Chapter 11 Gender and Behavior 2015 Cengage Learning

Chapter 11 Gender and Behavior © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Stereotypes LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Explain the nature of gender stereotypes and their connection with instrumentality and expressiveness. • Discuss four important points about gender stereotypes. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Stereotypes, continued • Gender – is “the state of being male or female” (see Figure 11. 1 for more terms). • Gender stereotypes – “are widely shared beliefs about males’ and females’ abilities, personality traits, and social behavior” (see Figure 11. 2). • Instrumentality – “an orientation toward action and accomplishment” – refers to masculine traits. • Expressiveness – “an orientation toward emotion and relationships” – refers to feminine traits. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Adapted from Ruble, T. L. (1983). Sex stereotypes: Issues of change in the 70 s. Sex Roles, 9, 397 -402. Copyright © 1983 Plenum Publishing Co. Adapted by permission of Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers and the author.

Gender Stereotypes, continued • With regard to gender stereotypes, it is important to remember that: – There is much variability within gender stereotypes, and they interact with race and socioeconomic status. – Boundaries between male and female stereotypes have become less rigid since the 1980 s. – The traditional male stereotype is seen as more complimentary. This is called androcentrism – or “the belief that the male is the norm. " © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Explain how meta-analyses have helped researchers who study gender. • Articulate the gender similarities hypothesis. • Summarize the research on gender similarities and differences in verbal, mathematical, and spatial abilities. • Understand the research on gender similarities and differences in personality, social behavior, and psychological disorders. • Give two explanations for why gender differences appear larger than they actually are. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued • Meta-analysis – “combines the statistical results of many studies of the same questions, yielding an estimate of the size and consistency of the variable’s effects. " – The gender similarities hypothesis states: o o o Men and women are similar on most psychological variables. When there are differences, they are small. Exaggerated differences create costs in the workplace and in relationships. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued • Cognitive abilities – Although there are no gender differences in overall intelligence, there are subtle differences in specific cognitive abilities. – Verbal abilities o o Girls start speaking sooner, have larger vocabularies and better reading scores. Boys fare better on verbal analogies, but are 3 -4 times more likely to stutter and 510 times likely to suffer from dyslexia. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued – Mathematical abilities o Recent large meta-analyses show there are no longer gender differences in general mathematical performance or achievement. o Exceptions to the findings: Ø Males have a more positive attitude toward math. Ø In high school, boys start to outperform girls in complex math problem solving. Ø Males outperform females at the high end of the distribution (see Figure 11. 3). © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued – Mathematical abilities o Since the pattern emerges late, researchers suggest it is due to differences in socialization. Ø Boys take more math courses, which stress problem solving. – Spatial abilities o The largest gender difference in cognitive abilities is in spatial abilities, or the ability to perceive and mentally manipulate shapes and figures. o Males consistently outperform females in the ability to perform mental rotation of a figure in three dimensions (see Figure 11. 4). © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Source: From Kalat, J. W. (2013) Biological Psychology (11 th ed. ) Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Reproduced with permission. www. cengage. com/persmissions

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued • Personality traits and social behavior – Self-esteem • Meta-analyses show that females score somewhat lower than males on measures of global self-esteem. • However: – There is no support for a dramatic drop for girls during adolescence. – Differences in self-esteem may not apply to all ethnic groups. – Self-esteem may be domain specific. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued Personality traits and social behavior, continued – Aggression – “involves behavior that is intended to hurt someone, either physically or verbally. " • Gender differences depend upon the form that aggression takes. • Males are consistently more likely to engage in physical and verbal aggression. • Males’ aggression is associated with crime (see Figure 11. 6). © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Data from Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2011

