Post on 27-Dec-2015
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER DIFFERENCES
Who are the perpetrators? Who are the victims?
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
Verbal abilities: Females higher Spatial abilities: Males higher Mathematical abilities: Males higher
Starting in adolescence (Also more male low achievers)
Psy 311: Gender
Film Clip: Gender Difference Math
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
2. ACTIVITY LEVEL Males greater
–(Starting in infancy)
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
3. AGRESSION, VERBAL, & PHYSICAL Males more
– (Starting at age 2) –About 5% of the variance
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
4. COOPERATION & COMPLIANCE Females more
–(Starting at age 2)
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)
5. DEVELOPMENTAL VULNERABILITY Males greater:
Infant mortality– Prenatal & perinatal- stress & disease
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)5. DEVELOPMENTAL VULNERABILITY
(CONT) Males greater:
Learning disorders– learning disabilities
– speech defects
– hyperactivity
– mental retardation
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)6. PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS Males: Externalizing
– Acting out, defiance
– Delinquency Females: Internalizing
– Anxiety, fear
– Self-esteem (esp. late adolescence)
Psy 311: Gender
SEX DIFFERENCES (CONT)EXPLANATIONS Evidence for NATURE
– Neurological differences
– Hormonal differences Evidence for NURTURE
– Environmental differences
– Interventions are effective Evidence for BOTH
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER ROLES
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
GENDER ROLES
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
3. Gender-role stereotypes:– overgeneralized (& largely inaccurate)
beliefs about what males & females are like– E.g., Venus and Mars
Psy 311: Gender
Examples of Gender-Role Stereotypes
Females: Communality– Connectedness to others
• emotional, kind, nurturant, cooperative, & sensitive to others’ needs.
Males: Agency– Individual action and achievement
• dominant, independent, assertive, & competitive.
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER ROLES
Androgyny– possessing characteristics that are
considered both highly masculine and highly feminine
Psy 311: Gender
ARE GENDER STEREOTYPES TRUE?
No, the vast majority of gender stereotypes are not true.
Males and females are much more psychologically similar than different.
Psy 311: Gender
WHAT DEVELOPS?GENDER TYPING
1. Gender Identity Awareness that one is male or female– age 2 - 3 years old
Psy 311: Gender
WHAT DEVELOPS?GENDER TYPING
2. Gender constancy– Sex is a stable characteristic
• (age 5 to 7)
Psy 311: Gender
WHAT DEVELOPS?GENDER TYPING
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 yearsKnow “correct” behaviors
2. 5 - 8 yearsMoral standards
3. 9 - 11 yearsPsychological traits, customs
Psy 311: Gender
DEVELOPMENT OF GENDER STEREOTYPES
4. AdolescenceThe gender police
• Gender intensification• Most harsh and rigid
5. Early adulthoodMore tolerant of self & others
Psy 311: Gender
DEVELOPMENT OF GENDER STEREOTYPES
6. Parenting years More stereotyped behavior
“Parental imperative”
7. Post-parenting yearsAndrogyny shift
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING What Influences It ?
1. Biosocial theory
2. Social learning theory
3. Cognitive theory
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING What Influences It ?
1. Biosocial theory– Biology
• Chromosomes
• Hormones (prenatal, puberty)
– Social labeling• Others label and react
• Self labels and reacts
Psy 311: Gender
GENDER TYPING What Influences It ?
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 ?
3. Cognitive theory 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 ?
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
GENDER TYPING What Influences It ?
INTEGRATION
1. Biology
2. Social experiences
3. Cognitive development
Psy 311: Gender
SO WHAT?CONSEQUENCES OF
GENDER STEREOTYPES 1. Opportunity denied. 2. Competence: Interest and practice
guided by expectations. 3. Identity: Internal alienation from true
self.
Psy 311: Gender
Film Clip: Consequences of Gender Role Stereotypes
Psy 311: Gender
LAST NAME, first name
1. Name 3 psychological differences between males & females.
2. Are these differences based on biology or socialization or both?
3. What are gender stereotypes? 4. At what age does “gender
intensification” take place?
Psy 311: Gender
END