GENDER

what does gender mean

• person’s sense of maleness or femaleness

• psychological/social construction

what does sex mean

genetically male (XY) or female (XX)

distinguish between ‘sex’ and ‘gender’

sex is biological whereas gender is psychological

what does sex stereotypes mean

• set of rigid, oversimplified shared expectations within a social group about how men and women should behave

• learnt throughout childhood implicitly and explicitly (slt)

• e.g. pink is a girls colour whilst blue is a boys colour

what does gender identity mean

self-conception of gender i.e. fluctuating/fluidity 

what does androgyny mean

• Bem proposed a person can have a combination of masculine and feminine characteristics

• e.g. a man wearing makeup or a skirt

what did Bem suggest about sex-role stereotypes

• argued against traditional view that rigid sex roles were important for mental health

• instead, feeling free to adopt masculine and feminine behaviours that suit selves is more healthy as can adapt to situations

outline the Bem Sex Role Inventory

• measured masculinity, femininity and androgyny

• asked 100 US undergrads which personality traits were desirbale for men or women

• result in 20 traits for each measure

• self report on 7-point likert scale - scores for each item added

what do the scores produced by the BSRI mean

• high score on one - masculine or feminine

• high score on both - androgynous

• low score on both - undifferentiated (Spence et al.)

briefly outline a criticism of sex role stereotypes and androgyny: low validity of the BSRI

• internal: subjective interpretation of the scale and those with high self esteem more likely to rate higher as characteristics are desirable

• external: created in 1974 so outdated sex role stereotypes supported by Hoffman and Borders found all terms except two failed to reach a 75% agreement on whether masc or fem

briefly outline a strength of sex role stereotypes and androgyny: research support for androgyny

• Flaherty and Dusek found those who rated androgynous tended to rate higher for emotional wellbeing

• BUT Prakesh et al. studied 100 married females, found those who scored higher on masc scored lower on depression whilst those with higher fem scores had higher depression scores

briefly outline a strength of sex role stereotypes and androgyny: research support for sex role stereotypes

• Smith and Lloyd dressed and name 6 month olds in stereotyped ways, found mothers encouraged motor activity to those in blue whilst hugged those in pink

• Fagot found that parents who displayed the clearest patterns of differential reinforcement have children who are quickest to develop strongly gender stereotyped identities 

what does chromosomes mean

the X-shaped bodies that carry all the genetic information (DNA) for an organism

outline the role of chromosomes in sex and gender

• each person has 23 pairs of chromosomes - carry genes containing instructions about physical and behavioural characteristics

• one pair is called ‘sex chromosomes’ - determine an individual's sex

• in prenatal development, individuals start out the same as female, after 3 months, foetus develops male external genitalia if to develop as male 

state examples of ‘sex chromosomes’

• male chromosome pair is XY

• female chromosome pair is XX

identify the two syndromes of atypical sex chromosome patterns

• klinefelter's syndrome

• turner’s syndrome 

what is meant by klinefelter's syndrome 

• result of XXY configuration - born with a penis and develops as a fairly normal male

• 1 in 1000 males have this condition 

• tend to be taller than average, less muscular coordination than average and physically less masculine e.g. broader hips

• often infertile 

what is meant by turner’s syndrome

• result of XO configuration - second sex chromosome is partly or completely missing

• 1 in 2000 females at birth - born with a vagina and womb 

• shorter than average and having a lack of monthly periods due to underdeveloped ovaries 

• small lower jaw, webbed neck, narrow hips and misshapen organs 

what does hormones mean

chemical messengers that travel through the bloodstream influencing several different 

outline the role of hormones in sex and gender

• genes and chromosomes determine which hormones are produced as well e.g. SRY gene on Y chromosome responsible for male development as initiate more testosterone production

