Sex differences Flashcards
Lecture 4
What is genetic sex determined by?
Determined by chromosomes
What is anatomical sex?
Internal and external genitalia
What is gender?
The social meaning attached to being male, female, non-binary etc
What is gender identity?
Internal sense of being male, female or non-binary
What is a gender role?
Expectations about how a person should behave , based on their perceived gender
What are some gender stereotypes?
Man is the hunter and the provider because he is physically more capable
Women are caregivers / home-makers who are more emotional
Explain observed sex differences that men take more risks than women
In USA men are 10 times more likely to die at work than women
In the UK, 97% of workplace deaths are male
What did Hyde (2005) do?
Used met analysis of 124 studies that considered cognitive, communicative, personality, emotional and motor differences in men and women. Effect sizes from all studies were averaged to determine if sex differences are real and statistically robust.
Quote statistics that show that men are more aggressive than women.
96% of prisoners in the UK are male . The highest population of female prisoners are in Hong Kong which is only 20% of prisoners. However no differences in measured aggression in video game bomb use between men and women when gender norms are removed.
What were some ‘big’ differences Hyde found?
Motor performance
Sexual behaviour
Aggression (especially physical)
There are some evident differences but they may be smaller than expected or predicted.
Are there sex differences in animals? (rhesus monkeys)
Yes, sex differences in rhesus monkeys (who have been raised gender neutrally) parallel those in children. The female monkeys spent more time playing with dolls than they did with trucks and the male monkeys spent more time playing with trucks. This leads us to believe that hormones play a role.
What happened to female mice who were injected with testosterone?
The female mice displayed more male typical behaviour such as rough and tumble play.
What behaviour is someone with congenital adrenal hyperplasia likely to present?
More male typical behaviour, no sex preferences in friendships, more like to be homosexual or bisexual
Explain research which provides evidence for a biological cause for sex differences
12 of 14 male children with testes and normal male chromosomes and no penis were reassigned and surgically reconstructed to look female. All the children grew u exhibiting male behaviour patterns in playa activities and attitudes - 8 resumed male identity before puberty and parents of 3 out of the 4 expected their children to switch back to male once they were told of their genetic sex. These studies suggest that male gender identity is directly related to normal patterns of male hormones exposure in utero.
Explain Batesman’s principle
Female reproductive success depends upon investment in young whereas male reproductive success depends upon number of mates.
a) additional matings may have a reproductive payoff for males. b) makes have to compete for females who will invest in young. c) females want genetically fit males to give young their best chance.
