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Brain Sex



Brain Sex
Author Anne Moir and David Jessel
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Genre(s) Social Science
Publisher Michael Joseph (Penguin)
Publication date 1989
Media type Print (Paperback)
Pages viii+228+notes
ISBN 9780718128845 (1st ed.)

Brain Sex (ISBN 978-0385311830) is a popular book about the biology of gender, the biological differences between men and women, by Anne Moir (geneticist) and David Jessel (journalist), first published by Michael Joseph (a division of Penguin) in 1989.

Moir and Jessel provide a great deal of evidence and discussion throughout the book. They conclude with a summary, which includes the following decisive statement.

"We find a political and social view — that men and women should be treated equally — somehow dependent upon a belief that men and women are the same. They are not. There is no longer any excuse, save mental indolence, to believe that

'Many of the generally understood distinctions between the sexes in the more significant areas of role and temperament, not to mention status, have in fact essentially cultural rather than biological bases.'[1]

This isn't a prescriptive book; it merely explains how the brains of the sexes are different, and attempts to link those differences with the observably different behaviour of men and women — which men and women have been celebrating or bemoaning for centuries."[2]

Contents

Quotes

  • To maintain that [men and women] are the same in aptitude, skill, or behaviour is to build a society based on a biological and scientific lie.[3]
  • Recent decades have witnessed two contradictory processes: the development of scientific research into the differences between the sexes, and the political denial that such differences exist.[4]
  • There is no point ... in laws and educational theories which both deny the differences between men and women, and then seek to eradicate them.[5]

Contents

The sequence of chapters broadly follows the human life cycle — birth, maturity, reproduction ... sustained by work.

  • Introduction
  1. Chapter One: The differences
  2. Chapter Two: The birth of difference
  3. Chapter Three: Sex in the brain
  4. Chapter Four: Childhood differences
  5. Chapter Five: The brains come of age
  6. Chapter Six: The ability gap
  7. Chapter Seven: Hearts and minds
  8. Chapter Eight: Like minds
  9. Chapter Nine: The marriage of two minds
  10. Chapter Ten: Why mothers are not fathers
  11. Chapter Eleven: Minds at work
  12. Chapter Twelve: Bias at work
  • Summary
  • References
  • Index

Summary

Chapter One: The differences

“ The truth is that virtually every professional scientist and researcher into the subject has concluded that the brains of men and women are different. There has seldom been a greater divide between what intelligent, enlightened opinion presumes — that men and women have the same brain — and what science knows — that they do not.[6] ”

The first chapter of the book establishes the state of the gender debate at the time of publication. It acknowledges that the majority opinion of educated people (at the time of publication) was that men and women have the same brain. However, it claims that this is in stark contrast to the opinion of research scientists in the area. There is a cursory literature review of a century of sex research, featuring some early crude and unreliable results (the book's assessment), but proceeding to the modern results available from about the middle of the 20th century.[7]

Chapter Two: The birth of difference

“ It is not until six or seven weeks after conception that the unborn baby 'makes up its mind', and the brain begins to take on a male or a female pattern. What happens at that critical stage in the darkness of the womb, will determine the structure and organisation of the brain: and that, in turn, will decide the very nature of the mind. It is ... a story largely unknown, but now, at last, beginning to unfold in its entirety.[8] ”

In chapter two, the authors begin their systematic presentation of the scientific data. It starts by explaining sexual reproduction, the sex determination system and X and Y chromosomes.[9] It extends beyond this to late 20th century discoveries regarding the effects of hormones on brain formation in the womb.[10] It gives extended treatment of studies on animals, which show both distinct similarities and differences to humans.[11] Rat brain structure and consequent behaviour can be altered by hormone treatment after birth in ways that have not worked with humans. Four case studies of people who were born with intersex physicalities are used to illustrate the effects of hormonal influence on human behaviour prior to birth.[12]

Chapter Three: Sex in the brain

“ What we are, how we behave, how we think and feel, is governed not by the heart, but by the brain. The brain itself is influenced, in structure and operation, by the hormones. If brain structure and hormones are different in men and women, it should not surprise us that men and women behave in different ways. Understanding the exact relationship between brain structure, hormones and behaviour would take us a long way to discovering the answer to some of humanity's most exasperating riddles.[13] ”

In this chapter, the results regarding a two-fold operation of hormones in humans are presented. This is described as an initial morphological influence on the brain during gestation, followed by an "activation" stage at puberty.[14] In other words, hormones have been discovered to be instrumental in shaping initial brain structure, later they stimulate features of these dimorphic brain structures. Hormone activity is not strictly limited to puberty nor to solely reproductive functions.

