Sex Diffrences Flashcards
Lecture notes and key reading
What does the Differences Model argue about males and females?
The Differences Model argues that males and females are vastly different psychologically
What does the Gender Similarities Hypothesis state about males and females?
The Gender Similarities Hypothesis holds that males and females are similar on most, but not all, psychological variables.
According to Maccoby and Jacklin, in which four areas were gender differences well established?
Verbal ability, visual-spatial ability, mathematical ability, and aggression.
What did Maccoby and Jacklin conclude about gender differences overall?
They found much evidence for gender similarities in general.
What are the four steps involved in conducting a gender meta-analysis?
a) Locate all studies on the topic using databases like PsycINFO.
(b) Extract statistics and compute effect sizes.
(c) Compute a weighted average of effect sizes.
(d) Conduct homogeneity analyses to determine the consistency of effect sizes.
What was the result of Hyde and Plant’s (1995) study on gender differences?
They found that 60% of effect sizes for gender differences were small or close to zero.
What does deindividuation refer to?
Deindividuation refers to a state where a person loses their individual identity and becomes anonymous
How did Lightdale and Prentice study aggression and gender roles?
They used deindividuation to remove the influence of gender roles in a study where participants played a video game, and the number of bombs dropped measured aggression.
What was the result of Lightdale and Prentice’s aggression study?
The gender difference in aggression disappeared when gender norms were removed.
What was the impact of manipulating context on gender differences in math performance?
In a condition where participants expected gender differences, women underperformed compared to men.
What does Gilligan (1982) argue about women’s and men’s moral voices?
Gilligan argues that women speak in a moral voice of caring, while men speak in a voice of justice.
What is the issue with the popular media’s focus on girls’ self-esteem problems?
It overlooks boys’ self-esteem issues, which can lead to them not receiving necessary interventions.
what did hyde and Plants (1995) study show
Hyde and Plant’s (1995) study showed the vast majority of gender differences are small or nonexistent
What is sex (genetic and automical)
genetic = determined by chromosomes
antomical = internal and external genitilia
what is gender (idenity, role and gender)
gender = social meaning attached to being make, female, non-binary …
gender idenity = internal sense of being male ….
gender tole = expectations about how a person should behave, based on their perceived gender
stats on gender diffrences
- Men take more risks than women, on average …
- In USA men are 10 times more likely to die at work than women (Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2019)
In UK, 97% of workplace deaths are male (Health and Safety Executive, 2020)
- In USA men are 10 times more likely to die at work than women (Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2019)
Hyde study
Hyde considered studies of 124 cognitive, communicative, personality, emotional and motor differences in men and women
Considers effect sizes (d) averaged from all studies undertaken, to determine if differences are real and statistically robust
- values: females scored higher on dimension;
+ values: males scored higher
Metal rotation (rotate shapes and objects in mind) and very few other differences and not significant or large effect size. Tender mindfulness was only large effect size. Of all traits only 78% had large effect size.
note == 0.66 and above was a large effect size in Hydes paper when Collins D is .2 (small) .5 (med,) .8 (large)
study on resigning genders at birth
14 males normal chromosones no penis
12 reassigned and surgically constructed to look female and raised as such (6 resumed male idenity)
12 reassigned as female at birth (8 resumed idenity, once told gentic sex 3/4 parents expected swich)
–> gender dispite enviroment
study on mice
female embroys in mice exponsed to high levels of testostrone = ‘male typical behaviour’ (tumble play) more likely to be homo
no variaton in exposer = no diffrences in intrestes, slower language development and eye contact
batemans principle (1948)
female reproductive sucess depdends on big investment (egg cells expensive, pregnacy/ lactation is expensive est..)
male reproductive success depdends on number of mates (comepetition, more mating more reporductive payoff)
on average = more sexual partner in males
Gender Paradox
Study by Stoet which found that in more gender-equal countries, more men than women pursue STEM subjects, and in less gender equal countries more women than men pursue STEM, even though you would expect to find the opposite pattern. This is the gender equality paradox. A mediation analysis suggested that life-quality pressures in less gender-equal countries promote girls’ and women’s engagement with STEM subjects. (Essentially there is a theory that women in equal countries are more free to do what they want, so choose non-STEM, but in less equal countries, it’s an aim for equality so many fight inequality by choosing STEM).
Are any sex differences in behaviour ‘real’, or are they all an artefact of culture and gendered expectations?
Coredeia Fine
- need to ask questions more about how liekly women would risk misognysitc backlash for x job or thing to understand diffrences
2 reasons why men and women are not disitnic using brain and IQ
- while brain regions can be male or female typicall the whole brain is rarely made up of all male or female typical
- men and women have the same avargae IQ but men suggetsed to have highest achivment but lowest in acaemic ability
Do sex diffrences exisit?
yes often bio based but they are not extensive, substantial or robast as previosuly thought, social constructions and envrioment play a signicant role
the way we use narative matters
