Chapter 10: Becoming a Woman Becoming a Man: Gender Identity & Gender Roles

1. Chapter 10: Becoming a Woman Becoming a Man: Gender Identity & Gender Roles For use with Human Sexuality Today (4th Ed.) Bruce King Slides prepared by: Traci Craig

2. Chapter Overview • Gender Constructs • Biological Influences • Development Variations • Gender Identity “Disorder” • Gender and Sex as Social Constructs • Psychological Theories • Gender Roles

3. Gender Constructs • How do you know you are a man or a woman? • Physiology • Genitals, Genes • You just know? • Psychological • Sociological

4. Bem’s Sex Role Classification • Masculinity and Femininity • Bem Sex Role Inventory: Masculine, Feminine, Androgynous, Undifferentiated

5. Gender Stereotypes • Oversimplified, rigid beliefs that all member of a particular sex have distinct behavioral, psychological, and emotional characteristics. • Valuing only one set of characteristics vs. Androgyny • Gender Identity: One’s sense of being a man or a woman.

6. Biological Influences • Chromosomes: 23 pairs1 pair determines genetic sex of the child. • Father’s sperm determines genetic sex • XX—Genetic Female, XY—Genetic Male • BUT: sometimes XX genes develop male anatomy, sometimes XY genes do not.

7. Hormones • Female development is the default • Male development requires testosterone during the first 2 months of conception • 5th-6th wk of pregnancy—primitive gonads • Wolffian duct system or Mullerian duct system

8. Hormones • Week 7 of pregnancy • Masculization occurs (or not) • Testosterone develops the Wolffian duct system and the Mullerian system is absorbed by the body.

9. Hormones • Once the Mullerian or Wolffian ducts degenerate then the complete INTERNAL reproductive organs have developed.

10. Variations in Development • Irregularities in prenatal development can lead to ambiguous genitals intersexuals • Klinefelter’s syndrome: XXY or XXXY • Biological men with masculine size but poor muscular development, breasts, hips, small penis and shrunken testes, low sexual desire. • Testosterone helps but still confused about gender identity

11. Variations in Development • Turner’s syndrome: XO • Biological women with nonfunctioning ovaries, short, infertile, skeletal abnormalities, normal intelligence • Given Estrogen to develop secondary sex characteristics (breasts) • Infertilityself concept problems, but no gender identity problems

12. Hormonal Variations • Hermaphroditism: born with male & female reproductive systems. • Usually genetic females with one ovary and one testicle. • External genitalia are ambiguous in appearanceraised as boys, but develop breasts and menstruate at puberty.

13. Hormonal Variations • Pseudo-hermaphroditism • Proper set of gonads (they match genes) • External genitalia are ambiguous or of the opposite sex. • Women: Adrenogenital syndrometoo much masculinizing hormone during fetal development. • Mistaken for boys at birth, clitoris & labia enlarged to resemble penis & testicles.

14. Hormonal Variation • Adrenogenital syndromesurgical correction of genital appearance, and adrenal hormone cortisone treatment • Raised as girls, but have gender identity and gender role problems. Heterosexual and fertile

15. Hormonal Variation • Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome: body does not respond to testosterone • Biological men (XY & Testes) with female external genitals (clitoris, short vagina, labia) • Raised as girls, breasts and hips develop at puberty. Feminine in appearance and behavior and attracted to male partners.

16. Hormonal Variation • DHT deficiency syndrome: body does not convert testosterone properly • Internal male structure, external female genitals. Raised as female until puberty. • At puberty, testicles descend, voice deepens, penis grows • Culture with 3 sexes in the Dominican Republic village where these individuals were born.

17. Sex Reassignment at Birth • Male Twins: 1 Circumcision incident • Surgeryfemale external genitals • ‘Female’ twin—Tomboy, depression and suicidal as a teen. • Then mastectomy, male hormones, restore the penis. • He then married and adopted his wife’s children.

