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Psychology 320: Psychology of Gender and Sex Differences

November 15

Lecture 25

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Office Hour InvitationsNovember 15, 11:30-2:30, Kenny 3102

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A little R&R ….(Review and Reflect)

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Cognitive Theories of Gender Development

1. What theories illustrate the cognitive view? (continued)

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1. describe the stages of gender development identified by cognitive developmental theory.

2. review evidence that supports and fails to support cognitive developmental theory.

By the end of today’s class, you should be able to:

4. discuss the development of gender schemas.

3. define the term gender schema.

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What theories illustrate the cognitive view? (continued)

• Two theories illustrate the cognitive view:

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1. Cognitive Developmental Theory

Maintains that children pass through three stages of cognitive development during which they acquire gender constancy: the belief that their “gender” (i.e., sex) is irreversible and fixed.

Stage 1: Gender identity (or gender labeling).

Stage 2: Gender stability.

Stage 3: Gender consistency.

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Research has provided support for the ages associated with these stages:

E.g., Rubel et al., 2007: Assessed gender stability and gender consistency in children aged 3 to 7:

Gender Stability and Consistency As a Function of Age (Rubel et al., 2007) 10

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However, research has not supported the following assumptions of the theory:

(a) after gender constancy is achieved, children begin to “value” their gender identity and, thus, demonstrate sex-typed preferences and behaviour.

(b) after gender constancy is achieved, children become more rigid about the appropriateness of sex-typed preferences and behaviour.

12Self-Rigidity As a Function of Age

(Rubel et al., 2007)

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• Consider the following:

A father and his son were involved in a car accident in which the father was killed and the son was seriously injured. The father was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident and his body was taken to a local mortuary. The son was taken by ambulance to a hospital and was immediately wheeled into an operating room. A surgeon was called. Upon seeing the patient, the attending surgeon exclaimed, “Oh my God, it’s my son!”

Can you explain this?

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2. Gender Schema Theory

Maintains that children engage in sex-typed behaviour as a consequence of social learning and cognitive development, both of which contribute to the

development of gender schemas.

Proposed by Sandra Bem as an advancement over the two-dimensional model of gender.

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Gender schemas: Organized knowledge structures about the sexes, their characteristics, and their preferences; networks of associations related to sex and gender.

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• Consider the following:

A father and his son were involved in a car accident in which the father was killed and the son was seriously injured. The father was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident and his body was taken to a local mortuary. The son was taken by ambulance to a hospital and was immediately wheeled into an operating room. A surgeon was called. Upon seeing the patient, the attending surgeon exclaimed, “Oh my God, it’s my son!”

Can you explain this?

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Nurse

Female

Gentle

Homemaker

Empathetic

Teacher

Skirts

Nurturant

Female Schema

Mom

Sister

Makeup

Cooking

SewingLong hair

Social worker

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Male

Ambitious

Breadwinner

Independent

Business executive

Neck ties

Assertive

Male Schema

Father

Brother

Suits

Football

HockeyShort hair

Construction worker

Surgeon

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Form among children as a consequence of the socio-cultural emphasis on sex and gender.

Once formed, children relate their self-concept to their gender schemas; as a result, gender schemas influence self-beliefs, in addition to beliefs about

others.

Children only require “gender identity” in order to develop gender schemas.

Nurse

Female

Gentle

Homemaker

Empathetic

Skirts

Nurturant

Self Schema (Female)

Mom

Sister

Makeup

Cooking

SewingLong hair

Social worker Teacher

Self

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Male

Ambitious

Breadwinner

Independent

Business executive

Neck ties

Assertive

Self Schema (Male)

Father

Brother

Suits

Football

HockeyShort hair

Construction worker

Surgeon

Self

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1. describe the stages of gender development identified by cognitive developmental theory.

2. review evidence that supports and fails to support cognitive developmental theory.

By the end of today’s class, you should be able to:

4. discuss the development of gender schemas.

3. define the term gender schema.