• testosterone is produced in much greater quantities in males

• oestrogen and oxytocin are mainly female hormones

explain the role of testosterone in sex and gender

• produced prenatally and affects the development of genitalia 

• surge of testosterone during puberty is responsible for secondary sexual characteristics e.g. facial hair

• some XY individuals have insensitivity to such hormones so no external male genitalia develop and usually raised as girls (androgen insensitivity syndrome)

• affects brain development prenatally and later childhood e.g. XX females exposed prenatally large doses of testosterone later showed tomboyish behaviour (berenbaum and bailey)

explain the role of oestrogen in sex and gender

• default gender is female so females don't need hormones to direct prenatal genital development 

• some evidence of other prenatal effects e.g. oestrogen may actually lead to smaller brain size (shi et al.)

• major role in puberty promoting secondary sexual characteristics e.g. breast development and directing the menstrual cycle 

outline the role of oxytocin in sex and gender

• ‘love’ hormone produced by pituitary gland as promotes feelings of bonding, contentment and calmness in both men and women 

• important in breastfeeding as causes milk to flow in a lactating mother whilst crucial in childbirth, nurturing and regulating emotions 

• dampens the ‘fight or flight’ response in females resulting in the ‘tend and befriend’ response being triggered

• testosterone dampens the effect of so males experience ‘fight or flight’

briefly outline the social learning theory in conjunction to gender development

• human behaviour is too complex to be explained only by either direct association or reinforcement

• bandura proposed that gender role development is the result of learning from social agents who model and reinforce gender role behaviours as are idolise and identified with

what is indirect reinforcement

child is not directly involved and does not experience reinforcement first hand 

outline the slt as applied to gender development: indirect reinforcement

• observes the behaviours of others e.g. at home and the consequences of such behaviour so gradually learn about what appropriate behaviour is from models they identify with and imitate those i.e. vicarious reinforcement

• e.g. if a boy watches his brother being punished for playing with dolls, then this boy will also learn that he too should not play with dolls

outline the slt as applied to gender development: direct reinforcement

• child is directly involved in the reinforcement of certain gender-related behaviours so are likely to repeat the same action in similar situations if positively reinforced

• e.g. if a girl is positively reinforced for putting on makeup whilst copying her mothers behaviours, then this is a direct experience 

identify two types of direct reinforcement

• direct tuition

• self-direction

outline the slt as applied to gender development: direct reinforcement - direct tuition

• children learn through explicit instructions about appropriate gender behaviour 

• begins when child acquires linguistic skills

• serves as a convenient way of informing children about appropriate or inappropriate styles of conduct

outline the slt as applied to gender development: direct reinforcement - self-direction

• reciprocal determinism - behaviour shaped by environmental forces but also have the capacity to direct themselves

• once children have internalised gender-appropriate behaviours, their own behaviour is no longer dependent on external rewards or punishments

• active role of children in their observational learning

outline the slt as applied to gender development: meditational processes

information about reinforcements is stored as an expectancy of future outcome i.e. mediational reinforcement

outline the slt as applied to gender development: meditational processes - attention

• focus attention on the model if identify with or idolise etc

• e.g. girl may notice and be drawn to observing her mother wearing jewellery and putting makeup on 

outline the slt as applied to gender development: meditational processes - retention

• observed behaviour needs to be retained in order to be stored as a memory that can be accessed later for imitation 

• e.g. a girl should be able to recall the time she observed her mother putting makeup on

outline the slt as applied to gender development: meditational processes - reproduction

• the individual must have the physical and psychological skills required to perform the imitation

• e.g. a girl must be able to physically be able to attempt to put makeup on otherwise imitation might not be successful

outline the slt as applied to gender development: meditational processes - motivation

