)
Men:
- Lower parental investment; can afford to have extra dyadic sex
- More children also leads to more genes passed on
Women:
- More investment so wants high quality sperm
- Dual mating strategy: Pursue long term partner who will contribute resources while seeking genes from other