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued Aggression, continued • Females are more likely to use: – Relational aggression - behaviors that hurt another’s feelings (e. g. , using the ‘silent treatment’), or – Indirect aggression – behaviors that do not involve confronting the target directly (e. g. , spreading rumors). © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued Personality traits and social behavior, continued Sexual attitudes and behavior • A meta-analysis by Peterson & Hyde (2010, 2011) found that men are slightly more likely to: – engage in sexual activity – have more sexual partners – have more permissive attitudes about sex • Men do have more casual sex, use more pornography, and masturbate more often. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued Sexual attitudes and behavior, continued • Differences (for both gay and straight), are: 1. Men have more interest in sex. 2. The connection between sex and intimacy is more important to women. 3. Aggression is more often linked to sexuality for men than it is for women. 4. Women’s sexuality is more easily shaped by cultural and situational factors. • Women are socialized to feel more guilt and shame in response to sex. • Overall, however, these differences are small and may reflect self-report bias. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued – Emotional expression • Women are more likely to express emotion, but women and men experience emotions equally. • Women are better able to recognize emotions in others’ facial expressions and nonverbal cues. – Communication • Contrary to stereotype, men talk and interrupt more than do women. • However, when women have more power at work or in relationships, they interrupt more. • Who interrupts whom may depend upon status and males often have more status. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued • Psychological disorders – Antisocial behavior, alcoholism, and substance abuse disorders are more common in men. – Women are more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, and PTSD. – Females are more likely to self-harm. – Females attempt suicide more often, but males have more completed suicides. – Females show higher rates of eating disorders. – These are linked to distorted body image, which “consists of one’s attitudes, beliefs, and feelings about one’s body. " • Traditionally, pressure to be ultra-thin has affected white, and Asian-American females. • Recently, this trend is spreading to other ethnic groups and body insecurities are affecting males as well. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued • Putting gender differences in perspective – Gender differences are quite small (see Figure 11. 7) and similarities typically outweigh the differences. – Gender accounts for a small proportion of the differences between individuals. – When gender differences are found, they do not mean that one gender is better than another. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender Similarities and Differences, continued • Differences in perspective, continued – Differences seem larger, according to social role theory, because they are exaggerated in our culture. – Differences also seem larger, according to social constructionism theory, because we construct our own realities in accordance with societal expectations. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Biological Origins of Gender Differences LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Summarize evolutionary explanations for gender differences. • Review the evidence linking gender differences in cognitive abilities to brain organization. • Describe the evidence relating hormones to gender differences, both prenatally and after birth. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Biological Origins, continued • Evolutionary explanations – Gender differences are found in many cultures. – Evolutionary psychologists argue these differences come from a time in which different demands were placed on males and females for survival. o (e. g. , aggression favored in males to compete for mates) o (e. g. , males’ spatial skills favored for demands of hunting) © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Biological Origins, continued • Brain organization – The cerebral hemispheres – are “the right and left halves of the cerebrum, which is the convoluted outer layer of the brain. " – The left hemisphere is more active in verbal and mathematical processes, whereas the right hemisphere specializes in visual-spatial skills and other non-verbal processes. – Males have more cerebral specialization than females. Thus, they depend more heavily on the right hemisphere for visual -spatial tasks, and on the left hemisphere for verbal tasks. – Females have a larger corpus callosum, which allows greater communication between hemispheres when completing similar tasks. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Biological Origins, continued Brain organization, continued – Limitations of brain organization explanations of gender differences: o The findings are inconsistent o Differences in socialization occur as developmental changes in the brain are emerging and environmental experiences shape the brain o Type of task matters o Overall, male and female brains are more similar than they are different © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Biological Origins, continued • Hormonal influences – Hormones – “chemical substances released into the bloodstream by the endocrine glands” o Prenatal gender differentiation Ø Hormones can exert powerful influences on the brain before birth. Ø (e. g. , female fetuses exposed to androgens [male hormones] in utero, are born with masculine traits including mental abilities and choice of toys and play behavior. ) © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Biological Origins, continued • Sexual and aggressive behavior – Testosterone plays an important role in sexual desire for both men and women. – Researchers have attempted to link testosterone to aggressive behavior, but the results are inconclusive because aggressive behavior can also cause increases in testosterone. – Overall, it is unclear how large a role biology plays in gender differences in behavior. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins of Gender Differences LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Define socialization and gender roles, and describe Margaret Mead’s findings on the variability of gender roles and their implications. • Explain how reinforcement and punishment, observational learning, and self-socialization operate in gender-role socialization. • Describe how parents, peers, schools, and the media serve as sources of gender-role socialization. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued • Socialization – “is the acquisition of the norms and roles expected of people in a particular society. " • Gender roles – “are cultural expectations about what is appropriate behavior for each gender. " • How are gender roles acquired in our culture? © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued • Margaret Mead’s (1950) Study: • Three tribes in New Guinea were studied. – In one (the Mundu-gumor), both genders followed our masculine role expectations. – In another (the Arapesh), both genders adopted feminine roles. – In the third (the Tchambuli), roles were reversed. • This suggests that gender roles are socialized, not innate. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued • Processes in gender-role socialization – Reinforcement and punishment o o o Gender roles are shaped by consequences. Parents, teachers, peers, and others reinforce “gender-appropriate” behavior. Parents, and fathers in particular, are much less tolerant of gender-inappropriate behavior, especially in their sons. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued Processes in gender-role socialization, continued – Observational learning o o Observation learning – “occurs when a child’s behavior is influenced by observing others, who are called models. " According to social cognitive theory, young children are especially likely to imitate samegender adults. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued Processes in gender-role socialization, continued – Self-socialization • Around two to three years of age, children identify themselves as “male” or “female” and begin to organize their world along gender lines. • They develop gender schemas, or “cognitive structures that guide the processing of genderrelevant information. " © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued • Sources of gender-role socialization – Parents o o o A meta-analysis of 172 studies shows that parents encourage play activities that are “gender-appropriate. " Boys have less leeway to play with “feminine” toys than girls do with “masculine” toys. The picture books parents buy tend to depict gender-stereotypic activities. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued Sources of gender-role socialization, continued – Peers o Between ages four and six, children tend to separate into same-gender groups. o Play takes different forms for boys and girls. Ø Boys play in larger groups, roam further from home, and engage in more “rough and tumble” play. o Boys and girls are critical of peers who violate traditional gender norms © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued Sources of gender-role socialization, continued – Schools o Grade-school texts often ignore or stereotype girls and women. o Gender bias also appears in teachers’ treatment of boys and girls in class. Ø Boys are given more attention, called on more frequently, and advised to go into math and science fields, even when girls’ grades are higher in these areas. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued Sources of gender-role socialization, continued – The media o Females appear less often on TV, are less likely to be employed, more likely to be younger, and more likely to appear in secondary and comedy roles. o Males are more often shown as competent, reaching goals, and showing ingenuity. o TV commercials are especially likely to emphasize traditional gender roles. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Environmental Origins, continued Sources of gender-role socialization, continued – The media, continued o American children watch a lot of TV. o Those who watch more, hold more stereotyped beliefs about gender than those who watch less TV. o TV commercials contain content which is very gender stereotyped (see Figure 11. 8). © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Adapted from Kahlenberg & Hein, 2010