• people must have the motivation and desire to do imitate the behaviour

• e.g. if a little girl doesn’t like the way the makeup looks then she is not likely to imitate the observed behaviour of her mother even though she physically could reproduce the behaviour

identify an example of atypical gender development

gender dysphoria

what does gender dysphoria mean

psychiatric condition in which individuals experience strong, persistent feelings of identification with the opposite gender (psychological gender identity) and discomfort with their own physiological gender identity

state three components that relate to gender dysphoria

• diagnosed where there is no physical intersex condition

• can affect both males and females - MtF outnumber FtM by about 5 to 1 

• may involve adopting a different name, dressing and using mannerisms like the opposite sex and eventually seeking to change their physical sex with surgery

identify the two biological explanations of atypical gender development

• transsexual gene

• brain-sex theory

outline the biological explanation of atypical gender development: transsexual gene

• inherited gene variations means that genetic info for gender development deviates from the expected path

• hare et al. looked at the DNA of 112 MtF transsexuals 

• found that they are more likely to have a longer version of the androgen receptor gene than in a cis-gender sample

• causes biological males to be unresponsive to testosterone so affects gender development in the womb

• e.g. absence of masculine features and under-masculinising the brain

outline the biological explanation of atypical gender development: brain-sex theory

• SDN, located in hypothalamus, discovered using post-mortem exams showed this area of the brain was different in size for men and women, particularly in the BSTc

• BSTc, on average, twice as larger in males than females and contains twice as many neurons

• size of the BSTc correlates with preferred sex rather than biological sex

what did zhou et al. and kruijver et al. find related to the brain-sex theory

found that the number of neurons in the BSTc of MtF transsexuals was similar to that of the females whilst the number of neurons in a FtM transsexual was found to be in the male range

identify the two social explanations of atypical gender development

• mother-son relationships

• father-daughter relationships

outline the social explanation of atypical gender development: attachment difficulties

• ovesey and person proposed gender dysphoria is a result of attachment difficulties, notably separation anxiety, during the critical period 

• children who experience extreme separation anxiety ‘symbiotically fuse’ their identity with the parent that they are separated from 

explain an example of atypical gender development: attachment difficulties

• a boy who experiences separation anxiety through the bereavement of his mother will use coping strategies to deal with the intense emotion 

• incl fantasising about his mother and adopting her roles and behaviours (symbiotic fusion) resulting in the boy identifying with his mother leading to a female gender identity 

outline the social explanation of atypical gender development: father-daughter relationships

• zucker suggested females identify as males because of severe paternal rejection

• unconsciously they think that if they became males they might gain acceptance from their father

• OR may be socialised into opposite gender roles unconsciously through positive reinforcement by their father as he may desire to have a boy but instead have a girl 

what is meant by conservation

refers to the ability to understand that, despite superficial changes in appearance, basic properties of an object remain unchanged - appears around 6 to 7

what is meant by gender constancy

recognition that your gender is a constant, not just across your lifetime but also in different situations 

briefly outline kohlberg’s cognitive explanation of gender development

• emphasises the role of cognitions and draws on piagetian ideas

• changes in gender thinking are solely the outcome of age related changes in a child's cognitive capabilities 

• naturally and gradually progress through stages as their way of thinking matures 

• changes are universal so all children go through the same stages in the same order

identify the stages of kohlberg’s cognitive explanation of gender development

1. gender labelling

2. gender stability

3. gender constancy

outline kohlberg’s cognitive explanation of gender development: stage one - gender labelling

• occurs between two and three years old

• children label themselves and others as a ‘boy’ or ‘girl’ based on outward appearance only e.g. hairstyle and clothes

• at the end of the stage will also label themselves as a girl or boy 

• described as the preoperational stage i.e. lacks internal logic/not internally consistent

outline kohlberg’s cognitive explanation of gender development: stage two - gender stability

• occurs between four and five years old

• recognises that gender concept is stable e.g. girls grow into women

• doesn’t recognise consistency as they don’t understand that gender is consistent across situations e.g. believe males might change into females if they engage in female activities 

• lack ability to conserve as believe that a person must be a girl if they are wearing a dress i.e. if they appear to be a girl then they must be a girl 

outline kohlberg’s cognitive explanation of gender development: stage three - gender constancy

