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“GENDER IDENTITY”
Gender Identity

 gender identity can be defined as the sameness, unity,
and persistence of one’s individuality as male, female, or
ambivalent (Money & Ehrhardt (1972))
 relative degree to which an individual patterns himself
or herself after members of the same sex. It is associated
with the degree in which an individual takes on the
behaviors, personality patterns, and attitudes that are
commonly associated with male or female sex roles
(Backer (2003))
 an individual’s self-conception as being male or female,
as distinguished from actual biological sex.
 link to a person’s sense of self and the sense of being
male or female (Ontario's Human Rights Code)
 our own perception and our own determination about
our gender either male or female. It is can be difference
from our real biological sex.

i)
Theory of Gender
Identity
Psychoanalytic theory 
-through the identification from the parent same sex.
- as a result of Electra or Oedipus conflicts during
childhood
ii) Social-Cognitive theory
- develop through learning process
- learning from parent or others
- behaviors reinforce with reinforcement
iii) Cognitive Theory
a)
cognitive-development theory
- contends that because children consistently hear
themselves called “boy” or “girl,” they begin to conceive
of themselves as being of one sex or the other.
Ultimately, from such interactions, children develop a
conception of attitudes toward and behavioral
expectations concerning that gender.
b)
gender-schema theory
- concerns the development of an internal schema, or
mental framework, which organizes and directs the
behavior of an individual as a male or female. For
example, the gender schema of being female might
include the proposition “I am a girl, so I play with dolls,
not trucks.”

Gender-Schema theory
- Gender schema theory refers to the theory that
children learn about what it means to be male and
female from the culture in which they live. According
to this theory, children adjust their behavior to fit in
with the gender norms and expectations of their
culture.
- asserts that one’s childhood development is
influenced heavily by concepts about what maleness or
femaleness means in a particular society.
- schema is a cognitive structures, a network of
associations that organizes and guides an individual’s
perceptions.

iv)
Biological theory
i) chromosomes
- XX: Women
- XY: Men
ii) hormones
- men: testosterone
- women: estrogen and progesterone
v) Social Role Theory
Eagly’s Social Role Theory of sex differences in social behavior

Social Role Theory- suggests that almost all behavioral
differences we know about between males and females is
the result of cultural stereotypes about gender (how males
and females are supposed to act) and the resulting social
roles that are taught to young people.
Gender
differentiation
many different
Men and women was born with
characteristics. There can be view from various aspects
of life
1) Physical aspects
men are generally taller than women, have more
muscles body, though , have facial hair such as
moustache and beard while women are generally
shorter than male and don’t have any facial hair.
2) Emotional aspects
women are tend to be more emotional than men in
something happen and easily sad and cry.

women is more sensitive to the threat than men. Due to
3) sensitivity
different hormone production in both gender.
4) Jealousy
Women are more prone to react negatively when they or
their children are deprived of emotional support; this will
trigger jealousy. Men, on the other hand, will become angry if
they suspect their wives of sexual infidelity.
5)
Thinking
Women tend to be intuitive global thinkers. Women are
prone to become overwhelmed with complexities that
"exist", or may exist, and may have difficulty separating
their personal experience from problems than men.

6)
Memory
Women have an enhanced ability to recall memories that
have strong emotional components while men tend to
recall events using strategies that rely on reconstructing
the experience in terms of elements, tasks or activities that
took place.
7)
Processing information
-men is left-brain-side oriented while women is rightbrain-side.
left-brain sided oriented is person can be described as
literal, logical, linear and linguistic.
-The right brain "makes sense" of the qualities of voice
such as tone, pitch, volume. It also "makes sense" of
facial expressions, gestures, body language and feeling.
In a sense, right brain is an emotional radar.

Gender Role
 the behaviors and attitudes expected of male and female members of a
society by that society.

