GENDER AND SOCIETY (CHAPTER 1)
>Every embryo contains “two sets of ducts, one of which will
MANIFESTATION OF GENDER/ BIAS ISSUE
-Women are active in both reproductive and productive
roles (multiple burden)
>”second shift”- women who are working full-time still
contribute significantly more hours to home care than men.
Child care is left mostly to women
-Women- pay gap in workplace (Marginalization)
>Glass Ceiling- invisible barrier that prevent women from
moving into top corporate positions
Women- weaker sex (Physically and emotionally)
(Violence against Women)
Women’s worth ≠ man’s worth (Stereotyping)
“Subordination” in women – little/no influence in public
Sex and Gender
Sex- natural distinguishing variable
>Physical attributes: genitalia, reproductive organs
>Genetic attributes: chromosomes, hormones
SEX IS UNIVERSAL, BIOLOGICAL AND FIXED
DETERMINANTS OF SEX
FEMALE MALE
Genitalia Vagina, clitoris Penis, scrotum
Internal reproductive Uterus, ovaries Testes
organs
Chromosomes XX XY
Hormones Estrogen, testosterone
progesterone
Chromosomes- contains genetic material
- Male have X and Y chromosomes, females have two X
chromosomes
-Female’s ovum and male’s sperm each contain 23
chromosomes
FERTILIZED EGG- known as embryo produced when sperm
and ovum come together in the Fallopian Tube.
-Consist of 46 chromosomes aligned in twenty-three pairs
-X chromosomes –mother; XY- father
Gonads- Testes (male), Ovaries (female)
-If embryo is chromosomally male, one theory is that a gene
on the Y chromosome produces male gonads (testes) at
about sixth week after conception
-If embryo is chromosomally female, female gonads (ovaries)
appear a few weeks later
-Produce the sex-specific hormones
Hormones-
Ovaries produce:
1. Estrogen – hormone which develops female sexual
characteristics and regulates menstruation.
>Testes- release androgens which promote the development
of male genitals and secondary sexual characteristics.
>Testosterone- promotes sexual motivation
>Both male and female produce the sex hormones typically
associated with the other (testosterone and estrogen) but in
much smaller quantities.
Internal Sexual Properties
become the internal reproductive structures appropriate to
the embryo’s sex”
>”Wolffian ducts” (male) – result in vas deferens, seminal
vesicles, and prostate
>”Mullerian ducts”(Female)- become the fallopian tube,
uterus, and inner two-thirds of the vagina
External Sex Structures
>Penis and scrotal sac for males
>Clitoris and vagina for females
Biological definition of Sex (Summary)
BASIS/DETERMINANTS MALE FEMALE
Chromosomes XY XX
Gonads Testes Ovaries
Hormones Testosterone Estrogen
Internal Reproductive Wollfian Ducts Mullerian Ducts
Structures
External Sex Structures Penis and scrotal Clitoris and
Sac Vagina
INTERSEX- most embryos are consistent in 5 biological
definitions of sex
- in around 23/10,000, these five definitions of sex are not
consistent, resulting in what is referred to as intersexed birth
-can be caused by chromosomal level inconsistencies
(abnormal complex of sex chromosomes)
-or caused by hormonal level inconsistencies
Chromosomal Inconsistencies Types:
1. Turner’s Syndrome (X) – sperm fails to divide
properly (nondisjunction), one kind of sperm
produced will neither have X nor Y chromosome. If
sperm fertilizes normal egg, offspring will only have
X chromosome
-Person appears to be a female because although it
lacks ovaries, it possesses some external female
characteristics.
-estimated to occur in about 4/10,000 live births
2. Klinefelter’s Syndrome (XXy Syndrome) –sperm
produced with both X and Y chromosome or two Y
chromosomes, resulting in the XXY and XYY
chromosome abnormalities.
