2074B

• Sex


  Biological categories of people based on whether they are male, female, or outside the binary
• Gender


  Broad sets of identities, traits, interests, roles, tendencies, attitudes, stereotypes, and socialization practices commonly associated with sex
• Sex and gender study was not considered a study in psychology until the 1970s when there was an increase in scholarship of feminist psychology
• Video #1 Sex vs. Gender

  • Women's psychologists challenged the idea the differences between men and women are biological
  • Sex = biological state
  • Gender = sociocultural state
  • They aren't completely different things always
  • People experience sex and gender in a variety of ways
  • Sex is a factor that contributes to people's experience with gender
  • Sex is not just based on what's on the outside of our bodies
  • Sex and gender are both non-binary
  • Society is set up in binary terms making it harder for the people in between those
  • Objects only become masculine or feminine when we put a label on it
• Sex and Gender Binaries

  • Overarching social systems
  • Conceptualize sex (male or female) and gender (masculine or feminine) as consisting of two opposite, non-overlapping categories
  • Our society is based on sex and gender binaries
  • Based on gender essentialism that views gender entities as innate essence that make them what they are
• Critiques of sex and gender binaries: Oversimplifies the complexity of the natural world, e.g., Excludes intersexuality, Invalidates human experiences
• Examples of how we perceive sex and gender based on binary systems

  • Male and female washrooms
  • Girls toys and boys toys (what they are and how they are marketed)
  • Organization of clothing stores
  • Beauty standards (male vs female)
  • Baby showers (gender reveals)
• Gender Identity


  Individual psychological experience of gender
• Gender Identities

  • Boy
  • Girl
  • Man
  • Woman
  • Agender
  • Gender queer
  • Non-binary
• Sex-Gender Correspondence


  Alignment between their gender identity and assigned sex
• Sex-Gender Correspondence

  • Cisgender (aligned)
  • Transgender
• Gender Expression


  How individuals express themselves outwardly
• Gender Roles


  Social roles associated with different sex categories
• Gender Roles

  • Male (provider)
  • Female (mother and caretaker)
• Gender Traits


  Individuals' personality characteristics
• Gender Norms


  Beliefs about proper roles based on sex
• Gender Stereotypes


  Attributes associated with members of different sexes
• Disrupting Sex/Gender Binary

  • Gender Performativity: Gender is something we "do" in front of an audience
  • Based on gender relativism, i.e., gender as a context-dependent construct
  • Both gender and sex are culturally created constructs
  • Gender Trouble occurs due to the misalignment between: Character (i.e., gender role or identity), Costume (i.e., clothing, makeup or other physical attributes used to express gender), Script (i.e., behaviors, attitudes, and actions related to the gender being performed)
• Masculinity and Femininity


  Physical and psychological attributes typically attributed to men and women, respectively
• Traditional conceptions of masculinity and femininity are critiqued for their Western and binary focus
• Psychological androgyny


  The presence of both masculine and feminine traits
• Some researchers advocate using "masculinities" and "femininities" in plural forms to acknowledge diverse gender expressions and performances across multiple contexts
• Cisgender


  Experience a match between gender ID and assigned sex
• Transgender


  Do not experience a match between gender ID and sex
• Agender


  Feeling internally ungendered and don't associate
• Gender Fluid


  Experience shift in gender IDs overtime
• Transsexual


  Those who believe they were born with the body of the other gender and often seek medical gender reassignment
• Transsexual Experiences

  • Male→Female transsexual or trans woman (Assigned sex was male and gender identity is woman)
  • Female→Male transsexual or trans man (Assigned sex was female and gender identity is man)
• Some social interpretations of sex/gender remain similar across cultures and time, while others, like the acceptability of third sex and gender options, change with time and culture
• Sex and gender are powerful schemas or mental frameworks, but people fail to notice the influence of these concepts on everyday interactions
• To emphasize gender as an essential concept, we can make it more visible by flipping the gender norms, holding related discussions directly, and/or recognizing its influence in our lives
• Privileges associated with cisgender, male, and heterosexual identities impact our social understanding of sex and gender
• Intersectionality Theory


  Examines how people's lived experiences differ due to privilege and structural inequality related to their location across demographic categories, such as age, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, ability, etc
• Psychologists adopting an intersectional approach: Ask who is included and excluded in social categories of people studied, Consider the role of structural inequalities in shaping participants' experiences, Look for commonalities in participants' experiences, despite differences in their identities
• Non-Binary Identities Across Cultures

  • Two-Spirit persons in Indigenous communities in Canada (Have an expanded and spiritual view of the world, Ability to mediate and see through the eyes of both sexes)
  • Hijras in India (A separate caste living as neither men nor women, Considered sacred within)
  • Sworn virgins in the western Balkans (Biological females living as men, Unable to merry)
  • Mustergil in Iraq (Women living as men, Can return to the female gender role for marriage)
• Sexual Orientation


  Tendency to develop romantic and sexual attractions based on sex
• Lesbian women are less likely to endorse traditional role attitudes in both private and public spheres, however, gay men are less likely to to support traditional gender role attitudes only in the private sphere
• Impact of Gender Movements on History

  • Human societies are marked by some form of hierarchical social structure and this structure varies from one culture to another
  • Within hierarchies, groups that have more access to education, leadership position and resources are referred to as dominant groups and those with less access are referred to as subordinate groups
  • Sex and gender, along with several other factors shape status hierarchies within societies
  • Most societies across the globe are patriarchal, wherein men as a group rule the society and control how it operates
  • Power imbalances based on group identities have led disempowered groups to organize and advocate for equal and fair treatment
• Women's Movements and the Rise of Feminism: The Three Waves

  • 1848: sought equal treatment of women and men under the law, with economic and voting rights for women
  • 1963: expanded the focus to issues such as domestic violence, sexual harassment, pay equality, reproductive rights, and inclusion of women in research
  • 1992: viewed race, class, sexual orientation, and gender identity as central issues, with intersectional and global perspectives on sex and gender taking precedence