• occurs around six to seven years old

• realise that gender is constant across situations so developed full gender constancy 

• ready to self-socialise and start to learn about gender-appropriate behaviour 

what is meant by schema

cognitive framework of information gained from experiences that help a person to interpret the world around them and build and organise their knowledge and understanding by influencing expectations

who developed the gender schema theory (i.e. cognitive explanation of gender development)

martin and halverson

briefly outline gender schema as a cognitive explanation of gender development

• argue process of acquiring gender-relevant information happens before gender constancy is achieved 

• basic gender identity (gender labelling) is sufficient for a child to identify themselves as a boy/girl and taken an interest in gender-appropriate behavs

• suggest how the acquisition of schemas affect later behaviour, especially in terms of memory and attention

outline the gender schema theory as a cognitive explanation of gender development: schemas

• children learn schemas related to gender from their interactions with other children, adults and media

• such schemas are related to cultural norms and become more complex over time as the child matures

• gender schemas have the function of organising and structuring other info that is presented to children 

• e.g. learn about what toys are appropriate for each gender and what clothes to wear etc.

what is an ingroup schema

refers to the group with which a person identifies e.g. a girl will identify with the town she comes from etc. 

outline the gender schema theory as a cognitive explanation of gender development: ingroup and outgroup schemas

• once a child has identified with any ingroups, they were positively evaluate their own group and negatively evaluate the outgroup

• in order to enhance their self-esteem

• such evaluation motivates a child to be like their own group and avoid the behaviours of the outgroup and seek info to acquire ingroup schemas

• from an early age, children focus on ingroup schemas and avoid behaviours of outgroup schemas

outline the gender schema theory as a cognitive explanation of gender development: resilience of gender beliefs

• gender beliefs lead children to hold very fixed gender attitudes as they ignore any info they encounter that is not consistent with ingroup info 

• e.g. if a boy sees a film with a male nurse, this info is ignored as the man is not behaving consistently with the boys ingroup schema

outline the gender schema theory as a cognitive explanation of gender development: peer relationships

• play with other children leads children to believe that all girls share the same interests and all boys share the same interests 

• so avoid children of the opposite sex as they are ‘not like me’ so are less fun to play with and vice versa

• children also develop knowledge of the potential consequences associated with different social relationships 

• e.g. may come to realise that their peers will tease them if they play with members of the other sex so avoid this type of interaction

what is meant by internalisation

occurs when an individual accepts the attitudes or behaviours of another

what is meant by identification

form of influence where an individual adopts an attitude or behaviour because they want to be associated with a particular group or individual

briefly outline freuds psychoanalytic theory as an explanation of gender development

• includes an explanation of gender development 

• gender development occurs during the phallic stage (3-6 years old) - child’s libido is focused on their genitals 

• child’s gender identity is resolved during this stage either through oedipus complex or the electra complex

outline freuds psychoanalytic theory as an explanation of gender development: oedipus complex

• freud proposed boys experience the oedipus complex 

• boys desires their mother at age 3 to 4 when he becomes aware of his sexuality and wants his mothers sole attention

• boys see their fathers as a rival for their mothers love so wish their father was dead

• wish creates anxiety and fear of castration - such fears are repressed

• complex is eventually resolved as the boy begins to identify with his father and then internalises his fathers gender identity and takes this as his own gender identity 

• leads to masculine behaviour as takes on attitudes and expectations of their fathers

outline freuds psychoanalytic theory as an explanation of gender development: electra complex

• proposed by jung, a neo-freudian, based in part on psychoanalytic theory

• young girl is initially attracted to her mother but this ends when the girl discovers that her mother doesn’t have a penis

• the girl blames her mother for her own lack of a penis, believing that she was castrated so experiences penis envy

• girls sexuals desires are transferred to the father

• complex is resolved when the girl converts her penis envy to a wish to have a baby and this reduces her anger towards her mother 

