Reasons for Emphasis on Gender Differences - Essay Example

Contemporary issues in psychology Reasons for emphasis on gender differences Introduction According to Hyde (2005), too much emphasis is placed on differences between the genders. Many approaches in psychology argue that gender differences are not only biological, but also psychological. Gender refers to the social and psychological component and psychological explanations of the gender differences are guided by approaches that emphasize that the differences in gender roles constitute social order. Gender thus refers to the roles, expectations and perceptions that societies holds on the sexes and mainly play out in personality and behaviour of the individual (Chrisler and McCreary 2010). According to the social role model approach, the gender differences emanate from the early exposure to sex role socialization whereby the dominant culture defines the appropriate ways of thinking and behaviour for males and females. The females are socialised to more cautious and nurturing in their roles unlike males who are socialised to be more aggressive in their pursuits (Chrisler and McCreary 2010). According to the gender similarities hypothesis by Hyde (2005), males and females depict similarities on most, but not all psychological variables such as the gender difference on attitudes about sex in uncommitted relationships. According to Hyde, the sexual selection produces largest gender differences between males and females on acts such as intrasexual competition and strategies for selecting and attracting mates. Male jealousy is more linked with sexual infidelity unlike women jealousy that is more linked with emotional infidelity (Mendes 2007). Another contributing reason is the differences in preference for aggression since males are more likely to use violence in order to attain resources and status than their female counterparts. Lightdale and Prentice (1994) reviewed gender differences in aggression in playing video games and found that aggressiveness of males aimed at facilitating the acquisition of status. The gender differences can be attributed to the peer interactions in school due to differential gender socialisation that creates emotional and cognitive differences. For instance, the boys and girls are assigned different play activities and usually have different customs. Girls usually tend to be more verbal and cooperative in their play unlike boys who engage in more competitive and physical games in their play activities (Halpern 2000). As a consequence of the social structure and roles, the society is organized in a predictable and consistent manner that allows us predict our behaviour in the contemporary society. In this case, the males are expected to maintain physical integrity of their families when they take the husband-father role while females are expected to take the expressive role in order to provide social and emotional support in the family (Halpern 2000). Gender differences are also emphasised in the personality of males and females. According to the Big Five personality theory, females report high levels of traits such as agreeableness, conscientiousness and extraversion that their male counterparts. On the other hand, males are perceived to be less agreeable and aggressive in their personality due to placing much priority on materialistic, economic and physical security. The aggressive personality of males can be evidenced in crime statistics since males are more likely to be arrested for violent crimes (Ferguson 2009). Another reason why gender differences are emphasised in the differing economic development of countries. For instance, the gender differences are smaller in rich and developed countries that advocate for self-direction and individualistic decision-making than unlike poorer countries that have embedded cultures and collectivism (Halpern 2000). There are gender differences in educational attainments since females are perceived to have lower cognitive abilities than their male counterparts. Females obtain higher grades in writing tests, but males have higher grades in mathematics tests. The gendered patterns of cognitive abilities are attributed to different developmental patterns between boys and girls or prenatal hormone exposure (Halpern 2000). The girls tend to score highly on verbal and motor skills while boys are better in visual-spatial skills due to the gender differences in their early experiences and biological predispositions (Halpern 2000). Barnett and Rivers (2004) outlines that the gender differences in leadership has attracted intense debate and subsequent research in order to challenge the prevailing stereotypes that led men to occupy most of the leadership positions across the different economic sectors. According to statistics, women prefer non-female leadership in their workplace, but the feminism approaches to psychology has countered this survey by outlining out that there are not differences in leadership approaches between men and women. However, many cultural stereotypes continue to hold that females are poor in decision-making unlike men who can take decisive action in critical and unstructured situations (Halpern 2000). The religious attitudes and opinions towards males and females in another reason why many psychological approaches place too much emphasise on the gender differences. The religious beliefs and practices about the origin of human gender, the religious roles and rights of male and female different significantly thus contributing to gender differences (Barnett and Rivers 2004). In some religious, females are forbidden from performing certain religious functions or holding positions in the religious organisation. The religious perspectives have disapproved certain family structures, abortion and same-sex marriages thus reinforcing the traditional gender roles and family structures (Barnett and Rivers 2004). The psychologists outline that gender differences exist during development sine girls are more neurologically and physically advanced at birth while boys have more muscular development, but are highly vulnerable to hereditary anomalies. The boys’ superior mathematical skills entails better grasp of geometry due to advanced visual-spatial abilities (Kimura 1999). The parental behaviour towards boys and girls contribute to gender difefernces since girls and boys experience different treatment from their fathers. For instance, the girls are protected and granted limited autonomy unlike boys that are treated roughly. The social cognitive learning theory outlines that parental power and influence impacts on sex roles in girls since fathers are masculine and approve the feminine activities of the mother (Canary, Emmers-Summer and Faulkner 1997). The mass media, books and television have influence gender-role typing since many television shows and books portray the male actors or characters as aggressive, rational and powerful. The females are portrayed as good in caring for children and females are less likely to be the main characters on television shows. The children hold such stereotyped gender roles thus contributing to gender differences in roles in adult life (Canary, Emmers-Summer and Faulkner 1997). According to the evolutionary psychological perspective, the individuals consider the adaptive costs and benefits before displaying a particular trait in various contexts (Buss 2004). The exhibition of an evolved gender difference along a particular trait thus is likely to be diminished by contextual features that enhance the adaptive costs of displaying such trait thus increasing the benefits of using alternative traits to pursue adaptive goals (Buss 2004). For instance, both male and females professors will display minimal gender differences in the use of physical violence due to their status in the society and ability to use alternative methods of conflict resolution (Canary, Emmers-Summer and Faulkner 1997). Conclusion The claims of gender differences can hurt women opportunities in the workplace and hinder couples from resolving conflicts amicably due to communication, psychological and social differences that are emphasized by different psychological approaches. The gender differences are mainly attributable to the natural environment and include cognitive sex differences, differences in personality and aggression, and differences in developmental patterns. Socialisation is the main cause of gender differences since it has led to distinct differences between male and female activities, statuses, roles and opportunities in the society. Gender differences have led to gender inequality such as economic inequality since women have not equal access to resources and leadership positions since men are stereotyped to be more assertive and competitive in economic positions. Females are stereotyped to be more supportive, sensitive and passive and thus are awarded clerical positions in most economic organisations. Reference List: Barnett, R & Rivers, C. 2004. Same difference: How gender myths are hurting our relationships, our children, and our jobs. New York: Basic Books. Buss, D.M. 2004. Evolutionary psychology, 2nd ed. Boston: Ally & Bacon. Canary, D.J., Emmers-Summer, T and Faulkner, S. 1997. Sex and gender differences in personal relationships. London: Guilford Press. Chrisler, J.C & McCreary, D.R. 2010. Handbook of gender research in sociology, ed 1. London: Springer. Ferguson, T. 2009. Gender differences in robbery. New York: ProQuest. Halpern, D.F. 2000. Sex differences in cognitive abilities, 3rd ed. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Hyde, J.S. (2005). ‘The gender similarities hypothesis’, American Psychologist, 60, pp 581-592. Kimura, D. 1999. Sex and cognition. Cambridge. M.I.T Press. Mendes, J. 2007. Gender differences in romantic jealousy. New York: ProQuest. Williams, C.L. 1988. Gender differences at work: women and men in non-traditional occupations. New York: University of California Press. Read More