Cognitive differences between sexes

{{significantly problematic}}[[File:Autism Double Empathy 1.png|right|thumb|165px|Women feel and men think, right?]]{{Psychology}}
Differences in male and female [[intelligence|cognitive abilities]] are widely established in the current scientific literature.<ref name="Maeda2012"/><ref name="Scheiber2015"/><ref name="Reynolds1"/><ref name="Hirnstein2014"/><ref name="Kwon2010"/><ref name="Oculus"/>
What is still unclear is how much of these differences is due to [[biological]] and [[genetics|genetic]] differences between sexes, and how much is due to environment and [[culture]].

These studies can lead to controversies very easily, mostly because of the following reasons:
# [[Scientific]] claims about sex differences in mental abilities are misunderstood as [[sexism]]. In truth, scientists do not say that one sex is more intelligent, hence superior, or more stupid, hence inferior, than the other. The studies focus on how, and how much, males and females think differently, and why it is so.
# [[Statistical]] results are misunderstood as general claims about men and women. If ''on average'' a sex performs better/worse in some cognitive task, this does not mean that ''all the people'' of such sex are better/worse in that task. Indeed, studies consistently have many exceptions, and the distributions of men's and women's cognitive abilities overlap a lot. So nothing can be said on the intelligence of a single person just by knowing their sex, but statistics can be used to understand general trends on the whole population of men and women. 
# This topic attracts a lot of [[pseudoscience]], [[anecdotal evidence]], [[bullshit|myths]], and — in the worst case — [[Deceit|dishonest people]] who try to bend the science in order to support their ideas on men and women.

Additionally, to make things more complicated, the brains of [[Transgender|transgender people]] might be quite peculiar, since tensor imaging studies suggest that they present complex mixtures of masculine, feminine, and demasculinized, defeminized regions.<ref>{{cite journal|title=A Review of the Status of Brain Structure Research in Transsexualism|last=Guillamon|last2=Junque|last3=Gómez|journal=Archives of Sex Behaviour|date=2016|volume=45|pages=1615-1648|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1007%2Fs10508-016-0768-5}}</ref>

==Brain anatomy==
[[File:Brain weight age.gif|thumb|right|165px|Average brain weight by sex and age]]
There are some differences between brain structures between the sexes. The brain, however, is a highly complex structure and is still being studied, so none of these, of course, should translate to higher intelligence or having desirable or undesirable behavior traits (after all, that would be grossly reductionist) nor is there conclusive evidence of the extent these structures can be changed by socialization, cultural upbringing, and other forms of nurture or if nature (genes, sex hormones) drives these developments. Nurture, after all, can have a visible effect on the brain, including the wiring.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=De Manzano|last2=Ullén|title=Same Genes, Different Brains: Neuroanatomical Differences Between Monozygotic Twins Discordant for Musical Training|journal=Cerebral Cortex|vol=28|issue=1|pages=387-394|date=2018|url=https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhx299}}</ref> After all, a social, interactive, stimulating environment is suggested to be beneficial to brain structure. 

* Men have larger brain volume and brain weight com­pared to women on a macroscopic scale.<ref name="Ritchie2018">{{Cite journal|title=Sex Differences in the Adult Human Brain: Evidence from 5216 UK Biobank Participants|vol=28|issue=8|year=2018|journal=Cerebral Cortex|pages=2959–2975|url=https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhy109}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Normal weight of the brain in adults in relation to age, sex, body height and weight|journal=Der Pathologe|year=1994|volume=15|issue=3|pages=165-70|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8072950|last1=Hartmann|last2=Ramseier|last3=Gudat|last4=Mihatsch|last5=Polasek}}</ref> The devil is in the details, however, and it shows a more complex picture (this also applies to the other bullet points below): some regions in women's brains are larger than the corresponding regions in men's brains and vice versa.
*The planum temporale and Sylvian fissure were found to be larger and longer on average in men than in women. In contrast, the volumes of the superior temporal cortex, Broca's area, the hippocampus, and caudate were significantly larger in women. The midsagittal areas and fiber numbers of the anterior commissure (connecting the temporal lobes) as well as the massa intermedia (connecting the thalami) were found to be larger in women than in men.<ref name="Elsevier2010">{{Cite book|title=Sex difference in the human brain, their underpinnings and implications|vol=186|year=2010|publisher=Elsevier|url=https://www.elsevier.com/books/sex-differences-in-the-human-brain-their-underpinnings-and-implications/savic-berglund/978-0-444-53630-3}}</ref><ref name="Ritchie2018"/>
*In a study with participants in the 44-77 year age range, men apparently have on average higher raw volume and raw surface areas than women, but at the same time, there was a considerable overlap between the sexes. As well, subregional differences were not at all attributed to brain size. Males also had a larger variance across raw structural measures.<ref name="Ritchie2018"/>
* Men have a higher percentage of white matter whereas women have a higher percentage of gray matter.<ref name="Allen2003">{{Cite journal|title=Sexual dimorphism and asymmetries in the gray-white composition of the human cerebrum|last1=Allen|last2=Damasio|last3=Grabowski|last4=Bruss|last5=Zhang|journal=Neuroimage|date=2003|vol=18|issue=4|pages=880-94|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12725764}}</ref><ref name="Gur1991">{{Cite journal|title=Sex differences in brain gray and white matter in healthy young adults: correlations with cognitive performance|last1=Gur|last2=Turetsky|last3=Matsui|last4=Yan|last5=Bilker|last6=Hughett|last7=Gur|journal=Journal of Neuroscience|date=1999|vol=19|issue=10|pages=4065-72|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10234034}}</ref>
* Women have significantly better connected neural networks compared to men's neural networks, according to a study on people aged 22-35.<ref name="Szalkai2015">{{Cite journal|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0130045|title=Graph Theoretical Analysis Reveals: Women’s Brains Are Better Connected than Men's|last=Szalkai|first=Balazs|first2=Bálint|last2=Varga|first3=Vince|last3=Grolmusz|date=2015|journal=PLoS ONE|vol=10|issue=7}}</ref><ref name="Szalkai2017">{{cite journal|last1=Szalkai|first1=Balázs|last2=Varga|first2=Bálint|last3=Grolmusz|first3=Vince|title=Brain size bias compensated graph-theoretical parameters are also better in women's structural connectomes|journal=Brain Imaging and Behavior|year=2017|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11682-017-9720-0|pmid=28447246}}</ref> According to a study in youths (8-22 years) male brains are optimized for intrahemispheric communication, while female brains for interhemispheric communication.<ref name="Ingalhalikar2014">{{cite journal|last1=Ingalhalikar|last2=Smith|last3=Parker, et al |title=Sex differences in the structural connectome of the human brain |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America|vol=111|issue=2|pages=823-8 |date=2014|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1316909110}}</ref>
*Male and female brains age in different ways, with males preserving more grey matter in the occipital region and women in bilateral inferior frontal lobes, anterior cingulate gyrus, medial thalamus, and hypothalamus.<ref>[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20607753 Gender and age differences in normal adult human brain: voxel-based morphometric study], Takahashi R et al, Hum Brain Mapp. 2011 Jul;32(7):1050-8. doi: 10.1002/hbm.21088. Epub 2010 Jul 6.</ref>

