Sex & Gender Chapter 4

Sex is made of 5 Biological Components 1. Chromosomes (DNA – Genes) – Sex Chromosomes – Female: XX – Male: XY 2. Gonads – Glands produce sex hormones – Female Gland: ovaries (eggs) – Male gland: testes (sperm)

Sex is made of 5 Biological Components 3. Hormones – Produced by gonads, no hormones are unique to one sex – Female: higher levels of estrogen & progesterone Produced by adrenal gland – Male: higher levels androgens (testosterone) Some androgens produced by testes converted into estrogen

Sex is made of 5 Biological Components 4. Genitals (internal & external) Female: – Internal: ovaries, uterus (sexual functioning, menstrual cycle, pregnancy) – External: Vulva (all components of external vagina) Male: – Internal: Production, storage of sperm, sexual arousal – External: Penis & Scrotum 5. Secondary Sex Characteristics Female: breasts Male: facial hair

Gender Gender is a person’s psychological sense of self as a male or female Gender is a complex variable influenced by: – Biological Factors – Socialization – Experience

Gender Identity Individual’s sense of belonging to the male or female sex Attributes: – Masculinity (being ‘like a man’) – Femininity (being ‘like a woman’) Traits: – Instrumentality (masculine) – Expressiveness (feminine) – Androgynous (attributes of both)

Disorders of Sexual Development DSD – congenital conditions in which development of chromosomal, gonadal or anatomical sex is atypical; formerly known as intersex conditions Case of Bruce / Brenda Reimer ( ) – Born male, raised female after botched circumcision.

Sex & Gender: Conflict Transgender – Person feels trapped in wrong biological sex – Sometimes considered to be suffering from GID Controversy about whether transgender should be considered a psychological disorder

Sex & Gender: Conflict Gender Identity Disorder (GID) – Intense distress over one’s birth sex – Evaluated Treatment: Sex reassignment surgery

Four Main Theories for Gender Biological Evolutionary Social Cognitive Social Role

Biological – Focuses on the way that genes, hormones, and brain structures relate to gender differences (brain based) Evolutionary – Views gender through Darwinian natural selection that human beings have evolved through process of sexual selection in which: Males compete for mates Females choose their male partners

Social Cognitive – Emphasizes how learning, modeling, and cognitive schemas influence development of gender Social Role – States a division of labor between the sexes based on male-female physical differences which can lead to the social construction of gender roles and gender stereotypes theory predicts that as social structures change, gender differences decline

Sexual Orientation Social Factors do not seem to play a large role in sexual orientation – Gender Identity is not attached to sexual orientation Genes explain a small amount of the variations we see in sexual orientation – Some research shows gay men have thicker corpus callosa than hetero men – Other research suggests lesbian women may be more similar to hetero men in terms of brain hemisphere asymmetry – In women: prenatal testosterone exposure shows some links to eventual lesbian & bisexual orientation

DSM changes…. In 1973, homosexuality was removed from the DSM-II classification of mental disorders and replaced by the category Sexual Orientation Disturbance This represented a compromise between 2 views – Preferential homosexuality is a mental disorder – Homosexuality is a normal sexual variant The 1973 DSM-II controversy was highly publicized