Developmental Theories of Gender

While sex refers to the biological difference between females and males, the term has mostly been confused by gender which refers to the cultural variances expected of men and women by the society in accordance to their sex. This thought is carried through by the biological theories of gender which tries to explain the gender differences. From the theories, it is believed that the DNA which dictates women’s and men’s behavior, plus hormones, play a huge role in determining the gender differences (Child psychology, 2013). The theories also state that brain structure of women and men is different, something which influences how women turn out to be good caregivers of children and men evolves into providers and protectors of the families. 

From this theory, once someone is born male, then his DNA makeup and hormones will ensure that that the person develops male attributes or embraces his gender and perform the roles expected of males. The two 23rd sex-dictating chromosomes play fundamental roles in causing the gender difference. This means that once someone is born, he or she cannot change either his gender or sex. This is not entirely true. In as much as one cannot change his or her sex after birth, they can behave or take up the opposite gender roles, hence one can change his or her gender (McLeod, 2014). In the diversity world of today, a lot has been accepted with gender being considered as a scale and not two categories of either male or female. Men are at liberty to express the feminine side and women are allowed to express their masculine traits. All that matters is the extent to which they are capable of expressing their opposite traits. As such, the distinction between sexes and gender as expressed by the biological theories does not necessarily exist hence biological sex does not entirely determine gender. There are other factors that include biological, cultural and environmental which affect and can change someone’s gender. 

References

Child Psychology (2013). The Biological Explanation for Gender Differences. Retrieved from http://hubpages.com/education/Biological-Explanation-for-Gender-Differences

McLeod, S (2014). Biological Theories of Gender . Retrieved from www.simplypsychology.org/gender-biology.html