gender Flashcards
(30 cards)
biological sex
Physical (anatomical & physiological) characteristics related to reproduction (e.g., organs, hormones) that define male and female
- E.g., Females typically have smaller bones and muscle mass than males
gender
What society associates with or considers appropriate for men and women
- A social construct that comes with a set of expectations, like how to act, talk, dress, feel emotion, and interact with other people
- E.g., Women as a group earn less money than men
Chromosomal Sex/Genetic Sex - DNA/Chromosomes
- Male: Presence of Y chromosome (e.g., XY, XXY, XYY)
- Female: Absence of Y chromosome (e.g., XX, X, XXX)
Sex assigned at birth - category record on birth certificate
- Female: infants born with “female” anatomy - e.g., vagina, labia
- Male: Infants born with “male” anatomy - e.g., penis, testicles
- Intersex: infants born with anatomy (e.g., sex chromosomes, genitalia, hormones, gonads) that differs from the typical definitions female or male
Gender identity
An internal awareness of your gender, or your own personal sense of what your gender is
- female/woman/feminine
- Male/Man/Masculine
- non binary
Non-binary
Genders that exist outside of the male/female/man/woman binary
- E.g., gender non-conforming, gender fluid, genderqueer, etc.
Cisgender
gender identity matches sex assigned at birth
Transgender
gender identity differs from sex assigned at birth
gender roles
patterns of behavior that females and males should adopt in a particular society (e.g., wife, mother, husband, father)
gender norms
Society’s expectations or standards concerning what males and females should be like
- Boy’s shouldn’t express emotions, girls should be quiet and compliant
Gender stereotypes
Overgeneralized and largely inaccurate beliefs about the characteristics of all males and all females
- E.g., women can’t drive, men don’t ask for directions
- Generated by society’s gender norms
Gender Stereotypes begin at birth
Baby boy: strong, big
Baby girl: cuddly, cute
differences or similarities in gender?
Males and females are similar on most psychological variables
- when differences exist, they are usually small
Gender: infants
- 3-4 months old: Able to tell the difference between male and female faces
- 18-24 months old: emerging understanding that they are either like other males or like other females
- Knowledge of gender-related expectations
- Look longer at males/females performing gender-inconsistent activities
Gender: Early Childhood
2-3 years old:
- Know which gender group they belong to
- use gender terms (e.g., “boy”) in their speech
- Behavior becomes gender-differentiated (boy toys vs girl toys)
- Boys face stronger pressures to adhere to gender-role expectations
preschool years
- same-sex peers
- Avoid peers who violate gender-typical patterns of behavior
- Gender segregation is universal
Gender: Middle Childhood
Mid-elementary school
- Aware of the biological basis of gender
- Have an understanding of gender as a social category
- Recognize that some kids may not want to do things that are typical for their sex
Gender segregation persists through the end of elementary school,
- Then boys and girls begin to make tentative overtures toward each other
Gender: Adolescence
- Highly intolerant of role violations
- More stereotyped in their thinking about the proper roles of males and females in adolescence
- Gender intensification because:
Hormonal changes of puberty and Increased pressure to conform to gender roles
Gender: adulthood
- Gender roles a are shaped by society’s emphasis on gender-role norms of parenting
- Even previously egalitarian couples divide labors according -
to gener roles
After children left home:
- Men become more passive and focus on family relationships
- Women become more active and assertive
Gender has been explained by:
- Biological differences,
- Gender socialization,
- Cognitive processes (including attention to same-sex models)
Gender development likely
Results from…
the complex interaction of all of these processes
The Evolutionary Perspective
Maintains that sex differences in behavior emerged because they offer reproductive advantages
- Good spatial reasoning selected for males
- Females’ tendency to build strong alliances with other females
- Play behavior in boys and girls
(boys rough it and girl play parenting)
The Brain Structure Perspective
There is also growing evidence of small but consistent differences in the physical structure of male and female brains
- Differences in density of connections in areas of the brain associated with language and spatial processing
- Differences in patterns of connections within/between hemispheres
May be hormonal, learned, etc…
Social learning theory
Through observation, children gather information about gender & appropriate behavior for their own sex
- Through differential reinforcement, parents reward gender-consistent behavior and punish gender-inconsistent behavior
- Observe and imitate same-sex models more than opposite sex
- degree of gender typing depends on home/parents
Parents 3x more likely to…
Explain science exhibits to their sons
Discuss emotions with daughters