Gender-Role Expectations LEARNING OBJECTIVES • List the key elements of the traditional male role, and identify common problems associated with the traditional male role. • List the major expectations of the female role, and identify common problems associated with the female role. • Describe two ways in which women are victimized by sexism. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued • Role expectations for males – Five key attributes comprise the male role: 1. Achievement 2. Aggression 3. Autonomy 4. Sexuality 5. Stoicism © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued • Problems with the male role – Pressure to succeed o Pressure to succeed creates undue stress. o It also limits time spent with families. – The emotional realm o Cultural emphasis on suppressing the expression of emotion can lead to stressrelated disorders. o Suppressed emotions also can create problems in relationships. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued Problems with the male role, continued – Sexual problems o Obsession with sexual performance can create anxiety that interferes with sexual responsiveness. o Men may confuse feelings of intimacy and sex. o Sexualization of intimacy can cause inappropriate anxiety when men feel affection for another man, promoting homophobia “intense fear and intolerance of homosexuality. " © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued • Role expectations for females: – The marriage mandate – The motherhood mandate o The above two expectations focus on heterosexual success – “learning how to attract and interest males as prospective mates” – Work outside the home (in addition to having a satisfying family life) © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued • Problems with the female role – Diminished career aspirations o Young women continue to have lower career aspirations than young men with comparable backgrounds. o This phenomenon has been named the “abilityachievement” gap. o Many women worry that they will be seen as less feminine and will not be able to attract a mate if they are too successful. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued Problems with the female role, continued – Juggling multiple roles o o Women who “want it all” experience more conflicts than do men who work and have families. Most men have one major responsibility: work. In contrast, working women have major responsibilities in three roles: work, spouse, and mother. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued Problems with the female role, continued – Ambivalence about sexuality o Many women have problems enjoying sex. This occurs for many reasons: Ø Girls are taught to deny or suppress sexual feelings. Ø Girls are taught to emphasize pursuing romance over sexual experience. Ø Sex is associated with fear of pregnancy and, sometimes, pain. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued • Sexism: A special problem for females – Sexism – “is discrimination against people on the basis of their gender” – Two common problems are associated with sexism: 1. Economic discrimination 2. Aggression toward females © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender-Role Expectations, continued – There are two forms of economic discrimination: 1. Differential access to jobs o Women are less likely to hold positions with decision-making authority. 2. Differential treatment on the job o o Women still earn lower salaries for the same jobs (see Figure 11. 10). The “glass ceiling” effect © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Data from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research 2012

Gender-Role Expectations, continued Sexism, continued • Aggression toward females – Sexual harassment is “unwelcome conduct on the basis of gender”, and has two forms: 1. Quid pro quo harassment – employees are expected to give in to sexual demands in exchange for employment, or special favors 2. Hostile environment harassment – employees are subjected to sexist or sexually oriented comments and such © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Gender in the Past and in the Future LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Explain the basis for traditional gender roles and why they are changing. • Define gender-role identity, and discuss two alternatives to traditional gender roles. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

The Past and the Future, continued • Why are gender roles changing? – Historically, gender roles have resulted from divisions of labor – aggression in men to allow for hunting, and nurturing in women to allow for childrearing. – However, traditional roles no longer make economic sense. Machinery has replaced much manual labor, and both parents can rear children. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

The Past and the Future, continued • Alternatives to traditional gender roles – Gender-role identity – “is a person’s identification with the qualities regarded as masculine or feminine. " – However, many do not want to conform to traditional gender roles and experience strain when pressured to do so. – In addition, relationship satisfaction is lower in heterosexual couples with traditional gender-role identities. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

The Past and the Future, continued Alternatives, continued • Androgyny – “refers to the coexistence of both masculine and feminine personality traits in a single person” (see Figure 11. 11). – According to Bem (1975), androgynous individuals experience less restrictive constraints on their behavior and can function more flexibly. – In addition, individuals whose partners are either androgynous are happier. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

The Past and the Future, continued Alternatives, continued • Gender-role transcendence – The concept of androgyny does have limits. – Gender-role transcendence argues we should move past gender-role labels altogether. o Instead of dividing human characteristics into masculine and feminine categories, we should use gender-neutral terms such as “instrumental” and “expressive. " © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

The Past and the Future, continued Alternatives, continued • A gender-free society? – The gender-role transcendence perspective embraces “moving beyond gender roles” as a way of perceiving themselves and others. – However, some critics are concerned that the decline of traditional gender roles will undermine our economic and social order. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Application: Understanding Mixed-Gender Communication LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Distinguish between expressive and instrumental styles of communication. • Describe gender differences in nonverbal communication and speaking styles. • Explain how the different socialization experiences of males and females might contribute to communication differences. • Describe four reasons for why one should use caution in analyzing theories of mixed-gender communication. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Application: Understanding Mixed-Gender Communication, continued • Instrumental and expressive styles – An instrumental style “focuses on reaching practical goals and finding solutions to problems. " – An expressive style “focuses on expressing tender emotions easily and being sensitive to the feelings of others. " © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Application: Understanding Mixed-Gender Communication, continued • Nonverbal communication – Women: • Are often more skilled in nonverbal communication (better at reading and sending messages) • Are more facially expressive • Value online expressive communication (e. g. social media) • Are more likely to display negative emotions • Are more likely to use psychologically coercive tactics (e. g. guilt manipulations) • Are more likely to reject attempts at reconciliation © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Application: Understanding Mixed-Gender Communication, continued • Speaking styles – Women speak more tentatively (“I may be wrong”), especially in mixed groups, whereas men tend to be more decisive in their speech. o o o This may be used to express sensitivity in language, or It may be a sign of lower status In either case, it may be due to gender-specific socialization © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Application: Understanding Mixed-Gender Communication, continued • The clash of two “cultures” – Males and females are socialized in different “cultures”, which carry over into adult life. o o Men learn a language of “status and independence”, and women learn a language of “connection and intimacy. " Men use conversations to “achieve the upper hand”, while women try to “preserve connections between people. " © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Application: Bridging the Gender Gap, continued The clash of two “cultures”, continued – Differences develop in childhood – Contributing socialization factors include: o Parents o Teachers o Media o Childhood social interactions with peers Ø Boys’ and girls’ play activities are structured such that they encourage typical genderrole behaviors. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.