Sex and gender psychology

Biological approach e.g. hormones genetics, etc Used to explain sex differences in children and adults

Gender dysphoria http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/gender- dysphoria/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Biological approach Jost (1970) found: Rats & rabbits - if we remove the ovaries in the embryotic stage, it makes little difference to development – still develops into a girl BUT if we remove the testicles (begins as a boy), the baby rat will develop differently and become a girl ITS ALL ABOUT THE ‘Y’ (chromosome)

jost Jost proposed that: Natural form of all human babies is F Y chromosome seems to be highly correlated with ‘biological vulnerablilty’ before birth and after birth   - more likely to conceive a boy

Jost more boys are aborted in the early stages of pregnancy or are stillborn more boys die of trauma during birth - Throughout life men are more susceptible to certain illnesses: E.g. Heart disease, certain types of cancer, viruses, cerebral palsy

discussion How many people believe in the traditional gender roles nowadays? Do you think things have changed in terms of men as breadwinners and woman as homemakers? Who thinks men and women are more suited to different roles? Would everyone agree that women are more nurturing than men? Are little boys more rough when playing than little girls?

research Animal studies: Have provided evidence of the effects of hormones on behaviour   Goy & Rosko (1968): Injected pregnant monkeys with testosterone Observed their female offspring

research FOUND: Their behaviour was more like that of M monkeys - more aggressive & M sexual behaviour. Some monkeys even developed penises instead of a clitoris Rats injected with opposite sex hormones during early development also exhibited opposite-sex type behaviour

evaluation Whether or not this applies to humans is debatable - we cannot carry out such studies on human embryos HoWeveR some studies have been conducted on humans who have developed ‘abnormal’ hormonal conditions…

Testicular feminising syndrome More properly called Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS) E.G = pseudohermaphraditism Occurs when: Normal XY [male] foetus does not develop testosterone receptors in the body Thus is insensitive to testosterone - still produced but body does not pick it up Lack of influence from testosterone = foetus will not develop testes & will develop into a ‘female’ Externally = looks F but internally are M [without testes

Testicular Feminising Syndrome

puberty Testicles (undescended) begin to produce a lot of androgens BUT body still can't respond normally HoWeveR it can convert testosterone into oestrogen [female hormone] – so person develops voluptuous breasts, very little body hair - BUT will have no uterus = no menstrual cycle & infertile

Goldwyn case study Daphne Went Visited her doctor for help after experiencing problems falling pregnant Discovered she was not entirely female She was married and went on to adopt two children and lived happily as a woman

Androgenital syndrome This is the reverse of Testicular feminization   Normal chromosomal F receives too many M hormones during embryonic development Might happen if mother gets hormone injections during pregnancy [sometimes given to avoid miscarriage] In extreme cases - female baby can develop M external genitalia [penis and scrotum] but internally is still F

Turner syndrome Turner syndrome is a genetic syndrome that only affects females It is caused by an abnormal sex chromosome Females usually have two x chromosomes (XX) Girls with turner syndrome only have one full x chromosome The characteristics are often to do with growth and underdeveloped ovaries

What does this have to do with gender identity? Well… Money & Hines (1972) & Hines (1982) studied females exposed to male hormones before birth FOUND: girls displayed more typically masculine behaviours than those not exposed BUT interpretation of results can be criticised as children who are exposed to abnormal levels of M hormones are often born with genital abnormalities – masculine behaviour could reflect her own and others reaction to her more masculine appearance

evaluation Biological approach assumes we can separate nature and nurture Some biologists dismiss nurture whiles some simply believe it plays a smaller role than biology in determining sex roles Biological evidence is far from clear

evaluation Generalising from animals to humans is not clear-cut Studies of hermaphrodites & pseudohermaphrodites seems to show that assigned sex at birth determines sex role characteristics rather than biology Hayes (1994), "looking at human gender behaviour purely as a result of ‘biological sex is not very likely to provide us with a full explanation."

evolution What is meant by ‘natural selection’? Only the strongest, fittest species survive to reproduce – the rest… Males = physical strength, greater lung capacity = better suited to hunting & defending family/territory   Females = childbearing, milk producing = reproduction, child-rearing, nurturing, domestic labour

PARENTAL INVESTMENT THEORY (Kenrick, ’94) Inexpensive for men and costly for women - Why? Men can reproduce many more times during the course of a woman’s pregnancy – leaving plenty more time for men to produce more babies in the time it takes a woman to create and grow just one! Human infants are born cognitively & physically immature - cannot survive on their own – a woman therefore is ‘bound’ to care for a child until capable of self-care, taking several years – thus leaving yet more time for men to father yet more babies

Other key terms Phenotype: can be described as the characteristics of an individual Genotype: can be descried as the genetic make-up Nature: is genetic/ inherited Nurture: is down to environmental influences

Thank you! http://www.teachers-direct.co.uk/resources/quiz-busters/quiz-busters- game.aspx?game_id=4659