Sex and Gender

Question 1

What is sex?
what is it determined by?
What does it influence?
Is it fluid or stable?

Answer 1

• The innate biological status and characteristics of an individual as either male or female.
• They are determined by the last chromosome pair(23rd).
• It influences behaviours, hormone levels, and the development of reproductive organs.
• It is stable and cannot change.

Question 2

What is gender?
What displays someone gender?
what is it influenced by?
Is it fluid or stable?

Answer 2

• It is the psychological and behavioural characteristics as either masculine or feminine.
• Attitudes and behaviours
• It is influenced by cultural expectations and society social norms.
• It is fluid and can change depending on the situation or context.

Question 3

What is a sex role stereotype?

Answer 3

It is an expectation of appropriate behaviours that should be displayed by males or females.

Question 4

Identify two studies on sex role stereotypes.

Answer 4

• Rubin

- Seavey

Question 5

Outline Rubin’s Aim, method, findings and conclusion

Answer 5

• Aim: To investigate if parents would display sex role stereotypes towards their children straight after birth.
• Method: Rubin asked parents who were expecting a child to describe their child within 24 hours after they were born.
• Findings: Rubin found that parents who had boys would describe them as strong and alert, while parents who had girls would describe them as soft and delicate.
• Conclusion: Parents will display sex role stereotypes towards their children straight after birth without any significant stereotypical behaviour shown associated with being male or female.

Question 6

Outline Seaveys Aim, Method, Findings and conclusion.

Answer 6

• Aim: To investigate if people will change their behaviours towards an infant based on their gender.
• Method: Seavey dressed a 3 month old infant up in yellow clothes so sex could not be predicted. A third of participants were given the gender label of an infant being a boy, another third were given the gender label of the infant being a girl and the last third of participants were not given a gender label. Participants were observed in a room for three minutes alone with the infant, in the room there was a rag doll, a plastic ring and a ball.
• Findings: Seavey found that Participants who were given the gender label of the infant being a male would more likely give the infant the plastic ring, those who were given the gender label of the infant being a female would more likely give them the rag doll and those who were not given a gender label would spontaneously predict the sex of the infant. Females in the condition who were not given a gender label also interacted more with the child than the males in that condition.
• Conclusion: People will adapt and change their behaviours towards an infant based on the infants sex.

Question 7

What is Gender identity disorder?

Answer 7

When someones biological sex does not match the gender identity they identify with.