Personality and Gender

Big five to measure personality 

1. Social status
2.
3.
4.
5.



What they actually mean >

1. Conscientiousness
2. Extraversion
3. Agreeableness
4. Neuroticism
5. Cognitive behavior modification

Emotion and Emotional Intelligence

7 emotions (guesses) 

- Anger
- Sadness
- Anxiety
- Curiosity
- Love
- Happiness
- Jealously  


What they really are :

- Joy
- Contempt
- Distress
- Anger
- Fear
- Surprise
- Distress
- Disgust

Higher emotions 

- Affection
- Curiosity
- Confusion
- Jealously
- Anxiety
- Hatred

What they really are :

- Love
- Guilt
- Shame
- Embarrassment
- Jealously
- Envy
- Pride

Pinker versus Spelke argument

My opinion 

Of both sides of the argument, I agree with Pinker's side more. This is due to the fact that he explains the nurture and nature side. He offers concrete arguments that explains the sex differences while also considering Spelke's argument without isolating her points.





Pinker :

1. There are three types of positions that discuss sex differences. Extreme "nature" position: that males but not females have the talents and temperaments necessary for science. Extreme "nurture" position: that males and females are biologically indistinguishable, and all relevant sex differences are products of socialization and bias. Intermediate positions: that the difference is explainable by some combination of biological differences in average temperaments and talents interacting with socialization and bias. Liz Spelke has embraced the extreme nurture position
2. Liz has said that there is "not a shred of evidence" for the biological factor, that "the evidence against there being an advantage for males in intrinsic aptitude is so overwhelming that it is hard for me to see how one can make a case at this point on the other side," and that "it seems to me as conclusive as any finding I know of in science."But I don't think that in any of them I would say there is "not a shred of evidence" for the other side, even if I think that the evidence favors one side.

By proving my point, I quoted a book called Sex Differences

1. in Cognitive Ability by Diane Halpern, a well known psychologists -(“Socialization practices are undoubtedly important, but there is also good evidence that biological sex differences play a role in establishing and maintaining cognitive sex differences”)
2. So the differences between the sexes are part of the human condition.  Sex is a problem in biology and sexual reproduction goes back years. I recognize that there is a theory namely Bob Trivers' theory of differential parental investment, which makes highly specific predictions about when you should expect sex differences and what they should look like. I also state that if we want to change this, we have to understand where the source of sex difference comes from. So, differences between the sexes are part of the human condition.``Casper and Lorinc:
   1. “there is a crucial conceptual difference between difference and discrimination”
   Therefore it is social influence, since women are discriminated at workplaces
   
   
   2. Biological Similarities to support discrimination:
   -General intelligence is at similar levels
   -Similar Cognitions
3. - However there are gender differences, both have their talents men are better at throwing, whilst women are more dexterous. Men are better at mentally rotating shapes; women are better at visual memory. Men are better at mathematical solvings whilst women are better at mathematical calculations.

   - (there are statistical differences in what men and women value differently) There are some things in life that the females rated higher than males, such as the ability to have a part-time career for a limited time in one's life; living close to parents and relatives; having a meaningful spiritual life; and having strong friendships

   - Men prioritize having lots of money; inventing or creating something; having a full-time career; and being successful in one's line of work.

   
   

   • Different jobs appeal to different genders, men want to work with things, whilst woman want to work with people. (working with people might be the director of a community service organization. The occupation that fits best with “things” are chemists, mathematicians, computer programs and biologists.

   
   

   3. Further on, according to studies women are biologically equal:

   -Talented

   -Encouraged in math and sciences

   -Have equal achievements

   -Satisfied

   -However, due to evolutionary /Biological dispositions, “men, on average, are more likely to chase status at the expense of their families;”

• For spatial ability, the advantage goes to women, but in "mental rotation,"spatial perception," and "spatial visualization" the advantage goes to men.

- However there are gender differences, both have their talents men are better at throwing, whilst women are more dexterous. Men are better at mentally rotating shapes; women are better at visual memory. Men are better at mathematical solvings whilst women are better at mathematical calculations.

- (there are statistical differences in what men and women value differently) There are some things in life that the females rated higher than males, such as the ability to have a part-time career for a limited time in one's life; living close to parents and relatives; having a meaningful spiritual life; and having strong friendships

- Men prioritize having lots of money; inventing or creating something; having a full-time career; and being successful in one's line of work.

• Different jobs appeal to different genders, men want to work with things, whilst woman want to work with people. (working with people might be the director of a community service organization. The occupation that fits best with “things” are chemists, mathematicians, computer programs and biologists.

3. Further on, according to studies women are biologically equal:

-Talented

-Encouraged in math and sciences

-Have equal achievements

-Satisfied

-However, due to evolutionary /Biological dispositions, “men, on average, are more likely to chase status at the expense of their families;”

4. Biological influences could apply, through risk taking.

-Evolutionary, as Pinker states, that women are less risk takers, just due to their gender

-In a large meta-analysis involving 150 studies and 100,000 participants, in 14 out of 16 categories of risk-taking, men were overrepresented.

Idan:

-Effectiveness of aptitude tests (people in science careers are in the 90th percentile for SAT math)

-In a science paper by Novell and Hedges, it was found that in 35 out of 37 tests, the male variance for test results was higher than that of the female variance

-IQ in Scotland, females predominate in the middle, and men slightly predominate at both extremes.

