Psy 311: Gender
GENDER DIFFERENCES
Who are the perpetrators?
l Who are the victims?
l
Psy 311: Gender
DEFINITION OF SEX
DIFFERENCES
Psychological differences
between biological males and
females
Psy 311: Gender
DESCRIPTION OF SEX
DIFFERENCES
1. PERFORMANCE SCORES
ON TESTS OF
l Verbal abilities:
Females higher
l Spatial abilities:
Males higher
l Mathematical abilities: Males higher
Starting in adolescence
(Also more male low achievers)
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
Film Clip: Gender Difference Math
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
2. ACTIVITY LEVEL
l Males greater
–(Starting in infancy)
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
3. AGRESSION, VERBAL, & PHYSICAL
l Males more
–(Starting at age 2)
–About 5% of the variance
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
4. COOPERATION & COMPLIANCE
l Females more
–(Starting at age 2)
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
5. DEVELOPMENTAL VULNERABILITY
l Males greater:
Infant mortality
– Prenatal & perinatal- stress & disease
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
5. DEVELOPMENTAL VULNERABILITY
(CONT)
l Males greater:
Learning disorders
– learning disabilities
– speech defects
– hyperactivity
– mental retardation
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
6. PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS
l Males: Externalizing
– Acting out, defiance
– Delinquency
l
Females: Internalizing
– Anxiety, fear
– Self-esteem (esp. late adolescence)
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
EXPLANATIONS
l Evidence for NATURE
– Neurological differences
– Hormonal differences
l
Evidence for NURTURE
– Environmental differences
– Interventions are effective
l
Evidence for BOTH
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER ROLES
l
1. Gender Roles
– Patterns of behavior or “jobs” assigned
to females vs. males in a particular
society
– E.g., wife, mother, homemaker
– E.g., husband, father, breadwinner
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
GENDER ROLES
l
2. Gender-role norms
– society’s expectations or standards
concerning what males & females
should be like
– Characteristics
– Behaviors
Psy 311: Gender
Film Clip: Gender Norms in Middle
Childhood
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER ROLES
l
3. Gender-role stereotypes:
– overgeneralized (& largely inaccurate)
beliefs about what males & females
are like
– E.g., Venus and Mars
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
Examples of Gender-Role
Stereotypes
l
Females: Communality
– Connectedness to others
• emotional, kind, nurturant, cooperative,
& sensitive to others’ needs.
l
Males: Agency
– Individual action and achievement
• dominant, independent, assertive, &
competitive.
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER ROLES
l
Androgyny
– possessing characteristics that are
considered both highly masculine and
highly feminine
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
ARE GENDER
STEREOTYPES TRUE?
No, the vast majority of gender
stereotypes are not true.
l Males and females are much more
psychologically similar than different.
l
Psy 311: Gender
WHAT DEVELOPS?
GENDER TYPING
l
1. Gender Identity
Awareness that one is male or female
– age 2 - 3 years old
Psy 311: Gender
WHAT DEVELOPS?
GENDER TYPING
l
2. Gender constancy
– Sex is a stable characteristic
• (age 5 to 7)
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
WHAT DEVELOPS?
GENDER TYPING
l
3. Acquire gender-roles
– Internalize
• motives
• values
• patterns of behavior that culture
considers appropriate for members of
that sex
Psy 311: Gender
DEVELOPMENT OF
GENDER STEREOTYPES
1. 2 - 4 years
Know “correct” behaviors
l 2. 5 - 8 years
Moral standards
l 3. 9 - 11 years
Psychological traits, customs
l
Psy 311: Gender
DEVELOPMENT OF
GENDER STEREOTYPES
l
4. Adolescence
The gender police
• Gender intensification
• Most harsh and rigid
l
5. Early adulthood
More tolerant of self & others
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
DEVELOPMENT OF
GENDER STEREOTYPES
l
6. Parenting years
More stereotyped behavior
“Parental imperative”
l
7. Post-parenting years
Androgyny shift
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING
What Influences It ?
l
1. Biosocial theory
l
2. Social learning theory
l
3. Cognitive theory
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING
What Influences It ?
l
1. Biosocial theory
– Biology
• Chromosomes
• Hormones (prenatal, puberty)
– Social labeling
• Others label and react
• Self labels and reacts
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING
What Influences It ?
l
l
2. Social learning theory:
“Gender curriculum”
– Differential reinforcement
• Rewards and punishments
• Discipline, expectations
• Fathers especially important
– Observational learning
• Parents, siblings, peers, media
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING
What Influences It ?
l
3. Cognitive theory
l
Intrinsically motivated to belong to their
own gender’s “club”
– Cognitive Developmental Theory
• Stages of understanding
• Self-socialization (active person)
• Begins with “gender consistency”?
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING
What Influences It ?
l
3. Cognitive theory
– Cognitive Schema Theory
• Cognitive schema: Organized sets of
beliefs and expectations about males
and females
• Guide information that people attend
to and remember
– In-group/ out-group schema
– Own-sex schema
Psy 311: Gender
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Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING
What Influences It ?
INTEGRATION
l
1. Biology
l
2. Social experiences
l
3. Cognitive development
Psy 311: Gender
SO WHAT?
CONSEQUENCES OF
GENDER STEREOTYPES
1. Opportunity denied.
l 2. Competence: Interest and practice
guided by expectations.
l 3. Identity: Internal alienation from
true self.
l
Psy 311: Gender
Film Clip: Consequences of Gender Role
Stereotypes
Psy 311: Gender
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