Chapter 6: Hormones, Sex, and Gender
This chapter explores the intricate relationships between hormones, brain, behavior, sex, and gender. It introduces the field of behavioral endocrinology, examining how hormones influence behavior and conversely how behavior can affect hormone levels. The chapter delves into sexual differentiation, explaining how hormones shape biological sex characteristics and brain organization. It examines evidence for sex differences in psychology and the brain, and discusses complexities in studying sex differences. The chapter concludes by examining the diverse and variable nature of sex, gender, and sexual orientation, and their biological and environmental influences.
Learning Objectives
- Explain the basic terminology and principles of hormones and hormone–behavior interactions, including organizational and activational effects.
- Describe the process of sexual differentiation and the role of hormones.
- Analyze the evidence for and limitations of sex differences in brain structure and function.
- Discuss the role of hormones in aggression and parental behavior.
- Define and differentiate sex, gender, and sexual orientation, and examine their complexities and variations.
- Evaluate some biological and environmental factors contributing to gender identity and sexual orientation.