-In nature vs. nurture, one is not completely responsible for male dominance in work, but we try to prove that biology is greater than zero

-levels of sex hormones, difference in brain size and shapes

-in all cultures, greater involvement of women in child care, and men in competitiveness

-To analyze Personality, a cross-national survey was conducted which had consistent results across the different age groups for personality difference in genders.

- Diane Halpern analyzed results for cognitive tests across ten nations and concluded that the majority of the results showed cross cultural consistency between genders

-Despite feminist movements, very little change in personal life interests were seen for both genders

-sex differences seen in other mammals (among baby vervet monkeys, males prefer to play with trucks and females with other toys)

-sex differences in early childhood, (newborn baby boys prefer looking at an object, while newborn baby girls at a face)

-Boys grown up as girls from an early age, showed 'boyish' behaviour

-No difference between way boys and girls are treated by parents and treated

-prenatal sex hormones affect people's behaviour, girls with male hormones prenatally had 'boyish' traits

• with X chromosomes, people who have only x chromosomes showed that if the x chromosome came from the mom, they acted more like girls, and if they got it from the father, then they were less social and more technical.

Spelke >

Gender differences in professions

Is gender differences caused by a cultural aspect or biological?

In the video, Harold was trying to find out the different reasons to why there is a gender difference in terms of professions.
He looked at the biological aspect as well as the cultural reasonings. Through his findings, he talked with many different researchers who all had a subjective opinion.

One of the main researchers stated that society shapes the gender differences and often leads males and females into different paths, such as introducing barbies to females at early age, whilst the males are left with mechanical toys. This shapes their profession in the future and often leads to women working in hospitals and etc, while males are engineers or mechanics.
However a popular opinion by one of the researchers stated that gender differences is caused from an early age, proving to be biological. The researchers conducted a study which tested the preference of male and female toys to babies. The new born babies clearly showed a preference depending on their gender, as males went for the mechanical toys whilst the females directed themselves towards the "princess" toys.
This theory proves that gender differences is caused by a biological extent however it is also mixed with cultural.
Another theory states that gender differences is caused by a mix of the two, saying that society will push genders towards their respective professions.

Personally, I believe that gender differences originates from a biological perspective. The proof is rather substantial and most of the researchers studying the cultural aspect cannot explain the results found in the experiments.

Further Knowledge questions :

- To what extent might these vary according to age, education or cultural background?

- To what extent might this distinction between private knowledge and public knowledge be

culturally dependent?

Cognitive Science

When we say the word “learning”, we usually mean “to think using the brain”. This basic concept of learning is the main viewpoint in the Cognitive Learning Theory (CLT). The theory has been used to explain mental processes as they are influenced by both intrinsic and extrinsic factors, which eventually bring about learning in an individual.
Cognitive Learning Theory implies that the different processes concerning learning can be explained by analyzing the mental processes first. It posits that with effective cognitive processes, learning is easier and new information can be stored in the memory for a long time. On the other hand, ineffective cognitive processes result to learning difficulties that can be seen anytime during the lifetime of an individual.

Cognitive science is the study of memory and the process of the brain.

Often people tend to study in an environment that has no distraction such as at your desk in your room... however science has proven that variation is good for remember certain things.
A study was conducted which took 2 groups in a similar environment and they were given the chance to study a memory test, whilst the other group studied at a different environment which they had not done before. The study showed how the group in a different environment had a remembered 24 words of the test whilst the other group only remembered 16.

Self practice is also vital as you should test yourselves consistently when reading over texts or trying to remember something.

When remembering certain things, the brains seems to get overwhelmed as we try to cram everything at once. However science shows that we should take breaks which can help the process of remembering. So instead of studying math for 2 hours in one day, study for 1 hour then another hour the next day.

Further Knowledge questions :
Are the following types of justification all equally reliable: intuition, sense perception, evidence,
reasoning, memory, authority, group consensus, and divine revelation?

Knowledge and Belief

When can we claim to know something?
          - When we are able to discuss the specific topic in detail and be able to think critically as well answer questions related to the topic. It includes being able to accumulate your justifications with the proper belief of the topic, proven to be true. However believing is considered to be a psychological/mental state, which doesn't guarantee the truth.

What are the proper reasons?
           - Being able to pass the knowledge on to other people A

Verbs of knowledge :
- Vet
- Känner
- Hved
- Kender
- Weisen
- Know



- What you know is true
- That you believe it (psychological/mental state - however doesn't guarantee the truth )
- That you have the proper justifications to accumulate

One simple, and useful, framework for distinguishing knowledge from belief is the following: 

(1) A belief is an opinion in the absence of supporting empirical evidence; it’s a matter of faith, not reason (it can’t be proved or disproved). 

(2) Knowledge is an opinion also—a working hypothesis—but it’s one for which substantial, public (or potentially public), cogent, empirical evidence exists to support it; that is, knowledge is a conclusion warranted by a preponderance of evidence and experience. 

(3) Knowledge in the sense of infallible apprehension or grasp of reality—what is ontologically “true”—is probably not possible. Instead, knowledge seems always to be contingent: new evidence as it becomes available may further support it or may disprove it.

Further knowledge questions :
- How and why is knowledge renewed or reshaped?
- How do we acquire and search for knowledge?
- How do we produce knowledge?