==Cognitive tasks==
It is widely established in scientific literature that men and women on average perform differently in some cognitive tasks, although there is large overlap in performance between the sexes.<ref>[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4198804/ Gender-Stereotyping and Cognitive Sex Differences in Mixed- and Same-Sex Groups], Marco Hirnstein, Lisa Coloma Andrews, and Markus Hausmann, Arch Sex Behav. 2014; 43(8): 1663–1673.</ref> Men show higher spatial intelligence, performing better in tests regarding spatial visualization, spatial perception and mental rotation;<ref name="Linn">{{Cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1985.tb00213.x|title=Emergence and Characterization of Sex Differences in Spatial Ability: A Meta-Analysis|journal=Child Development|pages=1479-1498|vol=56|issue=6|date=1985|first=Marcia C.|last=Linn|first2=Anne C.|last2=Petersen}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Gender differences in cognition: A minefield of research issues|date=2012|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/03033910.1997.1010558158|journal=The Irish Journal of Psychology|pages=386-396|vol=18|issue=4|first=Tadhg|last=Maclntyre}}</ref><ref name="Maeda2012">{{Cite journal|title=A Meta-Analysis on Gender Differences in Mental Rotation Ability Measured by the Purdue Spatial Visualization Tests: Visualization of Rotations (PSVT:R)|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-012-9215-x|journal=Educational Psychology Review|date=2012|pages=69-94|vol=25|issue=1|first=Yukiko|last=Maeda|first2=So Yoon|last2=Yoon}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Impact of cognitive imaging and sex differences on the development of laparoscopic suturing skills|journal=Canadian Journal of Surgery|date=2005|pages=387-393|vol=48|issue=5|first=Tyrone|last=Donnon|first2=Jean-Gaston|last2=DesCôteaux|first3=Claudio|last3=Violato}}</ref><ref name="Oculus">{{Cite journal|date=2016|title=Assessing Mental Rotation Ability in a Virtual Environment with an Oculus Rift|url=https://doi.org/10.1177/1541931215591399|journal=Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting|pages=1849-1852|vol=59|issue=1|last=Foroughi|last2=Wren|last3=Barragan|last4=Mead|last5=Boehm-Davis}}</ref> while women have higher performance in verbal abilities, including speech, writing, and reading.<ref name="Scheiber2015">{{Cite journal|title=Gender differences in achievement in a large, nationally representative sample of children and adolescents|date=2015|url=https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.21827|journal=Psychology in the Schools|pages=335-348|vol=52|issue=4|last=Scheiber|last2=Reynolds|last3=Hajovsky|last4=Kaufman}}</ref><ref name="Reynolds1">{{Cite journal|title=Gender Differences in Academic Achievement: Is Writing an Exception to the Gender Similarities Hypothesis?|journal=The Journal of Genetic Psychology|date=2015|pages=211-234|vol=176|issue=3-4|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/00221325.2015.1036833|last=Reynolds|last2=Scheiber|last3=Hajovsky|last4=Schwartz|last5=Kaufman}}</ref><ref name="Hirnstein2014">{{Cite journal|title=Gender-Stereotyping and Cognitive Sex Differences in Mixed- and Same-Sex Groups|journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior|date=2014|pages=1663-1673|vol=43|issue=8|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-014-0311-5|last=Hirnstein|last2=Coloma Andrews|last3=Hausmann}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Genetic and Environmental Influences on Writing and their Relations to Language and Reading|journal=Annals of Dyslexia|date=2013|pages=25-43|vol=63|issue=1|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s11881-011-0055-z|last=Olson|last2=Hulslander|last3=Christopher|last4=Keenan|last5=Wadsworth|last6=Willcutt|last7=Pennington|last8=DeFries}}</ref><ref name="Kwon2010">{{Cite journal|title=Gender difference in speech intelligibility using speech intelligibility tests and acoustic analyses|journal=The Journal of Advanced Prosthodontics|date=2010|pages=71-76|vol=2|issue=3|url=https://doi.rg/10.4047/jap.2010.2.3.71|first=Ho-Beom|last=Kwon}}</ref>

It can be argued that these differences in mental abilities are not biological but are the result of [[culture]].
That is, [[society]] pushes and trains males in spatial reasoning and females in verbal thinking.
In this regard, studies with young children are very important, because young children have null or very low cultural conditioning/training.