18. Gender Identity Disorder • Gender dysphoriabiological sex does not match gender identity • Distress with anatomy—’trapped in the wrong body’ • Transsexualscommon term but now DSM refers to this as Gender Identity Disorder

19. Gender Identity Disorder • Not necessarily homosexual. • Not transvestism. • Causes: perhaps hormones affect prenatal brains, parental preference for a boy or girl • Treatment: children: discourage cross gender behavior • Treatment: adults: Sexual reassignment

20. Sex Reassignment • Live as the sex they want to be for 1-2 years prior to the surgery • Hormones to develop secondary sex characteristics. • Prepare family and friends. • Surgery is meant to lessen the feeling of gender dysphoriaexternal validation of sense of self

21. Gender & Sex: Social Constructs • Sex: biological features (or the act) • Gender: psychological, social, cultural aspects: traits, norms, stereotypes, and roles. • Biological Determinism—only two options • Defined by genitals: anything not male or female must be corrected • Intersexed individuals—more than two options • Transgendered: gender role in the body of the opposite sex

22. Freudian Theory • Libido: sexual energy focused in the erogenous zone • Oral stage: age 0-1—focus on mouth • Anal stage: age 1 ½ - 3—focus on holding in and expelling feces (potty training) • Phallic stage: age 3-5—Oedipus complex • Castration anxiety and penis envy

23. Social Learning Theory • Operant conditioning: reinforce gender congruent behavior • Imitating models: children imitate their parents (What do mommies do? What do daddies do?) • These two things can both occur. Imitate same sex parent and then that behavior becomes reinforced.

24. Cognitive Development Theory • Imitate parent that is most like the child. • Know that they are boy or girl. • Gender Constancy: knowing gender does not change (girls can’t grow up to be daddies) • Driven my motivation to master the behaviors typical of one’s gendermaintain a good self-image.

25. Theories of Gender Role • Gender roles are culturally specific norms about expected attitudes and behaviors. • Gender role identity: extent to which a person attempts to fulfill a gender role • Individualist Theory: personality develops early and is stable and these traits determine the extent to which a gender role is adapted.

26. Microstructural Theory • Society’s expectations predict how people will behave. • Androgyny is healthyflexibility • Gender roles change over time as society evolves. • Instrumental and Expressive traits

27. Gender Role Development • Socialization: internalizing society’s beliefs about gender—begins at birth. • Gender stereotypes: oversimplified preconceived beliefs that apply to anyone in a specific group • Females: passive, dependent, cooperative, seeks social approval, expressive, emotional. • Males: independence, dominance, competition, aggression, success, achievement, and emotional repression.

28. Gender Role Development • Fathers are more likely than mothers to reinforce gender stereotypes. • Offer stereotypic toys, praise stereotypic traits. • React negatively to children playing with gender incongruent toys. • Gender schema: set of ideas about gender roles that children create from their interaction with the environment.

29. Gender Role Development • Gender applied to objects and tasks. • Changing diapers vs. Changing oil • Cats vs. Dogs • Peers and teachers reinforce gender role development: Tomboy vs Sissy • Religion and Textbooks • Self-construal: independence vs. interdependence

30. Role of the Media • Television—early childhood • Boy characters are active, noisy, aggressive • Girl characters are concerned with appearance, attracted to boys, and need help • Sesame Street: central characters are boys or men; female characters are dependent and nurturing

31. Developmental Gender Differences • Social structuralist: social structure leads to psychological sex differences • Evolutionary value in behavioral differences • Adults: gender role transition is underway • Women have entered the work force • Move towards androgyny • Women becoming more masculine (not men becoming more feminine)

32. Gender Roles & Sexual Relations • Victorian-era: female sexuality was more passive, weaker and less fulfilling • 1950s: female and male sexuality very similar • Recent review: women have milder sex drive • Women thought of sex less often, fewer fantasies, masturbate less frequently • Other mammalian species: females highly sexual and promiscuous

33. Gender Roles & Sexual Relations • Men are more interested in physical aspects of sex; women value love and nurturance. • Women have sex for emotional intimacy; men have sex to release sexual tension • Male sexuality not affected by social context, women’s sexual desires are more affected. • Female sexuality is more flexible and adaptive.

34. Gender Role & Sexual Relations • These seem to reflect stereotypes. • These beliefs keep men from expressing emotionshazardous to health and well-being • Stereotypes influence expectations which in turn lead to different career paths and social roles.

35. Microstructural Theories • Role transitions from social change • 1800s love was feminized • Industrialization removed men from the home and began division of roles • Economy occurred outside of the home • Men were the primary breadwinners • Women then were no longer important for the economic well-being of the family

36. Role Strain • Contradictory demands: be sensitive and caring, but also strong and ‘real’ men • For women, pull between being a mother and working in nontraditional jobs. • Women still are paid less, have fewer opportunities for higher level leadership and contend with conflicting sets of expectations.