Sex differences don’t disappear as a country’s equality develops – sometimes they become stronger
Sex differences don't disappear as a country's equality develops – sometimes they become stronger The Conversation
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Gender Equality and Psychological Sex Differences: A Report
Introduction
The more gender equal a society is, the more similar men and women will be, adopting more similar interests, personality traits, and behavioral patterns. Or so many people seem to believe.
Statements like this might sound like truisms, but science shows reality may be more complicated.
The Gender-Equality Paradox
Several studies have found that some psychological sex differences, such as those in personality, are larger in more gender-equal countries. The same goes for countries that are more educated, prosperous, and otherwise have better living conditions. This has become known as the gender-equality paradox.
The Study
In a recently published study, our team investigated which psychological sex differences are associated with living conditions and how widespread this pattern might be. The study covered a range of themes, from personality and cognitive functions to sexting and circadian rhythm. Our study focused on mostly western countries but used some data from other countries such as India and Kenya.
Methodology
We reviewed 54 articles that analyze the relationship between magnitudes of psychological sex differences and country-level indicators of living conditions. We also used data from 27 meta-analyses (reviews of previous research) of psychological sex differences and conducted new analyses to determine associations between sex differences and national economy, education, health, gender equality, and more.
Findings
Each study used data from at least five countries, usually spanning several decades. We grouped the many psychological dimensions covered by these studies into six categories: personal characteristics, cognition, interpersonal relations, emotion, academic preferences (such as a pull towards science, technology, engineering, and math), and morals and values.
Our findings paint a complex picture, showing that variation in psychological sex difference did not follow a uniform pattern. In countries with better living conditions, males and females are more alike in some regards and more different in others.
Personality and Emotion
Differences in personality characteristics were frequently found to be larger in countries with better living conditions. This includes traits such as extroversion, agreeableness, and altruism, which research seems to show are more strongly associated with women. The same was true for sex differences in some dimensions of emotion, specifically negative emotions in which females tend to score higher, such as shame.
Sexual Behavior
There were exceptions to the gender-equality paradox. Sex differences in sexual behavior, like engaging in casual sex, were consistently found to be smaller in countries with better living conditions. This is probably because women in these countries, where there are more permissive norms, have better access to contraceptives.
Cognitive Abilities
For cognitive functions, sex differences were sometimes larger, sometimes smaller in countries with better living conditions. Interestingly, the sex differences were larger in cognitive domains where women have strengths. For instance, episodic memory and verbal ability, where females typically do better than males, saw larger sex differences as living conditions improved. Females got better at episodic memory when they had better living conditions. By contrast, sex differences in semantic memory and mathematical ability, where males tend to do better, decreased when living conditions improved.
Conclusion
In most cases, psychological sex difference magnitudes were not significantly associated with living conditions. This suggests that, in general, psychological sex differences are not greatly affected by living conditions but seem instead quite stable. Even in cases where the magnitude of sex differences did vary in relation to living conditions, the pattern of male and female advantages usually remained the same.
In summary, we found little support for the idea that psychological sex differences will vanish as societies develop. Policymakers probably cannot rely on that if they hope to achieve equal distributions of men and women in different professions. Instead, it appears that the dominant feature of psychological sex differences is their robustness in the face of social change.
SDGs, Targets, and Indicators
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SDG 5: Gender Equality
- Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere
- Target 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic, and public life
- Target 5.6: Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences
The article discusses the gender-equality paradox, which is relevant to SDG 5. The paradox refers to the finding that some psychological sex differences, such as those in personality, are larger in more gender-equal countries. This challenges the assumption that gender equality leads to greater similarity between men and women.
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SDG 4: Quality Education
- Target 4.1: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable, and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes
- Target 4.2: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care, and preprimary education so that they are ready for primary education
The article mentions that research often finds females get higher grades at school across different subjects. This indicates the importance of quality education in achieving gender equality.
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SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
- Target 8.5: By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value
The article suggests that psychological sex differences are robust in the face of social change, indicating that achieving equal distributions of men and women in different professions may require more than just improving living conditions.
| SDGs | Targets | Indicators |
|---|---|---|
| SDG 5: Gender Equality | Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere | – |
| SDG 4: Quality Education | Target 4.1: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable, and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes | – |
| Target 4.2: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care, and preprimary education so that they are ready for primary education | – | |
| SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth | Target 8.5: By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value | – |
Behold! This splendid article springs forth from the wellspring of knowledge, shaped by a wondrous proprietary AI technology that delved into a vast ocean of data, illuminating the path towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Remember that all rights are reserved by SDG Investors LLC, empowering us to champion progress together.
Source: theconversation.com
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