A 2003 study on a sample of 1,279 children and adolescents, 637 males and 642 females, ranging in age between 5 and 19 years, found that females perform higher on certain verbal tasks and males perform higher on certain spatial tasks.<ref name="Lowe2003">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/S0887-6177(02)00162-2|title=Gender differences in memory test performance among children and adolescents|date=2003|last1=Lowe|first1=Patricia|last2=Mayfield|first2=Joan W.|last3=Reynolds|first3=Cecil R.|journal=Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology|vol=18|issue=8|pages=865-878}}</ref>
This result is consistent with previous studies regarding male/female mental abilities.<ref name="Maccoby74">{{cite book|title=The psychology of sex differences|authors=Maccoby and Jacklin|publisher=Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press|year=1974}}</ref><ref name="Born87">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002187018003002|title=Cross-cultural comparison of sex-related differences on intelligence tests|date=1987|last1=Born|last2=Bleichrodt|last3=Van Der Flier|journal=Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology|vol=18|issue=3|pages=283-314}}</ref><ref name="Mann90">{{Cite journal|title=Sex differences in cognitive abilities: A cross-cultural perspective|url=https://doi.org/10.1016%2F0028-3932%2890%2990141-A|journal=Neuropsychologia|date=1990|pages=1063-1077|vol=28|issue=10|first=Virginia A.|last=Mann|first2=Sumiko|last2=Sasanuma|first3=Naoko|last3=Sakuma|first4=Shinobu|last4=Masaki}}</ref><ref name="Grant96">{{cite book|url=|title=Neuropsychological assessment of neuropsychiatric disorders|authors=Grant and Adams|date=1996|publisher=New York: Oxford Press}}</ref> However, the age ranges from these studies consist of people that have experienced considerable cultural conditioning.

A 2006 study on a sample of 38 male and female children, 3, 4, and 5 years old, showed that males performed better than females in a spatial task involving the search of a hidden object, and that the male scores increased with age, while the female scores did not.<ref name="Spetch06">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03194001|title=Age and sex differences in children’s spatial search strategies|date=2006|last1=Spetch|last2=Parent|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|vol=13|issue=5|pages=807-812}}</ref> A previous 1999 study on a sample of 288 male and female children, 4 to 7 years old, found a significant male advantage in tests involving mazes and spatial rotations of shapes.<ref name="Levine99">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.35.4.940|title=Early sex differences in spatial skill|date=1999|last1=Levine|last2=Huttenlocher|last3=Taylor|last4=Langrock|journal=Developmental Psychology|vol=35|issue=4|pages=940-9}}</ref>
However, in both articles it was clear that among the youngest participants (3-4 years old) there were no sex differences yet.

Now the question is: why do these sex differences pop up as children age?

A 2005 study revealed that among boys and girls of low socio-economic status their performance in aerial map tasks and mental rotation tasks showed no significant difference.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Socioeconomic Status Modifies the Sex Difference in Spatial Skill|last1=Levine|last2=Vasilyeva|last3=Lourenco|last4=Newcombe|last5=Huttenlocher|journal=Psychological Science|year=2005|url=https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2005.01623.x}} Link to [https://cogdevlab.uchicago.edu/sites/cogdevlab.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/Levine%20et%20al_2005_SES.pdf PDF]</ref> Reasons for the lack of sex differences among children of low socio-economic status (or rather the existence of them among children of high socio-economic status) were given in the article. The authors suggested that boys and girls in high social-economic status have more access to activities promoting spatial skills (as Lego bricks, puzzles, video games…), and that boys may engage more in these activities because of biological or environmental reasons, getting better at them.

Another study also explored where this gender difference in spatial cognition among children of higher socio-economic status could come from. Although girls showed equal interest in puzzle play, parents were much more supportive when their sons showed interest in puzzle play, which enhanced the quality of the experience for boys disproportionately.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Early Puzzle Play: A Predictor of Preschoolers' Spatial Transformation Skill|last1=Levine|last2=Ratliff|last3=Huttenlocher|last4=Cannon|year=2012|journal=Developmental Psychology|volume=48|issue=2|pages=530-542|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025913}} Link to [https://cogdevlab.uchicago.edu/sites/cogdevlab.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/Levine%20et%20al_2012_Puzzle.pdf PDF]</ref> This indicates that there are no biological differences between the sexes regarding their willingness to play games that involve spatial cognition.

==IQ==
{{main|IQ}}
Statistical data shows that there is no significant difference between the average IQ scores of men and women, although on some tests men show greater variability than women.<ref name="Colom2002">{{cite journal|year=2002|last1=Colom|last2=García|last3=Juan-Espinosa|last4=Abad|title=Null sex differences in general intelligence: Evidence from the WAIS-III|vol=5|issue=1|pages=29-35|journal=The Spanish journal of psychology|url=https://doi.org/10.1017/s1138741600005801}}</ref><ref name="HedgesNowell">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1126/science.7604277|title=Sex differences in mental test scores, variability, and numbers of high-scoring individuals|year=1995|last1=Hedges|last2=Nowell|journal=Science|vol=269|issue=5220|pages=41-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.51.2.77|title=Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns|year=1996|last1=Neisser|last2=Boodoo|last3=Bouchard|last4=Boykin|last5=Brody|last6=Ceci|last7=Halpern|last8=Loehlin|last9=Perloff|journal=American Psychologist|vol=51|issue=2|pages=77-101}}</ref>

==Psychology==

===Personality traits===
Cross-cultural psychometrics studies have shown differences in the distributions of personality traits between men and women.

