Gender Development

Paper Assignment

Gender Dev.

• Gender Identity– 3rd birthday– sense of being boy or girl– Categorize others– Superficial changes with appearance and

behavior– Gender Segregation (cross cultural) begins to

emerge (girls first at age 2)—full blown by elementary school!

Gender Dev.

• Gender Stability– 3-4 years– Gender is stable over time– Still superficial, changes with appearance and

behavior

Gender Dev.

• Gender Constancy– 5-7 years– Gender is stable over time AND across all

situations– Closely related to Conservation understanding

Gender Differences Across Dev.• Toy preferences as early as 1 year

– Not only preference for gender typical toys but neutral toys if believed gender appropriate

• Play Style– Rough and tumble play– Large vs small groups– Competition (50% males, 1% females)– Pretend play (heroes vs. families)– Aggression (physical vs. verbal/relational)

• Communication– Shared emotion vs. shared activities/interests– Problem solving: Compromises vs. physical force

Biological vs. Psychological Explanations

Biological Explanations

• Animal models

• Genetic disorders

• Pregnant women who needed hormone therapy

Biological Explanations• Female rats and rhesus macaques treated with

testosterone = increased male-typical sexual behavior, rough and tumble play, activity level, aggression]

• In humans when androgen reduced during pregnancy females = more feminine clothing, less ‘Tomboyish’

• Critical periods (different for different sex-typed behavior)– ~8 weeks gestation – 6 months of age

• Sex/gender is a continuous variable (biologically)

Biological Explanations

• CAH Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia– a group of inherited disorders– deficiency in steroid hormones (cortisol and

aldosterone) which leads to overproduction of androgen (male sex hormone)

– 1 in 10-20,000 births– Females: ambiguous genitalia, “masculine”

physical traits– Males: enter puberty much earlier

Biological Explanations

• CAH girls/CAH induced (adrogens in pregnancy)– More time with “male” toys– Greater preference for male playmates– Reduced gender identity– Less satisfaction with gender– Mixed results on aggression/rough-&-tumble

play

Psychological Explanations

Social Learning Theorya) Identify with same-sex parents (and peers) = same sex modeling

b) Differential treatments/reinforcement based on gender– Not a lot of differences in treatment but,

– Gender-based activities/toys/interests

– Gender-specific vocabulary

– Physical stimulation (boys)

– Talk and emotions (girls)

Direction? Are parents causing gender differences or reacting to them?

Psychological Explanations

Cognitive Theory– Little emphasis on parenting/reinforcement– Not imitation of individuals– Build Gender Schemas/StereotypesGeneralizations across groups rather than individuals (i.e.

gender stereotypes)

Social Cognitive Theory– ~ Combination of Social Learning and

Cognitive

Debates

• Which theory do you find most convincing?

• What do you see as the most damning evidence against any particular theory?

• What implications do the different theories have for the legal system?

Gender Identity and Transsexuality

http://www.cinematter.com/madeleine.html

1998 2001