CHYS 2P10 Chapter Notes - Chapter 15: 6 Years, Prenatal Development, Sexual Differentiation

• School: Brock University
• Department: Child and Youth Studies
• Course: CHYS 2P10
• Professor: Anthony Volk

Document Summary

One major approach to gender development is biological, including evolutionary psychology, biosocial theory and neuroscience approaches. Behavioral differences between males and females served adaptive functions in our evolutionary past and have been passed down as inherited behavioral dispositions. Biosocial theory focuses on the impact of evolved physical differences between females and males in relation to the social ecology. Other researchers focus on sex differences in brain organization and the influence of sex hormones both before birth and after. Cognitive and motivational influences on gender development include cognitive developmental theory, gender schema theory, social identity theory and social cognitive theory. Once children realize that their gender is consistent across situations, they play close attention to same-gender models to learn how to behave. Between 6 and 8 weeks of prenatal development, sexual differentiation begins. External and internal genitalia are normally completed by the end of the first trimester. During the first year children learn to distinguish male and female faces.