- occurs roughly 9/10,000 live births
-person born with this chromosomal characteristic
has the height of a normal Male, with long legs, an
absent or weak sex-drive, “feminized lips”, some
breast development, and small penis and testes
-Presence of extra X stops development of male
structures, resulting in sterilitiy
-No interest in sex, no testosterone
3. Jacob’s Syndrome (XYY Syndrome) -1/2,00 births
-anatomical male with no physical abnormalities,
except unusual height
-Extra Y chromosome does not result in the person’s
having more androgens than XY male. Able to
reproduce successfully
 4. Triple X Syndrome (XXX or Trisomy X)- 1/2000 live
births
-anatomically females and shows visible signs of
abnormalities, tend to be taller than XX females and
have slightly higher incidence of learning disorders
5. Adrenogenital Syndrome (AGS) or Congenital
adrenal hyperplasia (CAH)
-an XX fetus receives excessive amount of androgens
-Untreated female have normally functioning ovaries
and normal internal female sexual organs but
masculinized external appearance
-Enlarged clitoris to nearly normal-size penis with
empty scrotum
-If treated with cortisol from birth, will have later
menarche than normal but will able to conceive,
lactate and deliver baby normally.
HORMONAL LEVEL
1. Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS)
-fetus that are chromosomally male with genitals
that look more like clitoris than penis.
-cannot be treated by administering androgen after
birth because cells remain incapable of responding
to androgen.
-Develop breasts and feminine body shape and
identify as female.
FETALLY ANDROGENIZED FEMALES
-Chromosomally normal females exposed to excessive
androgens
-birth genitals appear to be male
-“Corrected”by minor surgery, most still reject a female
gender identity with some assuming a male gender identity
and behavior
DHT- LACKING MALES
-Males who cannot produce crucial DHT
>Dihydrotestosterone- hormone with powerful androgenic
actions, causes body to mature during puberty
-Result: female appearing external genitals, at least initially
-Raised as girls and sprout into males in puberty
IS THERE A GAY GENE?
Dean Hamer, scientist emeritus at National Institutes of
Health published a study in 1993 that proposed that Xq28, a
region of X chromosomes might play a role in determining
whether a man was gay.
Simon Levay(1991), University of California, San Diego in La
Jolla, California, found differences in size for a region of the
brain between homosexual and heterosexual men.
-Argued that differences in brain size between homosexual
and heterosexual men could indicate homosexuality results
from genetic factors rather than environmental.
John Michael Bailey (1991), at Northwestern University in
Evanston, Illinois, published results about the genetic
heritability of homosexuality.
-both monozygotic and dizygotic twins were more likely to
be homosexual than were other related siblings. Since twins
share same DNA, Bailey claimed that the cause of
homosexuality was genetical and not environmental.
PRIMARY VS SECONDARY SEX CHARACTERISTICS
Primary Sex Characteristics- Sexual Organs that is present at
birth.
Secondary Sex Characteristics- Changes that emerge during
puberty.
Secondary Sex Characteristic- caused by hormones released
at the time of puberty, usually around 2 years earlier in girls
than boys.
-pubic hair, enlarged breasts, and widened hips of females,
facial hair, and Adam’s apple on males.
Hirsutism- growth of coarse, dark hair in areas where
women typically grow fine hair or no hair at all: above the lip
and on the chin, chest, abdomen, and back.
-increased level of male hormones (androgens)
-Increased level of androgens can lead to hirstuism
Nature VS Nurture
Nature- pre-wiring and influenced by genetic inheritance and
other biological factors.
Nurture- influence of external factors after conception;
product of exposure, life experiences and learning on an
individual
Birth Order and Sexual Orientation
Men with an excess of older brothers are more likely to be
gay
-Blanchard and his colleagues believe in the fraternal order
effect has biological basis in maternal immune responses in
the womb- which they call maternal immune hypothesis
(MIH).
-Bogaert, found that maternal immune response to Y-linked
protein import in male fetal brain development was linked to
men’s sexual orientation.
>Antibodies build up in some women’s bodies with every
male baby they have. At higher concentration, it is possible
that the effect of these antibodies on the protein they target
leads to changes in brain development that can have an
influence on sexual orientation.
GENDER –identifies the characteristics and social behavior of
men and women and the relationship between them.
Gender roles and characteristics are:
1. Not fixed, may change over time
2. May vary from culture to culture
- Gender is distinctive qualities of men and women, the
masculinity and femininity of an individual that are Culturally
created.
-State of being male or female
SEX GENDER
What makes one male and What is masculine or
female feminine
Biologically-determined Socially determined;
culturally determined
Physical characteristics Learned behavior