Cerebral Asymmetry and Hemispheric Specialisation: Some Implications of Sex Differences

1979 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinne Hutt
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Cerebral Asymmetry ◽  
Visuospatial Function ◽  
Educational Implications ◽  
Hemispheric Specialisation

The evidence for the cerebral organisation of and hemispheric specialisation for man's two principal psychological domains, language and visuospatial function, are selectively reviewed. Three theoretical models of cerebral organisation are outlined. Some neuropsychological and educational implications of sex differences in hemisperic specialisation are considered.

Sex differences in syntactic development: Evidence from Cantonese-speaking preschoolers in Hong Kong

2002 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 509-517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shek Kam Tse ◽  
Carol Chan ◽  
Sin Mee Kwong ◽  
Hui Li
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Sentence Type ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Language Performance ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Educational Implications ◽  
Syntactic Development ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Mean Length Of Utterance

Utterances produced during spontaneous play activities by 180 Cantonese-speaking children, ranging in age from 3 to 5 years, were analysed with the focus on declaratives. Syntactic development was gauged in terms of changes in the mean length of utterance, sentence type and structure, syntactic complexity, and verb pattern, and age-related develpments in these were found. Significant sex differences were found in syntactic development, with girls outperforming boys in mean utterance length, some sentence types and structures, and syntactic complexity, with a significant age by sex interaction in the group of 4-year-olds. The period between age 3 and age 4 was identified as critical for syntactic development, as many linguistic changes occurred in this time. Growth in the ability to use compound sentences was found to be the most significant contributor to increased mean length of utterance. Biological, psychological, and sociocontextual factors influencing these sex differences in language performance are explored and discussed. The generality of the educational implications is discussed.

All sex differences in cognitive ability may be explained by an X-Y homologous gene determining degrees of cerebral asymmetry

1996 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. J. Crow
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Cognitive Ability ◽  
Y Chromosome ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Shift Factor ◽  
Mathematical Ability ◽  
Cerebral Hemispheres ◽  
Homologous Gene ◽  
Cerebral Asymmetry ◽  
The Right

AbstractMale superiority in mathematical ability (along with female superiority in verbal fluency) may reflect the operation of an X-Y homologous gene (the right-shift-factor) influencing the relative rates of development of the cerebral hemispheres. Alleles at the locus on the Y chromosome will be selected at a later mean age than alleles on the X, and only by females.

scholarly journals Relatedness within and between Agta residential groups

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Dyble ◽  
Andrea Bamberg Migliano ◽  
Abigail E. Page ◽  
Daniel Smith
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Age Differences ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Social Organisation ◽  
Hunter Gatherers ◽  
History Data ◽  
Kinship Structure

Abstract Theoretical models relating to the evolution of human behaviour usually make assumptions about the kinship structure of social groups. Since humans were hunter–gatherers for most of our evolutionary history, data on the composition of contemporary hunter–gatherer groups has long been used to inform these models. Although several papers have taken a broad view of hunter–gatherer social organisation, it is also useful to explore data from single populations in more depth. Here, we describe patterns of relatedness among the Palanan Agta, hunter–gatherers from the northern Philippines. Across 271 adults, mean relatedness to adults across the population is r = 0.01 and to adult campmates is r = 0.074, estimates that are similar to those seen in other hunter–gatherers. We also report the distribution of kin across camps, relatedness and age differences between spouses, and the degree of shared reproductive interest between camp mates, a measure that incorporates affinal kinship. For both this this measure (s) and standard relatedness (r), we see no major age or sex differences in the relatedness of adults to their campmates, conditions that may reduce the potential for conflicts of interest within social groups.

scholarly journals Morningness-Eveningness in Adolescents

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 201-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Francisco Díaz-Morales ◽  
María Gutiérrez Sorroche
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Factor Structure ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Psychometric Analysis ◽  
Educational Implications ◽  
Biological Patterns ◽  
Age And Sex

