Gender Differences!

 Hello

Welcome back. This week's topic is gender and family life! I love this topic because I believe that each one of us, male or female, has qualities and gifts that make the world a better place. The intend of this post is not to brag women over men or vice versa. In my opinion, both genders are equal, meaning that their differences can complete one another and should allow them to have the same experiences. 

However, girls and boys are biologically different. Dr. Brenda Todd, a senior lecturer in psychology at City University, said, “Biological differences give boys an aptitude for mental rotation and more interest and ability in spatial processing, while girls are more interested in looking at faces and better at fine motor skills and manipulating objects. When we studied toy preference in a familiar nursery setting with parents absent, we saw the differences consistent with these aptitudes.  Although there was variability between individual children, we found that, in general, boys played with male-typed toys more than female-typed toys and girls played with female-typed toys more than male-typed toys.”

Male brains and female brains are structured so differently. Most men have better spatial awareness. In an experiment, students were blindfolded and then walked through the maze of tunnels that ran underneath the campus. When the women were asked where a college building was, they were not sure. Men, however, retained a sense of what direction they’d moved. On the other hand, women have a better memory for detail. Students were asked to wait in a cluttered room while an experimenter got something ready. Women tended to remember most of the items in the room explaining in detail where they all were, while men were more likely to not remember. You might say that they have been modeled by a sexist society, but researches show that even infants have differences. Baby boys, for example, look longer at an object, such as a truck, and baby girls stare at faces.

Evolutionary psychologist Diana Fleischmann said that for example, animals don’t have cultures, but there are still very large differences between males and females. Saying that men and women have different aptitudes isn’t sexism. It’s a statement about the true nature of the world.

Differences are not visible only in infants. A new study says girls on social media are more at risk for depression than boys. The study observed that as hours spent on social media platforms as Facebook and Instagram go up, depression increases for girls at a higher rate than boys. Girls spend 3-5 hours a day on social media, compared to 1-3 hours for boys. More social media use was linked to poorer body image, poorer sleep, online harassment, and low self-esteem for both boys and girls. According to the study, girls were more likely to have low self-esteem, body weight dissatisfaction, be unhappy with their appearance, and be involved in online harassment as a victim or perpetrator.

It may be that girls engage in more harmful online behaviors because they have poorer mental health. The study points out that social media use can impact sleep in a variety of ways. Using social media at night could mean going to bed later, incoming notifications or a fear of missing out at night could cause sleep disruptions, and exposure to a bright screen can interfere with the brain's melatonin production and circadian rhythm. Finally, anxiety caused by online harassment, social comparisons, and body image concerns can impact the quality of sleep.

From these studies, we can understand and notice how girls and boys are so biologically different. There are certain different structures in brains, behavior, and human anatomy. However, in my opinion, these differences should unite men and women in whatever they do and wherever they are. Could you imagine a world with the same people? It would be so boring and without progression. I’m so glad that we live in a world with so many differences; we need to learn that they can unite and not separate.