On the scales measured by the {{wpl|Big Five personality traits||,}} women consistently report higher neuroticism (psychological stress, anger, anxiety, and depression), agreeableness (compassion and cooperativeness), and openness to feelings; while men report higher assertiveness (self-assuredness and confidence without aggressiveness) and openness to ideas.<ref name="Costa2001">{{cite journal|title=Gender differences in personality traits across cultures: robust and surprising findings|last1=Costa|last2=Terracciano|last3=McCrae|journal=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology|year=2001|volume=81|issue=2|pages=322-331|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.81.2.322}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Gender differences in implicit and explicit personality traits|first1=Michelangelo|last1=Vianello|first2=Konrad|last2=Schnabel|last3=Sriram|first4=Brian|last4=Nosek|journal=Personality and Individual Differences|year=2013|volume=55|issue=8|pages=994-999|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2013.08.008}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Gender Differences in Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Psychoticism in 37 Nations|first1=Richard|last1=Lynn|first2=Terence|last2=Martin|journal=The Journal of Social Psychology|year=1997|volume=137|issue=3|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/00224549709595447}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Gender Differences in Personality across the Ten Aspects of the Big Five|first1=Yanna J.|last1=Weisberg|first2=Colin G.|last2=DeYoung|first3=Jacob|last3=Hirsh3|journal=Frontiers in Psychology|year=2011|volume=178|issue=2|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.3389%2Ffpsyg.2011.00178}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Gender Differences in Five Factor Model Personality Traits in an Elderly Cohort: Extension of Robust and Surprising Findings to an Older Generation|first1=Benjamin|last1=Chapman|first2=Paul R.|last2=Duberstein|first3=Slivia|last3=Sörensen|first4=Jeffrey|last4=Lyness|journal=Personality and Individual Differences|year=2007|volume=43|issue=06|pages=1594-1603|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.paid.2007.04.028}}</ref> These sex differences in personality traits can be detected in early childhood<ref>{{cite journal|title=Gender differences in temperament: A meta-analysis|last=Else-Quest|last2=Hyde|last3=Goldsmith|last4=Van Hulle|journal=Psychological Bulletin|year=2006|volume=132|issue=|pages=33-72|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.1.33}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|journal=School Psychology Quarterly|last=Wilgenbusch|last2=Merrell|title=Gender differences in self-concept among children and adolescents: A meta-analysis of multidimensional studies|year=1999|volume=14|issue=|pages=101-120|url=http://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/h0089000}}</ref> and remain fairly constant across adulthood.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Gender differences in personality: a meta-analysis|last=Feingold|journal=Psychological Bulletin|year=1994|volume=116|issue=|pages=429-456|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7809307}}</ref>
Moreover, these sex differences in personality traits are larger in prosperous, healthy, and egalitarian cultures in which women have more opportunities equal with men.<ref name="Costa2001"/><ref>{{cite journal|title= NEO-PI-R data from 36 cultures: Further intercultural comparisons|last=McCrae|journal=International and cultural psychology series. The Five-Factor model of personality across cultures|year=2002|volume=|issue=|pages=105-125|url=http://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1007/978-1-4615-0763-5_6}}</ref>
In particular, Asian and African cultures generally show the smallest sex differences, while European and American cultures (in which living standard and gender equality indexes are higher) show the largest differences.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Universal features of personality traits from the observer's perspective: data from 50 cultures|last=McCrae|last2=Terracciano|journal=ournal of Personality and Social Psychology|year=2005|volume=88|issue=|pages=547-561|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.88.3.547}}</ref>

On average the personalty trait of [[Machiavellianism]], characterized by a duplicitous interpersonal style, a cynical disregard for [[morality]], and a focus on self-interest and personal gain, is higher in males than females. In particular, men are overrepresented among high Machiavellians, while females are overrepresented among low Machiavellians.<ref>Christie, R. & Geis, F. (1970) "Studies in Machiavellianism". NY: Academic Press.</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Using the Machiavellianism instrument to predict trustworthiness in a bargaining game|last1=Gunnthorsdottir|last2=McCabe|last3=VernonSmith|journal=Journal of Economic Psychology|date=2002|vol=23|issue=1|pages=49-66|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-4870(01)00067-8}}</ref>

Accordingly to 2014 [[meta-analysis]] including 355 studies from 13 countries, the personality trait of narcissism is higher in males than females.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = Gender differences in narcissism: A meta-analytic review.|url = https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038231|journal = Psychological Bulletin|pages = 261-310|volume = 141|issue = 2|last = Grijalva|last2 = Newman|last3 = Tay|last4 = Donnellan|last5 = Harms||last6 = Robins|last7 = Yan}}</ref>

Females are on average higher than males in social gregariousness, anxiety, trust, tender-mindedness (e.g., nurturance), and males are on average more assertive and have higher self-esteem.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = Gender differences in personality: a meta-analysis|journal = Psychological Bulletin|date = 1994-11-01|issn = 0033-2909|pmid = 7809307|pages=429-456|volume = 116|issue=3|last= Feingold|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.116.3.429}}</ref> Women are also more sensitive to punishment and men higher in sensation seeking and risk-taking.<ref>{{Cite journal|title = Sex differences in impulsivity: a meta-analysis|journal = Psychological Bulletin|date = 2011|pages = 97-130|volume = 137|issue = 1|url = https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021591|last = Cross|last2 = Copping|last3 = Campbell}}</ref>