 Different culture has different expectations to the men and women.
- Islamic perspectives, - Western perspectives
- Indian perspectives’ - African perspectives
 Tasks that must be fulfill according to their gender.
 women: childbearing, do chores, take care of children, husbands, and
family and manages households.
 Men: go work, find welfare for family, and able to protects family
Gender role create gender stereotypes in society.
If the men or women doesn’t fulfill the expected role of their
gender this will be lead to discriminations.
 e:g * women

must be a perfect women
Feminity
Beauty
Respectful

* men
must be a perfect men
Strong
Masculine
independent
Gender stereotype

females and males.
a shared set of beliefs about purported qualities
of
“typical traits” perceived as inherent in men and
women—they are culturally influenced, and bear
little resemblance to real people.
Develop since childhood
Traditionally 1)
2)
female stereotypic role
Male stereotypic role
Androgyny and
human relationship
 There are two definitions for
androgyny: physical (intersexual) - born with both male
and female genitals; and psychological - combining both
masculinity and femininity as traits of a unified gender
that defies social roles and psychological attributes.
 the blending of feminine and masculine attributes in the
same individual.
 The androgyny, or androgynous person, does not neatly
fit into a female or male gender role; she or he can
comfortably express the qualities of both genders.
 Parents and other socializing agents can teach their
children to be androgynous, just as they can teach them
to be gender-biased.

 Dr. Sandra Bem
- 'psychological androgyny'

- describe those men and women who did not fit into
traditionally defined gender roles.
 nowadays situations;
 1)
fashion-industry
 2)
beauty-industry
 3)
work-industry
 In the relationship with human, androgynous people are
more tendency to pansexuality or asexuality
“Gender, Gender Identity, Ethnicity,
and stereotyping of children’s chores:

The Israeli Case”
Liat kulik
Bar Ilan University
Journal of cross-cultural psychology
2006, 37: 408
Journal summary

 Instruments that used is stereotyping of children’s
chore, Bem Sex Role Inventory and self-evaluation of
masculinity and feminity.
 The purpose of this study was to examine the
stereotyping of children’s chores in Israeli society and
the way those stereotypes are affected by gender
identity, gender and ethnicity.
 There are three hypotheses that are formulated
There are three hypotheses that are formulated:
1) Individuals with sex-typed gender identities will
maintain more stereotyped perceptions of children’s
chores than will those with androgynuos and
undifferentiated gender identities.
2) Women will have less stereotyped perceptions than
men
3) Asian African origin will maintain more stereotyped
perceptions than European American

RESULTS
 Result in this journal shows that undifferentiated
participants shows that the most stereotyped that
feminine attitude towards domestic chores.
 Undifferentiated and cross-typed participants expressed
more stereotypes views of outside chores.
 Women expressed less stereotyped view than men in
children’s chores.
 Participant’s country of birth did not affect their
perceptions of children’s scores while the country of
birth of the participants’ mothers.

Conclusion
 Gender identity is our own perception toward

femininity or masculinity which is develop during
childhood and are determine to various factors which
are discussed in theory.
 There are 6 theories are be discussed on gender identity.
 Each gender have difference characteristics which is
need to be understand in order to live harmoniously in
marriage live.
 Gender role that are perceived by different culture
actually is the lead to the gender stereotypes.

 This stereotypes will lead to gender discriminations.
 Nowadays, there are evolutionary gender identity which
cannot only include traditionally oriented gender but it’s
include many other’s non-conformity gender’s group
such as LGBT gender and homosexuality groups.
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What is Gender Identity
Differences?

 Awareness about the differences in gender
 Awareness about gender role
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Four theoretical approaches to
gender identity

 Biological explanations
 Psychoanalytic explanation
 Cognitive explanations
– A. Gender constancy (Kohlberg)
– B. Gender schema (Piaget)
 Differential socialization explanation.
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Maccoby & Jacklin’s Classic Metaanalytical (1974) Survey
 Results on Maccoby & Jacklin’s “Differences” survey:-

 Males more aggressive (Still very common, not universal)
 Females have higher verbal ability (Magnitude appears
decreasing but difference remains)
 Males have higher visual-spatial ability (Still very
consistent)
 Males have higher mathematical ability (Still fairly
consistent, but not universal and may be
 decreasing).
 Males more hyperactive
 Females more nurturing
 Females more prone to depression
 Females more “field dependent” (as visual/spatial
pattern)
 Females more viable.
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