Gender & Sexuality

sex

biologically determined:

• genes

• hormones

• genitals

gender

• psychologically and societally determined

• related to biology, but not determined by it

• spectral, multifaceted

gender roles

are cultural expectations as to how women and men should look and act

gender identity

is whether a person subjectively feels like a woman or man

cisgender

gender identity that matches biological sex at birth

gender non-binary

don’t identify as either male or female

gender dysphoria

• distress brought about by having a gender identity that doesn’t match one’s biological sex

• often helped by hormone replacement therapy and/or gender confirmation surgery

transgender

gender identity that differs from biological sex at birth

gender differences in aggression

• men are typically higher in aggression than women

• men are 7x more to commit violent crimes

• men are more to shock others in experiments

gender differences in empathy

• women are typically higher than men

• more likely to show “considerate” social behaviours

• more likely to develop emotionally-supportive relationships

• tend to share more intimate details about their lives

gender differences in sex drive

men typically have higher sex drive and are more willing to have casual sex

explanations for gender differences

1. evolutionary explanation

2. sociocultural explanation

3. sex double standard as a cultural explanation

social learning theory

indicates that children learn gender roles by copying others and seeing what behaviour is rewarded or punished

evolutionary explanation

• men benefit from aggression—it helps them hunt, fight, and defend offspring

• women benefit from empathy—it helps them be better childcare providers

• women benefit from lower sex drives

  • helps women be choosier in mate selection

  • essential due to higher parental investment

sociocultural explanation

• social learning teaches children to conform to gender roles at an early age

• boys expected to be more aggressive and less nurturing

• girls expected to be less aggressive and more nurturing

sex double standard explanation

men who have multiple sex partners and engage in casual sex are praised (women are shamed)

similarities in sex drives observed in cultures with gender equality

Women are more likely to engage in masturbation, use pornography, and having casual sex

differences in sex drive observed in cultures without gender equality

• Women are less likely than men to engage in masturbation, use pornography, and having casual sex

• fear of negative social consequences