===Emotions===
Studies consistently show that women are more prone to express their emotions, both positive and negative, than men.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Chaplin|last2=Hong|last3=Bergquist|last4=Sinha|title=Gender differences in response to emotional stress: an assessment across subjective, behavioral, and physiological domains and relations to alcohol craving|journal = Alcholism, clinical and experimental research|date =2008|pages=1242-50|volume =32|issue =7|url=https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-0277.2008.00679.x}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kring|last2=Gordon|title=Sex differences in emotion: expression, experience, and physiology|journal = Journal of Personality and Social Psychology|date =1998|pages=686-703 |volume =74|issue =3|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9523412}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Yaling Deng|last2=Lei Chang|last3=Meng Yang|last4=Meng Huo|last5=Renlai Zhou1|title=Gender Differences in Emotional Response: Inconsistency between Experience and Expressivity|journal =PLoS One |date =2016|pages= |volume =11|issue =6|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0158666}}</ref>  Such results are not entirely consistent across national and generational boundaries.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gong|last2=Wong|last3=Wang|year=2018|title=Are Gender Differences in Emotion Culturally Universal? Comparison of Emotional Intensity Between Chinese and German Samples|journal=Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology|url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0022022118768434}}</ref>

Females report experiencing emotion contagion (feeling the same emotions of those around them) more often than males.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kevrekidis|last2=Skapinakis|last3=Damigos|last4=Mavreas|title=Adaptation of the Emotional Contagion Scale (ECS) and gender differences within the Greek cultural context|journal = Annals of General Psychiatrics|date =2008|volume =|issue =|url=https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-859X-7-14}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Magen|last2=Konasewich|title=Women Support Providers Are More Susceptible Than Men to Emotional Contagion Following Brief Supportive Interactions|journal = Psychology of Women Quarterly|date =2011|pages=611-616|volume =35|issue =4|url=https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0361684311423912}}</ref>

Women as compared to men report higher fear ratings for all objects and situations related to [[phobia]]s as enclosed spaces, darkness, flying, heights, spiders, snakes, injections, dentists and/or injuries.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Fredrikson|last2=Annas|last3=Fischer|last4=Wik|title=Gender and age differences in the prevalence of specific fears and phobias|journal = Behaviour research and therapy|date =1996|pages=33-9 |volume =34|issue =1|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8561762}}</ref>
Women also report more intense feelings of anger in relation to terrifying situations involving a male.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01544757 |title=Gender differences in anger and fear as a function of situational context |year=1995 |last1=Brody |last2=Lovas |last3=Hay |journal=Sex Roles |volume=32 |pages=47-78}}</ref>
In addition, studies consistently find that women tend to have much higher levels of fear of crime than men.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Stanko|date=1995|title=Women, Crime, and Fear|journal=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science|volume=539|pages=46-58|url=https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716295539001004}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Gender of Crime|last=Britton|first=Dana|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|year=2011|pages=90}}</ref>

Women cry more intensely than men. The reasons for crying differ between the two genders as well, with men crying more in situations of positive appraisal and loss, and women crying more in situations of conflict. However, this need not be considered a biological difference between the sexes per se. It is theorized that men seek ways to deal with their emotions through instrumentation and organization, as opposed to women who seek to deal with their emotions through personal support groups. Additionally, some of the scientific research has shown that male and female differences in crying is related to the ways in which they are reared. Though doubts have been raised as to this theory, the only recourse when it comes to biology involves resorting to clichés like women's more empathic skills and [[Evolutionary psychology|evopsych]] nonsense like men crying was dangerous for the tribe and for women. Evidence of women facing more [[sexual assault]] than men also has to be admitted into the equation, and cannot be dismissed so easily.<ref name="Fischer2000">{{cite book|title=Gender and Emotion: Social Psychological Perspectives|author=Agneta H. Fischer|date=2000|series=Part of Studies in Emotion and Social Interaction}} pp. 145-151</ref>

A meta-analysis study by the German Society of Ophthalmology reports that the average woman cries between 30 and 64 times a year, and the average man cries between 6 and 17 times a year. Boys and girls cry around the same rate until age 13. With that being said, the reasons for such weeping are still inconsistent. Biological explanations have proven to be lacking as there have been similarities between [[pregnant]] women whose bodies produce more of the hormone prolactin and those lacking said hormone. As well, though it's commonly said that women use their tears to manipulate people, evidence is lacking, as more often than not, apparently people cry alone to themselves rather than in public arenas.<ref>{{cite web|title=Frauen und Männer weinen anders [German: Woman and Men Cry Differently]|publisher=Deutsche Ophtalmologische Gesellschaft|date=2009}}</ref>

In relationships, men and women tend to be nearly equal when it comes to bargaining tactics across the board on a wide spectrum of areas, such as reason, charm, giving into the other to make them feel better, to actual threats whether they be physical or emotional, but women are more likely to sulk and cry in order to get their way than men.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Buss|title=Manipulation in close relationships: Five personality factors in interactional context|journal = Journal of Personality|date =1992|pages= 477-499|volume =60|issue =|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1635051}}</ref>

Also, on average women are better than men in emotional interpretation, such as understanding facial expressions.<ref>{{Cite journal|last= Kirkland|last2=Peterson|last3=Baker|last4=Miller|last5=Pulos|title=Meta-analysis reveals adult female superiority in "Reading the Mind in the Eyes" Test|journal =North American Journal of Psychology|date =2013|pages=121-146|volume =15|issue =1|url=http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-09240-009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title = A review on sex differences in processing emotional signals|url =https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.12.022|journal = Neuropsychologia|date = 2012|pages = 1211-1221|volume = 50|issue = 7|last = Kret|last2 = De Gelder}}</ref>

Psychological studies have found better [[memory]] in women than men for emotional events. According to a 2002 [[MRI]] study,<ref>{{cite journal|title=Sex differences in the neural basis of emotional memories|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America|year=2002|last1=Canli|last2=Desmond|last3=Zhao|last4=Gabrieli|volume=99|issue=16|pages=10789-10794|url=https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.162356599}}</ref> highly emotional pictures (like pictures of mutilated bodies) are remembered best, and remembered better by women than by men. In particular, men and women activated different neural circuits to encode stimuli effectively into memory even when the analysis was restricted to pictures rated equally arousing by both groups.

