Transcript Biological Theories of Gender Differences

Psychology 320:
Gender Psychology
Lecture 15
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Invitational Office Hour Invitations,
by Student Number for October 22nd
11:30-12:30, 3:30-4:30 Kenny 2517
20612099
27446103
35758093
46269098
61654083
76241090
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Exam Preparation Tips
• The exam will include questions unique to the textbook
content, questions unique to the lecture content, and
questions that reflect overlap between the two sources
of information. You are encouraged to study both
sources of information thoroughly.
• The goal of the exam is to assess your mastery of the
course content. Accordingly, the more thoroughly you
know the course content, the stronger your performance
will be.
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• With respect to the textbook:
 Create questions with the title and subtitles of each
section. Use the content of each section to answer
the questions that you have generated.
 Identify the primary points of each section with key
words or phrases and use these key words or
phrases to test yourself.
 Familiarize yourself with all terms that are bolded or
italicized.
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• You need not memorize the names of researchers
who conducted idiosyncratic studies or the dates of
those studies. However, you should familiarize
yourself with the names of all major theorists (e.g.,
Bem).
• The exam questions will assess your ability to recall,
synthesize, and apply course content. Examples:
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Recall:
Which of the following is not among the attributes
associated with the Cult of True Womanhood?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Purity.
Submissiveness.
Domesticity.
Piety.
Emotionality.
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Synthesize:
Compare and contrast traditional sexism, modern
sexism, hostile sexism, and benevolent sexism.
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Apply:
Which of the following human characteristics is least
likely to have evolved through the process of natural
selection?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
The desire for fatty foods.
Bipedalism (i.e., having two feet, walking upright).
Earlobes.
The desire to belong to social groups.
Hair.
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• In order to correctly respond to questions that require
synthesis and application, recall of information is
necessary. The correlation between recall questions
and synthesis/application questions typically
exceeds .70.
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One-Minute Paper Results (Sections 001 and 002 Combined)
100
90
80
70
60
Females
Males
50
40
30
20
10
0
Hostile Sexism
Benevolent Sexism
Discrimination
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Violated
Loved
Sad
Frightened
Awkward
Contemptuous
Inferior
Indifferent
Cherished
Uneasy
Disgusted
Abused
Protected
Humiliated
Surprised
Hopeless
Alone
Helpless
Depressed
Angry
Weak
Words to Describe How Your
Experiences Made You Feel
Feeble
Confused
Indebted
Frightened
Incapable
Privileged
Repulsed
Belittled
Expendable
Vulnerable
Cared for
Superior
Frustrated
Small
Misunderstood
Lazy
Embarrassed
Anxious
Special
Offended
Degraded
Powerless
Challenged
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Biological Theories of Gender Differences
1. What biological theories have been proposed to
explain gender differences? (continued)
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By the end of today’s class, you should be able to:
1. distinguish between natural selection, sexual
selection, intrasexual selection, and intersexual
selection.
2. generate examples of characteristics that are the
product of distinct forms of selection.
3. discuss sex differences in reproductive capacity and
minimal parental investment and their impact on
psychological processes.
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What biological theories have been proposed to explain
gender differences? (continued)
1. Evolutionary Theories (continued)
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(b) Intersexual selection
 Occurs when organisms of one sex prefer to mate
with organisms of the opposite sex that possess
specific, desirable characteristics.
 Organisms that possess characteristics that are
desirable to the opposite sex are more likely to
mate and to pass these characteristics on to the
next generation.
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 Biologists have come to believe that natural
selection and sexual selection operate through
differential gene reproduction.
 Evolutionary explanations of gender differences
emphasize sex differences in reproductive capacity
and the minimal parental investment that is
required to produce offspring.
Reproductive capacity: Males > Females.
Minimal parental investment: Females > Males.
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 Given sex differences in reproductive capacity and
minimal parental investment, evolutionary
psychologists maintain that males and females have
developed distinct strategies to maximize their
reproductive potential.
In turn, these distinct strategies have resulted in
divergent psychological characteristics among
males and females.
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 Example 1: Gender Differences in Sexual Behaviour
Hypothesis:
Given sex differences in reproductive capacity and
minimal parental investment, males have evolved to
seek more sexual partners than females and are
less discriminating in their choice of sexual partners
than females.
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Evidence:
Clark and Hatfield (1984)
Had confederates approach students of the
opposite sex on campus.
After saying “Hi, I’ve been noticing you around
campus lately and I find you very attractive,” the
confederates asked the students 1 of 3 questions:
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Percent Who Agreed
Male
Female
“Would you go out on a date
with me tonight?”
50
55
“Would you go back to my
apartment with me tonight?”
69
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“Would you have sex with me
tonight?”
75
0
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Buss and Schmitt (1993)
Asked unmarried male and female participants how
many sex partners they would like to have in the
next month, the next year, the next 5 years, and so
forth, through to the end of their lives.
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20
Males
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
Desired
Number
10
of
Partners
5

0 






Females



1
2

3


4
5
Time (Years)



10
20
Life
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 Example 2: Gender Differences in Mate Preferences
Hypothesis:
Given sex differences in reproductive capacity and
minimal parental investment, males have evolved to
value appearance in a mate more than females, and
females have evolved to value resource potential in
a mate more than males.
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Evidence:
Buss and Angleitner (1989; see also Buss et al.,
2005)
Had participants rate several characteristics for
desirability in a potential mate: 0=irrelevant,
3=indispensable.
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Mean Rating
Male
Female
Pleasing disposition
2.54
2.69
Sociability
2.10
2.32
Neatness
1.95
1.90
Dependability
2.54
2.77
Good health
2.17
2.17
Good looks
2.10
1.68
Good financial prospects
1.11
2.03
Ambition and industriousness
1.84
2.46
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Biological Theories of Gender Differences
1. What biological theories have been proposed to
explain gender differences? (continued)
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