Psychology of Gender Essay
Psychology of Gender Essay

Psychology of Gender Essay

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  • Pages: 4 (1022 words)
  • Published: December 29, 2021
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Introduction

Gender can be described as the set traits or characteristics which distinguishes different biological sex such as whether male or female. Some cultures especially for non-western countries do not agree that is directly linked to biological sex. Masculine and feminine are the major character traits which defines gender. Psychology of gender is field by itself which explores the gender formation and identify cognitive differences between the male and female. To clear identify the differences between female and male, psychologists take distinctive perspectives to determine whether gender formation is as result genetic make-up (biological perspective), evolutionary factors or nature and neurochemical or whether it as a result of socialization and culture (nurture). Psychology of gender involves study of gender to reveal the sex differences, cognitive development of child’s gender and contrib

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utors which proposes the impact of hormones and social learning on gender development. There are psychological debate on how gender is formed whether by nature or by nurture. Some psychologists argue that gender formation for a child whether boy or girl is influenced more by the social environment in which the child grows up than the genetic characters that the child inherits. Study of sex differences in psychological terms owes that both men and women have almost similar behaviors and child have power to influence their gender role. For example children can select which parent to imitate through their emotions towards them.

Additional Insights Gained from Topics of Units 7-11

The topics in the above mentioned Units has created many insights to the students on the interactive nature of men and women in their social environment, the insights on women’s efforts to combine their work and family issues,

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insights on how women suffer depressions than men among others (Hyde and Quest, 2013). The units was generally taught for the individuals of different genders to generally understand themselves. The men have traditionally been overlooked as compared to women and therefore psychology of women tries to open up perspectives of viewing gender roles and how these can be changed. The units also revealed that experiences of women differs quantitatively from those of men due to the social perceptions (Hyde and Quest, 2013).

There exist stereotypes on gender in the societies in which males are considered to be dominant, independent and capable to manipulate and control the environment while women are considered loving, sensitive and actively supportive in social relationships more so when performing family roles and parental care (Kimmel and Messner, 2013). Women are also viewed to suffer from pressure hence depression, very aggressive and sexually moral compared to men counterparts. Again for sex stereotypes men are more aggressive than women while women appears to be more sensitive than men. Psychological understanding of age differences reflects that children exhibit rigid gender stereotype from the moral reasoning as compared to adults (Levy et al, 2006).

Psychology of gender finds the differences in verbal and nonverbal behaviors between men and women. In this case, the way women communicate is psychologically different from the way men communicate (Miller, 2011). The way the two sexes communicates psychologically appear as if they were raised from different cultures. Women are very smart in nonverbal communication and exhibits its immediate behavior than men. Many scholar argue that though women are good in nonverbal communication than men, such nonverbal behaviors they have communicate lack of

social power (Miller, 2011).

Psychological insights on gender and sexuality shows that transgender children feel alienated from others in the society and therefore grow up hating their biological make-up and this mostly leads to depression hence high chances of committing suicide for children (Crawford and Unger, 2004). Therefore gender identity and sexuality on children psychologically creates worries to the parents on who will positive perceive and love their child. Gender identity classifies an individual as either masculine or feminine while gender itself lays down distinction between male and female based on social or cultural perspectives (Levy et al, 2006).

In the Units learned, violence against women is gender-based violence in which women are the victims. The violence has long term side effects on both physical, mental and emotional well-being on women. It can either be physical or sexual violence which general affects the intimidate relationships (Wathen and MacMillan, 2003). The violence cause psychological and emotional wounds on women which can make them leave a miserable life full of depressions in the long run. The gender based violence also affects the ability of women to perform family roles and, make contributions to the society. Psychological disorders are mental distress and illness as a result of depression and stress in life while psychotherapy is the process of treating them (Wathen and MacMillan, 2003). Therefore the unit learned created more insights on the various types of psychotherapy which includes behavioral therapy, psychoanalytic therapy, humanistic therapy and cognitive therapy.

What is learned from Units 7-11?

The units content are very beneficial to the students as they enables them improve in their personal relationships. By understanding the psychology of gender is crucial for identifying

distinctive characteristics of males and females hence knowing how to treat gender class without hurting their interests. Women in the society have largely been undervalued as compared to men which has created differences in their treatments especially at work place or sharing of responsibilities. Women are as powerful as men in the society and therefore they should be treated equally to their male counterparts.

References

  1. Crawford, M., & Unger, R. (2004). Women and gender: A feminist psychology. McGraw-Hill.
  2. Hyde & Else-Quest, J.S. (2013) Half the Human Experience, 8th edition.Belmont, CA WADSWORTH Cengage
  3. Kimmel, m. & Messner, M. (2013) Men’s Lives, 9th edition, Boston, MA-Pearson Education, Inc.
  4. Levy, K. N., Meehan, K. B., Kelly, K. M., Reynoso, J. S., Weber, M., Clarkin, J. F., & Kernberg, O. F. (2006). Change in attachment patterns and reflective function in a randomized control trial of transference-focused psychotherapy for borderline personality disorder. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 74(6), 1027.
  5. Miller, A. N. (2011). Men and women's communication is different-sometimes. Communication Currents, 6(1), 1-2.
  6. Wathen, C. N., & MacMillan, H. L. (2003). Interventions for violence against women: scientific review. Jama, 289(5), 589-600.
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