A 2014 meta-analysis<ref>{{cite journal|title=Empathy: Gender effects in brain and behavior|last1=Christov-Moorea|last2=Simpson|last3=Coudé|last4=Grigaityte|last5=Iacoboni|last6=Ferrari|journal=Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews|year=2014|volume=46|pages=604-627|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2014.09.001}} [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5110041 Open Access]</ref> found that: "it is clear that there are sex differences in empathy from [[birth]], and sex differences appear to be consistent and stable across the lifespan (e.g., Michalska et al., 2013;<ref name="Michalska">{{cite journal|title=Age-related sex differences in explicit measures of empathy do not predict brain responses across childhood and adolescence|journal=Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience|last1=Michalska|last2=Kinzler|last3=Decety|year=2013|issue=3|pages=22-32|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2012.08.001}}</ref> O’Brien et al., 2013<ref>{{cite journal|title=Empathic concern and perspective taking: linear and quadratic effects of age across the adult life span|journal=The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences|year=2013|volume=68|issue=2|pages=168-75|last1=O'Brien|last2=Konrath|last3=Grühn|last4=Hagen|url=https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbs055}}</ref>), with females demonstrating higher levels of empathy than males, and children who are higher in empathy early in development continue to be higher in empathy later in development (Eisenberg et al., 1999<ref>{{cite journal|title=Consistency and development of prosocial dispositions: a longitudinal study|journal=Child Development|year=1999|volume=70|issue=6|pages=1360-72|last1=Eisenberg|last2=Guthrie|last3=Murphy|last4=Shepard|last5=Cumberland|last6=Carlo|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10621961}}</ref>). This developmental stability suggests that sex differences are unlikely to be caused exclusively by postnatal experiences (e.g., maternal care), but rather reflect some evolutionarily important difference between males and females that is present, at least in some form, from birth, consistent with reports that empathy is moderately heritable (e.g., Baron-Cohen, 2002;<ref>{{cite journal|title=The extreme male brain theory of autism.|journal=Trends in Cognitive Sciences|last2=Baron-Cohen|year=2002|volume=6|issue=6|pages=248-254|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12039606}}</ref> Chakrabarti and Baron-Cohen, 2013;<ref>{{cite book|title=Understanding the genetics of empathy and the autistic spectrum. In: Baron-Cohen S, Tager-Flusberg H, Lombardo MV, editors. Understanding Other Minds: Perspectives from developmental social neuroscience|year=2013|last1=Chakrabarti|last2=Baron-Cohen}} pp. 326-342</ref> Knafo et al., 2008;<ref>{{cite journal|title=The developmental origins of a disposition toward empathy: Genetic and environmental contributions|journal=Emotion (Washington D.C.)|last1=Knafo|last2=Zahn-Waxler|last3=Van Hulle|last4=Robinson|last5=Rhee|year=2008|volume=8|issue=6|pages=737-52|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014179}}</ref> Rushton, 2004;<ref>{{cite journal|title=Genetic and environmental contributions to pro-social attitudes: a twin study of social responsibility|journal=Proceedings. Biological Sciences.|last1=Rushton|year=2004|volume=271|issue=1557|pages=2583-5|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15615684/}}</ref> Zahn-Waxler et al., 1992a,b;<ref>{{cite journal|title=Development of concern for others|journal=Developmental Psychology|last1=Zahn-Waxler|last2=Radke-Yarrow|last3=Wagner|last4=Chapman|year=1992|volume=28|issue=1|pages=126-136|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.28.1.126}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=The development of empathy in twins|journal=Developmental Psychology|last1=Zahn-Waxler|last2=Carolyn|last3=Robinson|last4=JoAnn|last5=Emde|year=1992|volume=28|issue=6|pages=1038-1047|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.28.6.1038}}</ref> Zahn-Waxler et al., 2001<ref>{{cite book|title=Empathy and prosocial patterns in young MZ and DZ twins. In: Emde RN, Hewitt JK, editors. Infancy to Early Childhood: Genetic and Environmental Influences on Developmental Change. Oxford University Press; New York, NY|year=2001|last1=Zahn-Waxler|last2=Schiro|last3=Robinson|last4=Emde|last5=Schmitz}} pp. 141-162</ref>)." Regarding the claim that sex differences in empathy are "stable across the lifespan", it is worth mentioning that the authors cite a study of Michalska<ref name="Michalska"/> which actually says that such differences "widens from childhood to adulthood."