• girl can now identify with her mother and internalise her mothers gender identity and adopt it

outline freuds psychoanalytic theory as an explanation of gender development: unresolved phallic stage

• successful resolution leads to healthy psychological outcome i.e. identification with the same-sex parent and internalisation of an appropriate gender identity and sex-role stereotypes 

• both frustration and overindulgence may lead to fixation at a particular stage 

• fixation in phallic stage may lead to sexual dysfunction, problems with gender identity or difficulties in forming relationships

what does culture mean

rules, customs, morals and ways of interacting that bind together members of a society or some other collection of people

what does gender roles mean

different behaviours, jobs, tasks and duties etc. that men and women take e.g. men are the breadwinner whilst women are the homemaker

what does media mean

tools used to store and distribute info e.g. books, films, tv and commercials etc. 

outline the influence of culture on gender roles: cultural variations

• variation in gender roles, behaviours and attitudes expected of a gender, influenced by culture through observation and imitation

• Berry et al. reported that conformity is highest in tight, sedentary societies with a correlation of +.78 between sex difference and an ecocultural index 

outline the influence of culture on gender roles: Mead et al. (1935)

• studied 3 different tribes in Papua New Guinea using observations and interviews

• Arapesh men and women were gentle and cooperative

• Mundagamoor men and women were violent and aggressive

• Tchambuli women were dominant and aggressive whereas Tchambuli women were gentle and emotional

• gender roles are flexible as influenced by culture

briefly outline a criticism of the influence of culture on gender roles: methodological issues

• investigator effects may have influenced participants behaviour as felt they needed to say certain things (responding to demand characteristics)

• Mead et al. were western researchers so looking at non-western societies through a western lens so misinterpret behaviour due to ethnocentrism

• resulting in false conclusions being drawn

briefly outline a criticism of the influence of culture on gender roles: other factors involved

• Williams and Best found more similarities than differences in the association of characteristics to men or women across 26 countries

• Eagly and Wood argue that biologically based physical differences between men and women enable them to be more efficient on certain tasks e.g. men physically faster and more upper body strength

outline the influence of media on gender roles: examples of role models in the media

• Bussey and Bandura found men portrayed as independent, directive and engaging occupations whilst women are usually shown as acting in dependent, unambitious and emotional ways 

• Hodges et al. found men are more likely to be shown exercising control over events whereas women are frequently shown to be more at the mercy of others

outline the influence of media on gender roles: vicarious reinforcement

• observational learning through exposure to gender appropriate behaviours through the media with men and wimen portrayed in stereotyped ways

• provides info about the likely outcomes of gender appropriate behaviours e.g. consistent with stereotypes means rewarded

• observing others be rewarded raises an individuals self efficacy to imitate the behaviour

outline the influence of media on gender roles: counter-stereotypes

• media is responsible for perpetuating gender stereotypes but also a means of changing such stereotypes by presenting men or women in unusual roles

• pingree found that stereotyping was reduced when children were shown commercials with women in non-traditional roles 

briefly outline a strength of the influence of media on gender roles: research support

• McGhee and Freuh found a link between the amount of TV watched and gender stereotypes in children aged 3-6 with heavy viewers holding stronger stereotypes

• Williams conducted a longitudinal study, finding before TV was introduced in a Canadian town children had weak stereotypes and gendered behaviours but after 2 years of TV children had strong stereotypes and gendered behaviours

briefly outline a strength of the influence of media on gender roles: practical applications

• media is a means of changing stereotypes by presenting men or women in non stereotyped ways

• Pingree found that stereotyping was reduced when children were shown commercials with women in non-traditional roles 

briefly outline a criticism of the influence of media on gender roles: methodological issues

• natural experiments so difficult to control extraneous variables as participants cannot be randomly allocated

• so participant variables like traditional views of parents may act as confounding variables

• hard to establish cause and effect