Gender

• What are the concepts that can explain gender?

  Biases

  Priming

  Schemas
• How do Biases explain gender?

  Biases are errors in processing information - how we process gender
• What can extreme Biases lead to?

  They can lead to prejudice, discrimination and inequality
• What are the 3 biases?

  Alpha - Saying men and women identify with one gender (A man is a man)

  Beta - ignoring the differences between genders (Ignores different needs for each gender - everyone is the same)

  Conformation - negative thoughts on gender - notice info that fits in with this view quicker
• How does priming explain gender?

  Sex roles stereotypes - Thoughts that there is traditional roles and behaviours for men and women - Prime us to believe/expect the gender role behaviours

  Gender roles priming gender behaviour - Shown in media - Women is shown as talking kindly and caring - girl is watching this and it primes her to behave in the same way in a situation
• What is gender dysphoria?

  Feeling of discomfort between gender identity and sex
• How do schemas explain gender?

  Gender schemas = Information on genders

  Martin and Halverson - gender schemas effecting memory - Girl thinks nursing is for girls and engineers are for boys - searches info about nurses and fits in with schema - mistakes a boy nurse for a girl - gender inconsistent info confirms schema
• What is gender schematic?

  Associating characteristics with gender (men are aggressive and women are calm and caring)
• What is gender a-schematic?

  attach little significant to gender
• What are the strengths?

  We should be neither just alpha or beta bias = both incomplete explanations - we should consider both - both have some important similarities and differences

  Fowler et al - People asked to write lists of gender typical behaviours - cold pressor test (arms in cold ice water) - men who wrote about women felt less pain - REASEARCH
• What are the weaknesses?

  Exaggerate cognitive explanation - social context is also important - gender behaviours being rewarded and punished - cognitive approach is not a full explanation