Individual morningness-eveningness differences explain the rhythmic variations of behavioral and biological patterns. Several studies have corroborated that morningness preference increases over adulthood and aging. Adolescents shift their time of day preferences from morningness to eveningness during puberty. The aims of this study were translate to Spanish the Morningness-Eveningness Scale for Children (MESC) and to analyze age and sex differences. A group of 600 adolescents (aged between 12 and 16 years) participated in the study. Psychometric analysis showed that reliability and factor structure were suitable and similar to previous studies. The results indicated a clear decrease of morningness as of 12 years. Boys were more morningness-oriented than girls in several items of the questionnaire. In view of the results, several educational implications are raised.

A socio-relational framework of sex differences in the expression of emotion

2009 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 375-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob Miguel Vigil
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Expressed Emotion ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Critical Examination ◽  
Social Partner ◽  
Expression Of Emotion ◽  
Theoretical Assumptions ◽  
Development Literature ◽  
Relational Framework ◽  
Adaptive Nature

AbstractDespite a staggering body of research demonstrating sex differences in expressed emotion, very few theoretical models (evolutionary or non-evolutionary) offer a critical examination of the adaptive nature of such differences. From the perspective of a socio-relational framework, emotive behaviors evolved to promote the attraction and aversion of different types of relationships by advertising the two most parsimonious properties of reciprocity potential, or perceived attractiveness as a prospective social partner. These are the individual's (a) perceived capacity or ability to provide expedient resources, or to inflict immediate harm onto others, and their (b) perceived trustworthiness or probability of actually reciprocating altruism (Vigil 2007). Depending on the unique social demands and relational constraints that each sex evolved, individuals should be sensitive to advertise “capacity” and “trustworthiness” cues through selective displays of dominant versus submissive and masculine versus feminine emotive behaviors, respectively. In this article, I introduce the basic theoretical assumptions and hypotheses of the framework, and show how the models provide a solid scaffold with which to begin to interpret common sex differences in the emotional development literature. I conclude by describing how the framework can be used to predict condition-based and situation-based variation in affect and other forms of expressive behaviors.

scholarly journals Not all sex ratios are equal: the Fisher condition, parental care and sexual selection

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1729) ◽  
pp. 20160312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Jennions ◽  
Lutz Fromhage
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Sex Ratio ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Sex Roles ◽  
Sex Role ◽  
Sex Ratios ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Evolution Of Sex ◽  
Offspring Production ◽  
Adult Sex Ratio

The term ‘sex roles’ encapsulates male–female differences in mate searching, competitive traits that increase mating/fertilization opportunities, choosiness about mates and parental care. Theoretical models suggest that biased sex ratios drive the evolution of sex roles. To model sex role evolution, it is essential to note that in most sexually reproducing species (haplodiploid insects are an exception), each offspring has one father and one mother. Consequently, the total number of offspring produced by each sex is identical, so the mean number of offspring produced by individuals of each sex depends on the sex ratio (Fisher condition). Similarly, the total number of heterosexual matings is identical for each sex. On average, neither sex can mate nor breed more often when the sex ratio is even. But equally common in which sex ratio? The Fisher condition only applies to some reproductive measures (e.g. lifetime offspring production or matings) for certain sex ratios (e.g. operational or adult sex ratio; OSR, ASR). Here, we review recent models that clarify whether a biased OSR, ASR or sex ratio at maturation (MSR) have a causal or correlational relationship with the evolution of sex differences in parental care and competitive traits—two key components of sex roles. We suggest that it is more fruitful to understand the combined effect of the MSR and mortality rates while caring and competing than that of the ASR itself. In short, we argue that the ASR does not have a causal role in the evolution of parental care. We point out, however, that the ASR can be a cue for adaptive phenotypic plasticity in how each sex invests in parental care. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Adult sex ratios and reproductive decisions: a critical re-examination of sex differences in human and animal societies’.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document