Gender Roles & Sexuality

Chapter 11: Gender Roles & Sexuality

Sex and Gender

  • Biological sex: Physical characteristics that define male and female.

  • Gender: Incorporates features that society associates with or considers appropriate for men and women.

Biological Influences: Anatomy & Physiology

  • XX and XY designations:

    • Question: Is XX always female? Is XY always male?

    • Consider the case of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS): Occurs in 1 in 20,000 births, showing complexities in biological sex determination.

  • Sex hormones:

    • Two classes influential in sex development: estrogens and androgens.

    • Occur in both females and males in varying concentrations.

    • Estrogens:

    • Influence female physical sex characteristics and help regulate the menstrual cycle.

    • Key role in female development.

    • Androgens:

    • Promote development of male genitals and secondary sex characteristics; primarily testosterone.

    • In male embryos, a gene on the Y chromosome directs the formation of testes that secrete testosterone.

  • Embryonic Development:

    • Male and female embryos initially appear alike; they diverge due to hormonal secretions impacting physical structure.

  • Behavioral influences:

    • Hormones like testosterone do not dictate behavior but have been linked to aggression and sexual behavior.

    • X and Y chromosomes may also influence brain development via prenatal hormones.

Gender Roles, Stereotypes, & Identity

  • Gender-role norms: Society's expectations regarding the behavior of males and females.

  • Gender roles: Patterns of behavior expected from males and females in a society.

  • Gender stereotypes: Overgeneralized beliefs about the characteristics of all males and all females, largely inaccurate but rooted in societal norms with elements of truth.

Physiological Differences

  • Women's physiological roles:

    • Ability to bear and nurse children has shaped societal norms regarding nurturing professions.

    • Communality of women:

    • Communal traits emphasize emotionality and sensitivity to others.

  • Men's physiological roles:

    • Central aspect is agency, emphasizing dominance, independence, assertiveness, and competitiveness.

  • Evolutionary foundations: Some argue that evolution has influenced the development of these traits.

Gender Identity

  • Gender Identity: Internal awareness of one’s gender.

    • Cisgender: Internal sense of gender matches physiological sex.

    • Transgender: Internal sense of gender does not match physiological sex.

    • Non-binary: Gender non-conforming individuals; identity may be fluid.

  • Dimensions of Gender Identity:

    • Knowledge: "I am a boy/girl."

    • Typicality: "I am like other boys/girls."

    • Contentedness: "I like being a boy/girl."

    • Felt pressure for conformity to gender norms.

    • Intergroup bias: Preference for in-group members based on gender identity.

Differences or Similarities?

  • Janet Hyde's Argument: Emphasizes similarities between genders on psychological variables, with significant overlap; asserts males and females are more alike than different, particularly where effect sizes may not justify a focus on differences.

Sex Differences Overview
Physical Differences

  • Females:

    • Have 2x body fat compared to males.

    • Estrogens stop growth at puberty and contribute to longevity.

    • More resistant to certain disorders and have more elastic blood vessels.

  • Males:

    • Typically 10% taller due to androgen influence on growth.

    • Higher levels of stress hormones leading to faster clotting and higher blood pressure.

Neurological Differences

  • Females:

    • Greater metabolic activity in brain areas responsible for emotional expression.

    • Brain is about 10% smaller but has more folds, giving larger surface area.

  • Males:

    • Larger hypothalamus linked to sexual behavior, as well as a larger parietal lobe aiding in visuospatial skills.

Cognitive Differences

  • Females:

    • Display greater verbal abilities, higher scores in reading and writing, better memory for verbal information, and overall better grades with a higher high school completion rate.

  • Males:

    • Exhibit greater visuospatial skills, higher math scores on standardized tests like the SAT, along with increased computer use and confidence.

Socio-Emotional Differences

  • Females:

    • Tend to exhibit relational aggression during middle to late childhood, are more open with emotions, nurturing, tactful, cooperative, and show high levels of self-disclosure.

    • Prone to internalizing conditions like anxiety, depression, and phobias.

  • Males:

    • Display more overt aggression (physical and verbal) across cultures, nuance in provocation, and express more anger.

    • Exhibit “thing-oriented” traits being more focused on activities than relationships and prone to externalizing behaviors such as antisocial acts and substance abuse.

More Differences or Similarities?

  • Average behavior levels can differ noticeably between sexes, yet within each category, there exist extremes.

  • Persistence of stereotypes:

    • Influenced by biased perceptions through confirmatory bias.

    • The Social Role Theory posits that contrasts in societal roles for genders contribute significantly to maintaining gender stereotypes.

Theories of Gender Development
Social Influences

  • Social Role Theory:

    • Psychological differences arise from contrasting social roles of men and women.

    • Many cultures exhibit gender disparities in power and status, which influence behaviors.

  • Psychoanalytic Theory (Freud):

    • Phallic stage: children develop sexual attraction to opposite-sex parent but later identify with same-sex parent, effectively adopting gender roles before this identification occurs.

  • Social Cognitive Theory:

    • Gender development emerges through observation/ imitation, rewards, and punishments in social contexts.

Cognitive Influences

  • Gender Schema Theory:

    • Children create mental guides (schemas) of what is gender-appropriate or inappropriate based on cultural cues, which motivate their behavior.

  • Gender Constancy (Kohlberg's concepts):

    • Gender labeling: Children learn to identify their gender by ages 2-3.

    • Gender stability: By age 5, children realize that gender is consistent through time and does not change.

    • Gender consistency: By age 7, children understand that changes in outward appearance do not alter one’s gender.

Developmental Aspects of Stereotypes

  • Gender stereotypes:

    • General beliefs about male and female behavior, more rigid in boys than girls.

    • Traits attributed to males are typically more instrumental (agentic) while females are seen as expressive (communal).

  • Developmental trajectory:

    • Rigid stereotypes are most prominent between ages four to seven, decreasing through elementary school.

    • Attitudes towards gender become more flexible by late adolescence.

The Infant
Early Experiences

  • A study of infants aged 3-8 months revealed differential looking time: males gravitated towards trucks while females gravitated towards dolls.

  • By 18 months, children start recognizing their gender aligned with prevailing roles, and different patterns of activity develop by 24 months: children notice gender-inconsistent activities earlier.

  • By ages 2.5-3, children are capable of labeling their own sex and start to show different toy preferences (e.g., boys towards trucks/cars and girls towards dolls/soft toys).

The Child
The Young Child

  • During early childhood, there is rapid acquisition of gender stereotypes and engaging in gender-typed behavior.

    • Between ages two and three, children show awareness of biological gender and societal expectations.

  • Preschool Gender Rigidity:

    • High rates of rigidity about gender roles during these early years (ages 4-7) can lead to strong intolerance of deviations from traditional roles.

    • Boys develop gender-stereotypical preferences more rigidly than girls, showing early identification with