=== Interests ===

Studies show that on average, since from an early age, females are more interested in people-related activities than things-related activities, while for males is the opposite situation.<ref name="Connellan2000"/><ref name="Alexander2009"/>

For example, a 2000 study on 102 randomly selected neonates (58 female, 44 male), with a mean age of 36.7 hours, found that males have stronger preferences for looking at a mechanical object than a human face, while for females is the opposite.<ref name="Connellan2000">{{Cite journal|title=Sex differences in human neonatal social perception|last1=Connellan|last2=Baron-Cohen|last3=Wheelwright|last4=Batki|last5=Ahluwalia|journal=Infant Behavior & Development|date=2000|vol=23|issue=|pages=113-118|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/S0163-6383(00)00032-1}} Links to PDF: [https://www.math.kth.se/matstat/gru/sf2930/papers/sex_differences.pdf 1], [https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/50c7/f3fb0b144fb648fb4238d01d2837c57ce36b.pdf 2], [http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.627.1904&rep=rep1&type=pdf 3]</ref>

Similarly, a 2009 study on 30 infants (17 males and 13 females), with a mean age of 5.76 months, compared the visual preference for a toy truck and a doll, and found that males focus more on the former while female focus more on the latter.<ref name="Alexander2009">{{Cite journal|title=Sex Differences in Infants’ Visual Interest in Toys|last1=Alexander|last2=Wilcox|last3=Woods|journal=Archives of Sexual Behaviour|date=2009|vol=38|issue=|pages=427-433|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-008-9430-1}} Links to PDF: [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Teresa_Wilcox/publication/23480560_Sex_Differences_in_Infants'_Visual_Interest_in_Toys/links/00b7d52b8656ee78c6000000.pdf 1], [https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/1468/761ae9664e483f4473e2d821fb3be6b727b4.pdf 2], [http://sites.oxy.edu/clint/physio/article/SexDifferencesinInfantsVisualInterestinToys.pdf 3]</ref>

That being said, it doesn't need to be the case that these sex differences are inherently biological. Much ado has been made about faulty science involving infants and their being influenced by their caretakers, as well as reading too much into the perceptions themselves and using that to promote the idea that said causes are biological without accounting for the way infants are reared from the beginning can affect the way they act. For example, in an experiment where caretakers raised a child whose sex was unknown to them, when they were told it was a girl, they encouraged play with dolls and spoke gently, while when told the child was a boy, the caretakers were less verbal and encouraged play with trucks.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Maternal behavior and perceived sex of infant|journal=The American Journal of Orthopsychiatry|year=1976|volume=46|issue=1|pages=135-9|last1=Will|last2=Self|last3=Datan|url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1247092}}</ref> In addition, parents often raise their children in [[Stereotype|stereotypical]] ways relative to their gender. As well, let's accept the explanation for once that there are genetic differences in babies relative to people vs things. The elephant in the room becomes apparent when you consider these were one day old infants. The final nail in the coffin is that it becomes a wide leap to say that, all criticisms notwithstanding and assuming the science is sound, that it is quite a leap to say that boys are necessarily more things-oriented or girls are more people-oriented. As well, it is also quite the assumption to say that the infants in question empathized more with people or things. It could just as well be proposed that the infants in question had longer time to habituate themselves when it comes to perceiving people and things they didn't understand.<ref>{{cite web|title=Extreme Problems with Essential Differences: The Essential Difference: The Truth about the Male & Female Brain|last1=Rogers|year=2003|publisher=Cerebrum: Timely and provocative articles on neuroscience|url=http://www.dana.org/Cerebrum/2003/Extreme_Problems_with_Essential_Differences}}</ref>

In adults, a 2009 meta-analysis using career related interest inventories found that men were more likely to respond to thing related professions, versus women who favored people related professions more. Specifically that men show stronger realistic and investigative interests, and women showed stronger [[art]]istic, social, and conventional interests. Sex differences favoring men were also found for more specific measures of [[engineering]], science, and [[mathematics]] interests. The study in question used a list of career related interest inventories to gauge these findings. It was also found that the way these career related interest inventories were constructed could affect said interests. It does not mean that these differences were innate.<ref name="Su2009">{{cite journal|last1=Su|last2=Rounds|last3= Armstrong|title=Men and Things, Women and People: A Meta-Analysis of Sex Differences in Interests|journal=Psychological Bulletin|year=2009|volume=135|issue=6|pages=859-884|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017364}} Links to PDF: [http://www.academia.edu/download/45104865/Su_Rounds_Armstrong_09.pdf 1], [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/James_Rounds/publication/38061313_Men_and_Things_Women_and_People_A_Meta-Analysis_of_Sex_Differences_in_Interests/links/0fcfd50a5a3350c86a000000.pdf 2], [https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/47af/4a7e87267aba681fb6971590ec80effce0c3.pdf 3]</ref>

In addition, another study by the same authors analyzed the disparity in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) between men and women, and found that interests between genders do indeed seem to explain much of the lopsided representation of men vs women in STEM. There are more men in engineering disciplines and more women in [[medical]] and [[social science]] disciplines. If the people/things dichotomy is accepted, then there are more opportunities for intervention to facilitate wider representation within the various disciplines, rather than the dead-end answer that these explanations are biological and there is nothing that can be done to fix these problems.<ref>{{cite journal|title=All STEM fields are not created equal: People and things interests explain gender disparities across STEM fields|last1=Su|last2=Rounds|year=2015|volume=25|journal=Frontiers in Psychology|url=https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00189}}</ref> Indeed, the same authors in an email to the Verge when their studies were raised in the [[James Damore]] fiasco, suggested that women are more different from each other on an individual level, than they differ from the sum population of men.<ref>{{cite web|title=Science doesn’t explain tech’s diversity problem — history does|date=2017|authors=Sarah Jeong and Rachel Becker|publisher=The Verge|url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/8/16/16153740/tech-diversity-problem-science-history-explainer-inequality}}</ref>

Also, another study has taken issue with the people vs things dichotomy entirely, suggesting that men and women overall are more balanced and have more in common with each other than they are different.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Sex differences in intrinsic aptitude for mathematics and science?: a critical review|journal=The American Psychiologist|last1=Spelke|year=2005|volume=60|issue=9|pages=950-8|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.60.9.950}}</ref>

===Reminder===
It should be made clear - although this should be evident - that of the sex differences discussed in this paragraph it is not specified where they originate from. And the paragraph should be read with that in mind, lest uncritical readers might make assumptions of the cause of the discussed sex differences. The paragraph is merely a summary of sex differences found in studies.

