THE MALE AND FEMALE BRAIN
How are they different?
THE SENSES
MALE
FEMALE
• More sensitive to
• More acute sense of
changes in levels of light
smell
• Better hearing
MOTOR SKILLS
MALE
• More refined ability for
target directed motor
skills (gross motor
coordination –
especially in children)
FEMALE
• Faster at precision
manual tasks (fine
motor coordination –
especially in children)
THE PHYSICAL BRAIN
MALE
FEMALE
10% larger than the
More dendritic
female brain (about 100
connections between
grams more brain
cells than men
tissue)
Larger Corpus Callosum –
More neurons in the
greater use of both
cerebral cortex
hemispheres for
processing information
Larger Hypothalamus –
helps regulate biological
drives
THE PHYSICAL BRAIN (Cont.)
MALE
FEMALE
Larger Inferior Parietal
Lobule – an area of
mental mathematical
abilities (perceptions of
time, speed, and
mentally rotating 3D
figures
Larger Amygdala (an area
involved in regulating
and controlling
emotional reactions)
Larger Limbic System (an
area responsible for the
generation of emotions)
THE PHYSICAL BRAIN (Cont.)
• The shape on the
left is identical to
which of the
other three
shapes?
A
B
C
B
HEMISPHERE PREFERENCE AND
UTILIZATION
MALE
More likely to have left
brain hemispherical
preference
Uses more of left
hemisphere for
understanding language
FEMALE
More likely to have right
brain hemispherical
preference
Uses both hemispheres
for understanding
language
Speaks more words and
can find words more
readily than men
A male brain when reading is really only active on the left hemisphere of the brain, while
the female brain when reading is active on both sides of the brain.
EMOTIONS
MALE
Uses more of left
hemisphere to direct
emotions to specific
uses
FEMALE
More in touch with their
feelings
Greater ability to bond
with others and be
empathetic
Better at human relations
PROBLEMS
MALE
FEMALE
More prone to developing
ADHD, Autism
disorders, and
Tourette’s Syndrome
More prone to Anti-Social
disorders
More prone to neuron
disease: Example Amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis
More prone to developing
Alzheimer’s Disease
More susceptible to
depression and related
mood disorders such as
anxiety
Higher risk of suicide
attempts
More prone to developing
anorexia
INTELLIGENCE
Despite the physical differences between
the male and female brain and how
males and females utilize their abilities
there is NO IDENTIFIABLE DIFFERENCE in
intellectual ability between the male and
female brain.