The Tangle of the Sexes - Neurosexism

[NinaBrooke]

Hello!

I found a very interesting - for me - article in the New York Times. I personally never believed or supported the notion that men and women are so different psychologically or within behaviour. From what I learned all the brain scans are showing no significant difference and is overrated in popular culture . It much rather fuels the so called "battle of the sexes" and makes consensus almost impossible. (Or some therapists rich by trying to promote patterns of behaviour that are supposed to work ..)

Any thoughts?




MEN and women are so different they might as well be from separate planets, so says the theory of the sexes famously explicated in John Gray’s 1992 best seller, “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus.”

Indeed, sex differences are a perennially popular topic in behavioral science; since 2000, scientific journals have published more than 30,000 articles on them.

That men and women differ in certain respects is unassailable. Unfortunately, the continuing belief in “categorical differences” — men are aggressive, women are caring — reinforces traditional stereotypes by treating certain behaviors as immutable. And, it turns out, this belief is based on a scientifically indefensible model of human behavior.

As the psychologist Cordelia Fine explains in her book “Delusions of Gender,” the influence of one kind of categorical thinking, neurosexism — justifying differential treatment by citing differences in neural anatomy or function — spills over to educational and employment disparities, family relations and arguments about same-sex institutions.

The Mars/Venus view describes a world that does not exist, at least here on earth. Our work shows that sex does not define qualitatively distinct categories of psychological characteristics. We need to look at individuals as individuals.


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/op...=fb-share&_r=0

[Guest121613]

More fun facts.

John Gray was once married to Barbara DeAngelos. Both divorced each other. Both made an incredible amount of money writing books and self help seminars how how make relationships work.

I agree that neurologically, there are not many, if any differences between female and male brains that would impact behavior. I think behavior differences are more of a result chemical (hormonal) balances and cultural influences which then drive gender behavior.

Woman are estrogenic and men are testerical (I just made that up LOL)

[NinaBrooke]

Originally Posted by lostforkate

More fun facts.

John Gray was once married to Barbara DeAngelos. Both divorced each other. Both made an incredible amount of money writing books and self help seminars how how make relationships work.

I agree that neurologically, there are not many, if any differences between female and male brains that would impact behavior. I think behavior differences are more of a result chemical (hormonal) balances and cultural influences which then drive gender behavior.

Woman are estrogenic and men are testerical (I just made that up LOL)

Well, the neurosexism suggests simple solutions for complex problems. Plus, on the other hand it makes it easy to find excuses for not taking responsibility. (oh men do that, oh she is a woman). And labeling people as belonging to a biological group much rather than a social group (the latter can be influenced). Also, for centuries, there was the - sociocultural - widespread notion that men are superior to women, and women did not have access to science, let alone help conduct or shape science. This might make also some difference in the last century, where feminism, queer theories, and female researchers also adress different agendas.

Plus, there is the notion that men and women are not always so easy to distinct, since there are many "genderbenders" even within hormones or biology. This opens up to the transgender debatte.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delusions_of_Gender

"In the first part of the book, "'Half Changed World', Half Changed Minds", Fine argues that social and environmental factors strongly influence the mind, making many conclusions about innate gender differences dubious. She also discusses the history and impact of gender stereotypes and the ways that science has been used to justify sexism. The second part of the book, "Neurosexism," Fine criticizes the current available arguments and studies supporting sex differences in the mind in order to debunk them, focusing on methodological errors and logical gaps. In the third part of the book, "Recycling Gender," she argues that the use of faulty science to justify gender stereotypes can negatively impact future generations."

[Guest121613]

Well, I don't think I answered ur question right? Not to make an excuse of being a male, I simply low on the emotional IQ scale.... just kidding. ;-)

It would be a good study to know if gender benders "masculine woman" are low on estrogen, high on male hormones, or simply have an envy for men, or some other reason. Or gender bender in the other direction, feminine men.

Phsychology, no matter how fun it can be to study, but is a social science, and the answers are frequently overdetermined. But I fully agree there is sexism, whether neuro, or otherwise, can skew research and lead public perception away from the facts.