Week Ten - Identity & Gender

Question 1

What is identity?

Answer 1

A comprehensive and coherent sense of self

Question 2

When does identity start?

Answer 2

infancy

Question 3

When does identity become a focus?

Answer 3

Adolescence

Question 4

What did Erikson propose about trust in infancy?

Answer 4

By the second year of life, securely attached infants develop a sense of trust and confidence

Question 5

When is healthy autonomy established?

Answer 5

When toddlers encounter a reasonable balance between freedom and control

Question 6

Development of self appears in what 3 stages during toddlerhood?

Answer 6

1. self recognition and awareness (makeup on face)
2. self-description and evaluation
3. knowledge of standards and emotional response to wrongdoing (i am being good etc)

Question 7

In middle childhood, children develop?

Answer 7

Deeper understanding of who they are
Foundations for later development and self-knowledge

begin to understand their own popularity, abilities, confidence

Question 8

Erikson proposed the task of middle childhood is?

Answer 8

industry

Question 9

What is achievement motivation and what are the 2 forms?

Answer 9

Showing initiative and persistence in attaining goals and increasing competence via:

• learning orientation: motivation that comes from the learner and relates to task
• performance orientation: motivation that comes from significant others

Question 10

Adolescence is characterised by risk-taking, what are the two kinds?

Answer 10

Positive: enhance functioning, development and identity (don’t always lead to compromising situations)

Negative: Results in detrimental consequences

Question 11

Identity associated with exploration and commitment =

Answer 11

less likely to take negative risks, put peer influence is also important

Question 12

Erikson’s psychosocial crisis of adolescence is what stage ?

Answer 12

identity vs role confusion

involves the development of a coherent sense of self through exploration and belief system

Question 13

Maria’s 2 main parts of identity development view?

Answer 13

Crisis: a time of upheaval when ones values and choices are being explored/reevaluated

Commitment: When the crisis in being resolved and one decides to invest in a course of action, role or value

Question 14

What are the 4 stages of identity development?

Answer 14

1. identity diffusion
2. identity foreclosure
3. identity moratorium
4. identity achievement

Question 15

Explain the identity diffusion stage

Answer 15

Neither crisis nor commitment

typical of early adolescence : have not yet experienced crisis not made any commitment (persists in those with anxiety re identity)

Question 16

Explain the identity foreclosure stage

Answer 16

Commitment only

Committed to identity, but without exploration.
Values accepted from parents, unlikely to change status

Question 17

Explain the identity moratorium stage

Answer 17

Crisis/exploration only

Ongoing exploration of different roles.
Avoid dealing with problems until required
May feel confused, unstable, anxious

Question 18

Explain the identity achievement stage

Answer 18

Crisis and commitment

Evaluate choices, come to own decision.
Allows self-acceptance, stable self, and guides future choices (eg work)

Question 19

Teachers influence on identity development?

Answer 19

Encourages students to be autonomous, aware and encourages critical thinking

Question 20

Erikson’s tasks of early adulthood

Answer 20

establish close, committed relationships

tolerate threat of infusion and loss of individual identity

Question 21

Erikson’s tasks of middle adulthood

Answer 21

Expand ego interests and establish and nurture the next gen

results in reassessment of priorities

Question 22

Erikson’s tasks of late adulthood

Answer 22

find integrity in the face of loss

activity theory: older people who maintain activity age better

disengagement theory: reduced social involvement is natural between adults and society

Question 23

What is gender?

Answer 23

A socio-psychological construct that governs behaviour (fundamental aspect of one’s social identity)

may limit opportunity, treated differently from birth

Question 24

What is gender role development?

Answer 24

Learning to behave in ways that are consistent with group norms for males/females

Question 25

What are gender roles?

Answer 25

Defined by the range of behaviours expected of a particular gender

Question 26

What are gender stereotypes?

Answer 26

Generalised mental representations that differentiate one gender group from another

Question 27

By age 2, what are the differences between boys and girls?

Answer 27

Girls: greater compliance and less independence than boys

Boys: actively explore environment greater than girls

Question 28

What do meta-analyses tell us about males and females personality?

Answer 28

No strong and consistent personality differences

No consistent nurture gender differences

Question 29

Explain the differences within vs between groups

Answer 29

Some differences are wider within than between gender groups

Question 30

Gender differences that change with age/circumstance suggest?

Answer 30

They are the result of adopting gender roles rather than their cause

Question 31

Sociobiological view of gender suggests

Answer 31

Modern gender roles have their roots in prehistoric male-female role differences

• these are still played out today

Question 32

Hormonal influences on behaviour

Answer 32

Male/female hormones influence sex-typed behaviour

mothers given androgens = female child exhibit boy like behaviour and vice versa

Question 33

Social learning model of gender

Answer 33

Consider the social environment in the acquisition of gender roles and behaviour
(depend on culture)

Gender roles/behaviour seen to be learned through reinforcement of gender-appropriate behaviours via modelling and self-regulation

parents reinforce children for gender appropriate behaviour

Question 34

Who strongly reinforces gender stereotypes?

Answer 34

Peers

Question 35

Social learning models weaknesses

Answer 35

• gender role rigidity varies across developmental stages
• children have different developmental stages
• no understanding of maturation and its role in gender roles

cog model takes these into accounts

Question 36

Cognitive model of gender

Answer 36

Children are active processors of gender-based info

Children construct their gender roles by monitoring and selecting the environment

Self-socialise into gender realise and seek info to practice

• don’t take into account social environment

Question 37

Kohlberg’s three-stage cognitive-development model of gender identity acquisition

Answer 37

1. Gender labelling (2.5-3.5 yo) - children learn to assign the labels boy, girl, man on basis of appearance
2. Gender stability (3.5-4.5) - children become aware of the permanency of gender, but may be fooled by appearances
3. Gender constancy (4.5-7) - children see gender as consistent across time and context (no longer fooled by appearances)

Question 38

Gender schematic processing theory?

Answer 38

As soon as children have acquired gender identity - they build schemas

they filter information and opportunities according to internalised framework

Question 39

Boys vs girl cross-gender activities

Answer 39

Boys are more resistant to cross-gender whereas girls show increasing preference

Question 40

Explain the concept of Androgyny

Answer 40

Flexible gender roles which allow males/females to integrate traditional gender-type behaviour (these people are better adjusted)

Question 41

Gender role transcendence:

Answer 41

individuals viewed as individuals, not female, male, feminine, masculine etc