==Psychological conditions and disorders==
Although men and women may experience the same mental health disorders, some illnesses and conditions are more common in men than women, and vice versa. This could be because of biological differences between male and female brains, and theories in such regard have been proposed, or it could be because the same condition is more diagnosed for a sex than the other, although it occurs with the same frequency.

* Anorexia is about eight times more common in females.<ref name="Hoek2006">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1097/01.yco.0000228759.95237.78|title=Incidence, prevalence and mortality of anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders|date=2006|last1=Hoek|first1=HW|journal=Current Opinion in Psychiatry|vol=19|issue=4|pages=389-94}}</ref>
* [[Antisocial personality disorder|Antisocial personality]] and [[Drug abuse|substance use]] disorders are more prevalent in men.<ref name="Eaton2012"/> Narcissism is also more common in men; about 8% of men and 5% of women by one estimate suffer from narcissism. [[Personality disorder|Borderline personality disorder]] and {{wpl|histrionic personality disorder}} are more common in women. 

* Most anxiety and mood disorders are more frequent in women. <ref name="Eaton2012">{{cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024780|title=An invariant dimensional liability model of gender differences in mental disorder prevalence: evidence from a national sample|date=2012|last1=Eaton|first1=NR|last2=Keyes|first2=KM|last3=Krueger et al|first3=RF|journal=Journal of Abnormal Psychology|vol=121|issue=1|pages=282-8}}</ref> However, {{wpl|bipolar disorder}} is equally common in both sexes and males with bipolar disorder tend to have more severe symptoms, in particular mania. Some studies have also found gender parity among adults with {{wpl|obsessive compulsive disorder}}.
* [[ADHD|Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder]] (ADHD) is diagnosed three times more often in males.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Emond|last2=Joyal|last3= Poissant|title=Neuroanatomie structurelle et fonctionnelle du trouble déficitaire d’attention avec ou sans hyperactivité (TDAH)|journal=Encephale| vol=35|issue=2|pages=107-14|date=2009|url=https://doi.org/10.1016/j.encep.2008.01.005}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Singh|title=Beyond polemics: Science and ethics of ADHD|journal=Nature Reviews Neuroscience|vol=9|issue=12|pages=957-64|date=2008|url=https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn2514}}</ref> An [[Evolution|evolutionary]] explanation could be that some women are more attracted to males displaying hyperactivity and impulsivity, increasing the frequency of genes that predispose males to ADHD.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Glover|title=Annual Research Review: Prenatal stress and the origins of psychopathology: an evolutionary perspective|journal=Journal of Children Psychology and Psychiatry|vol=52|issue=4|pages=356-67|date=2011|url=https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2011.02371.x}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Williams|last2=Taylor|title=The evolution of hyperactivity, impulsivity and cognitive diversity|journal=Journal of The Royal Society Interface|vol=3|issue=8|pages=399-413|date=2006|url=https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2005.0102}}</ref> Despite this, the actual amount of ADHD between male and female (as opposed to diagnosed) is believed to be more even given that males are more likely to be identified with ADHD than females due to females' having more subtle signs (thus, females often go undiagnosed and skew the ratio).<ref>Sigler, E. [https://www.additudemag.com/add-in-women/ ADHD Looks Different In Women. Here’s How — and Why.] ''ADDitude''. Retrieved September 29, 2018.</ref> 
* Dyslexia is up to three times more prevalent in males. This might be related to the different gray matter/white matter ratios in men's and women's brains.<ref name="Evans2013">{{cite journal|url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00429-013-0552-4|title=Sex-specific gray matter volume differences in females with developmental dyslexia|date=2013|last1=Evans|first1=Tanya M.|last2=Flowers|first2=D. Lynn|last3=Napoliello|first3=Eileen M.|last4=Eden|first4=Guinevere F.|journal=Brain Structure and Function|vol=219|pages=1041-1054}}</ref>
* [[Schizophrenia]] is about 1.4 times more prevalent in men than women.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=McGrath|last2=Saha|last3=Chant|first3=David|last4=Welham|date=2008|title=Schizophrenia: A Concise Overview of Incidence, Prevalence, and Mortality|url=https://doi.org/10.1093/epirev/mxn001|journal=Epidemiologic Reviews|volume=30|pages=67–76}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Aleman|first=|last2=Kahn|last3=Selten|year=2003|title=Sex differences in the risk of schizophrenia: evidence from meta-analysis|url=http://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.60.6.565|journal=Archives of General Psychiatry|volume=60 | issue = 6 |pages=565–71|via=NCBI}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Abel|last2=Drake|last3=Goldstein|first3=Jill|year=2010|title=Sex differences in schizophrenia|url=http://web.a.ebscohost.com.erl.lib.byu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=c8115b8c-f775-4ea4-aa5f-f342423245fd%40sessionmgr4010&vid=3&hid=4201|journal=International Review of Psychiatry|volume=|issue=22(5)|pages=417–428|via=Ebsco}}</ref>
*[[Autism]] and [[Asperger's syndrome]] are more likely to be diagnosed in boys and men, though there is debate as to whether women are underdiagnosed because models of autism used for diagnosis are generally based on boys, and to how large the gender disparity is, if there is one at all. It could also be that the condition presents differently in men and women.

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Gender]]
[[Category:Psychology]]

Categories: Gender, Psychology