Discuss the formation and
development of gender roles
Sex and Gender
Sex
Gender
• Biological sex is determined • The social and psychological
by chromosomes.
characteristics associated
• XX for girls and XY for boys.
with being male or female.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Gender role theories
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Evolutionary Theory
Biological Theory
Bio-Social Theory
Social Learning Theory
Gender Schema Theory
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Evolutionary Theory
• Based on Darwin’s Theory
of evolution.
• Biological and
psychological differences
in men and women are
natural and result in
different gender roles
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Evolutionary Theory
• Men are naturally more
competitive and
aggressive because this
increases chances of
attracting a partner and
providing resources for
offspring.
• Women are nurturing
because this is needed to
attract a partner and
take care of offspring.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Evolutionary Theory
• The theory is controversial.
• There are cross cultural
differences as well as
similarities in gender roles
so it is more logical to
assume that gender roles
should be seen as an
interaction of biological
and sociocultural factors.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Theory of Psychosexual Differentiation
(biological theory)
• Gender role identity is
related to genetic sex
determined by
chromosomes (XX for girls
and XY for boys).
• During prenatal
development, sex
hormones are released.
• These prenatal hormones
cause the external genitals
of the fetus and the internal
reproductive organs to
become masculine or
feminine.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Theory of Psychosexual
Differentiation (biological theory)
• It’s the presence or absence
of male hormones
(androgens) that makes a
difference in psychosexual
differentiation.
• Androgens (e.g.
testosterone) in the male
fetus stimulate the
development of male sex
characteristics and have a
masculinizing effect on the
brain of the developing boy.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Theory of Psychosexual
Differentiation (biological theory)
• In this theory humans
are born with innate
predispositions to act
and feel female or male
due to the presence or
absence of prenatal
androgens.
• Socialization plays a
subsidiary role.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
The biosocial theory of gender role
development
• Money and Ehrhardt
(1972) claim that children
are gender neutral at
birth.
• Development of gender
identity and adherence to
gender role is primarily a
consequence of
socialization.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
The biosocial theory of gender role
development
• The theory is based on
case studies of
individuals born with
ambiguous genitals called
intersex in medical
literature.
Discuss the formation and
development of gender
roles
The biosocial theory of gender role
development
• Money found children
who had been born as
females genetically but
were raised as boys and
thought of themselves
as boys.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
The biosocial theory of gender role
development
• Money theorized that
humans are not born
with a gender identity
and therefore it is
possible to reassign sex
within the first two
years of life.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
The biosocial theory of gender role
development
• The theory is supported
by animal research.
• Female rat fetuses
injected with
testosterone tend to
behave like male rats as
adults.
• They do not exhibit
normal female sexual
behavior in adulthood
even if they are injected
with the female hormone
estrogen at that time.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Case study of David Reimer
• David Reimer was a twin
boy who accidentally lost
his penis under a routine
circumcision, when he was
8 months.
• Dr. John Money suggested
that the parents change
the sex of the boy through
surgery, hormone
replacement and raise him
as a girl.
• David Reimer was changed
into a girl, Brenda.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Case study of David Reimer
Discuss the formation and
development of gender
roles
• Money used the identical
twin as a matched control
and believed that this case
would support the biosocial
theory.
• In Money's scientific articles
the sex change seemed to
be a success but he failed to
publish evidence that went
against his theory.
• Brenda (David) was not
happy and felt different
from the other girls
Case study of David Reimer
• At the age of 15 her
parents revealed the
truth.
• Brenda decided to
become a male again
and had reconstructive
surgery to create a
penis.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Case study of David Reimer
Evaluation:
• This case study seriously
questions the biosocial
theory that socialization
can override biological
make-up.
• In fact, it rather lends
support to the theory of
hormonal psychosexual
differentiation.
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Social learning theory
• Bandura’s (1977) theory
assumes that gender roles
are learned through the
observation of same-sex
models.
1. Modeling
2. Rewarded (social
approval) or discouraged
(social disapproval)
Discuss the formation and development of
gender roles
Social learning theory
Smith and Lloyd (1978): The Baby X experiment
• asked adults to interact
with infants dressed in
unisex snowsuits of
either blue or pink.
• The snowsuits were
randomly distributed
and not always in line
with the infants’ true
sex.
Social learning theory
Smith and Lloyd (1978): The Baby X experiment
• The adults played with
the infants according to
what they believed was
the gender of the child
(color of snowsuit).
• This indicates that a
baby’s perceived gender is
part of the baby’s social
environment because
people treat the child
according to perceptions
of gender.
Social learning theory
Smith and Lloyd (1978): The Baby X experiment
• This could influence the
child’s own perception of
gender and become a
determining factor in the
development of the
child’s gender role
identity.
Social learning theory
Sroufe et al. (1993)
• observed children
around the ages of 10
and 11 and found that
those who did not
behave in a genderstereotyped ways were
the least popular.
Social learning theory
Sroufe et al. (1993)
• These studies indicate
that children establish a
kind of social control in
relation to gender roles
very early and it may well
be that peer socialization
is an important factor in
gender role development.
Gender schema theory
• Gender schemas are
generalized ideas
about what is
appropriate behavior
for males and females.
• People are categorized
as either male or
female and given
specific gender
attributes (gender
stereotypes).
Gender schema theory
• Gender schemas thus
organize knowledge and
information processing.
• Gender schema theory is
based on the assumption
that cognitive processes
play a key role in the
development of gender
identity and gender
roles.
Gender schema theory
• The most important factor
in the development of
gender role identity is
children’s ability to label
themselves as boys or girls,
i.e. the establishment of
gender identity.
• Gender schemas guide
subsequent information
processing.
Gender schema theory
• Children are motivated to
be like others in their group
(conformity) and they tend
to observe same-sex role
models more carefully.
• Cultural beliefs about
female and male gender
roles are included in gender
schemas and influence the
way children think about
themselves and their
possibilities.
Gender schema theory
Martin and Halvorson (1983)
• performed an experiment
with boys and girls aged
between five and six years.
• They saw pictures of males
and females in activities
that were either in line with
gender role schemas (e.g. a
girl playing with a doll) or
inconsistent with gender
role schemas (e.g. a girl
playing with a gun).
Martin and Halvorson (1983)
• A week later, the
children were asked to
remember what they
had seen on the
pictures.
• The children had
distorted memories of
pictures that were not
consistent with gender
role schemas.
Martin and Halvorson (1983)
• They remembered the
picture of a girl playing
with a gun as a boy
playing with a gun.
• This shows how
information may be
distorted to fit with
existing schemas.
Gender Schema Theory
• Martin and Halvorson
found that children
actively construct gender
identity based on their
own experiences.
• The tendency to
categorize on the basis of
gender leads them to
perceive boys and girls as
different.
Gender Schema Theory
• According to Martin and
Halvorson, children have
a gender schema for their
own sex (the ingroup)
and for the opposite sex
(the outgroup).
Gender Schema Theory
• Gender schemas determine
what children pay attention
to, whom they interact with,
and what they remember.
• Gender schemas thus serve
as an internal, selfregulating standard.
• This could be the reason
that gender schemas may
become a self-fulfilling
prophecy or a stereotype
threat.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMPNwUHEQ8