Cross Cultural influences into gender.

(8+16)

AO1

One aspect of gender role that appears to be universal is the division of labour. In most cultures, men hunt and otherwise provide resources while women look after children & prepare food. Munroe & Munroe found in a cross-cultural study that every society has some division of labour between genders. This universality suggests that gender roles are biological rather than cultural.

Discuss evolutionary explanations of gender roles.

(8+16)

AO1 Mate strategies

Evolutionary psychologists suggest that there are differences between men and women as they are subject to different selective pressures. Males do well to mate as frequently as they can and select women who are more fertile (young) and healthy - smooth skin, glossy hair, red lips and thin waist

Discuss social influences on gender roles

(8+16)

AO1 Parents

Parents may teach their children about gender related behaviour through operant conditioning. Behaviours which produce positive consequence such as compliments or attention are more likely to be repeated than those that produce negative consequences. Social learning suggests neat parented

Discuss psychological explanations of gender development (Gender Schema Theory)

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AO1

Created by Martin and Halverson, gender schema theory addresses the main issue with Kohlberg’s theory, which is that sex-typed behaviour emerges long before gender constancy. Gender Schema theory suggests that gender identity alone provides children provides children with the motivation to assume sex-typed behaviour patterns. 

Discuss explanations into Gender dysphoria. (Psychological & Biological)

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PSYCHOLOGICAL EXPLANATIONS

AO1  Mental illness 

A number of psychologists have proposed that gender dysphoria is related to mental illness, which in turn is linked to some childhood trauma or maladaptive upbringing. For example, Coates et al. (1991) produced a case history of a boy who developed GID, proposing that this was a defensive reaction to the boy's mother's depression following an abortion. The trauma occurred when the boy was three, a time in development when a child is particularly sensitive to gender issues. Coates et al. suggest that the trauma may have led to a cross-gender, fantasy as a means of resolving the ensuing anxiety.

Discuss the role of genes and hormones in gender development.

(8+16 marks)


AO1 Genetics

The role of genetics in the role of gender development can be seen during the first six weeks, there are no structural differences between the embryos of those who are genetically female (XX) and those who are genetically male (XY). Six weeks after conception when sexual differentiation should occur, the genes determine whether their gonadal ridges become testes or ovaries. Fetal hormones specific to the sex chromosomes of an individual are produced at this time, where the Y chromosome of males initiates the synthesis of H-Y antigen, a protein that leads the gonadal ridges to grow into testes. If such antigen is injected into a female fetus at six weeks then a genetic female with male testes will result. Alternatively if drugs preventing H-Y from functioning are injected into a genetic male, they will be born with ovaries.

Discuss the Biosocial approach.

(8+16) This is not one of my strongest essays, so you might want to include more. (Sorry)

AO1

The biosocial explanation of gender was advanced by Money and Ehrhardt, who proposed that once a biological male or female is born, social labeling and differential treatment of boys and girls interact with biological factors to steer development. This theory was an attempt to integrate the influences of nature and nurture. Essentially they argued that
it is sex of rearing that is the pivotal point in gender development. Biology is likely to determine sex of rearing as a baby is sexed at birth and everything else follows from that. However, as we have seen, some individuals are intersexes and may be mistyped at birth. Money and Ehrhardt predicted that, if a genetic male is mislabeled as a girl and treated as a girl before the age of three, he would acquire the gender identity of a girl. Thus the key to gender development, according to Money and Ehrhardt, is the label that a person is given.