Brain dimorphism, as observably distinct and complicated as it is, theoretically could be of as little significance for behaviour as, for example, eye-colour.[15] So additional material regarding correlations between brain structure and behaviour is actually the main feature of this chapter. Initial studies in this area came from observing people who had suffered brain damage. Correlations between which behavioural functions showed impairment and which regions of the brain showed damage led to early results regarding left and right brain hemisphere activity.[16] Although knowledge of this area is still far from complete, a great deal of refinement has been made possible with brain imaging technology and investment in research projects into human brain function.

One simplification of the results is that female brains (the result of default or "normal" developmental pathways) generally distribute processing across diverse regions of the brain. Male brains (testosterone modified versions of the female brain) are notably more "compartmentalized" and "focused" in their processing.[17] This is the science behind the popular language of women typically having a natural aptitude for "multi-tasking", and men seeming to generally adopt "single minded" behavioural strategies.

Chapter Four: Childhood differences

“ Each sex has a mind of its own at birth. Innate differences in brain structure mean that from infancy and through childhood, the male and female paths increasingly diverge. Biology — accentuated by social attitudes which may themselves have a biological base — makes the destiny of men and women different, gives them different priorities, ambitions, and behaviour.[18] ”

Chapter four begins with case studies and proceeds through the chronological sub-sections: babies, toddlers, pre-school and school. It is in this section that the superior sensory processing of female brains and the tendency of girls to engage more readily with adults is introduced.[19] Boys, by comparison, do not seem to observe as much, nor have as strong a preference for inter-personal engagement. However, they talk as much (but to themselves or things), and are generally more "active and wakeful."[20] The discussion of these things is supported by references to a mother, Gillian, who sought to avoid sexual stereotyping in raising her twins Annie and Andrew, only to find, with frustration, that her children resisted her efforts.[21]

Although the chapter makes the case for objective, universal biological development of sex difference in behaviour, it is explicit in noting that socialization is also very much part of behavioural development in general. The first case study in the chapter is a report of the sad case of Susan Wiley, a girl who was raised in isolation and struggled to develop language ability.[22] The point of the chapter is that sexually dimorphic behaviours include biological influences that are resistant to socialization,[23] not that all behaviour or all dimorphic behaviours are purely biological. As the conclusion of the book makes explicit, its thesis is that purely social explanations of gender are inadequate, not that biological explanations are sufficient.

Chapter Five: The brains come of age

“ With the onset of puberty, the human mechanism is past the blueprint stage. Now the hormones take on their second role, fuelling, powering, and informing the brain and our subsequent behaviour as human beings. ... Before puberty, in spite of all those infant sexual differences we have already documented, girls and boys have the same kinds of hormones circulating at the same levels in their bodies. Once the hormone levels increase, however, the changes are dramatic. In girls, at around the age of eight the level of female hormone begins to rise. ... The hormones of boys come on stream about two years later than girls.[24] ”

Structural dimorphism of the brain alone can account for a great deal of the behavioural and other differences between boys and girls.[25] However, the impact of higher levels of sex-specific hormones on the already dimorphic brains leads to even more profound differences between mature men and women.[26] A survey of this phenomenon is the topic of chapter five.

Again this chapter features several case studies. It first considers the influence of female hormones on the behaviour of women.[27] The pronounced cyclic rhythm of female hormones, and their widely attested effects, is considered in detail. The case studies are extreme examples.[28] The influence of testosterone on men, especially with regard to aggression, is also noted in this chapter and extends to discussion of higher prevalence of social deviancy among men.[29] Although consideration of the extremes and the negative social impact of hormonal influence occupies the majority of the chapter, it concludes with aspects of dimorphic patterns of behaviour that are generally considered socially constructive, even if stereotypical.[30]

Chapter Six: The ability gap

“ Just as puberty dramatically sorts out the girls from the boys in their behaviour and social attitudes, the hormones play their part in accentuating differences in mental abilities and aptitudes. We know that the chemistry largely dictates the structure of our brains and the disposition of the functions in it. It should not be surprising, then, to find that differences in the organ of thought affect the things we choose to think about, and how well we apply our minds to them.[31] ”

Chapter six considers the statistical differences in performance between men and women, particularly those of children and adolescents in educational environments.[32] Case studies of hormonally atypical children whose performance correlates more closely with children of the other sex is presented.[33]

Although there is evidence for measurable differences in performance of various cognitive and other tasks, the chapter focuses on these as an outcome of preference and strategy. It is not a question of seeking to demonstrate an overall superiority of one sex or the other, rather the evidence is evaluated for what it appears to support regarding biologically prompted alternative approaches to life challenges.[34]

The point of this is that men and women have preferences, not simply abilities. So external performance based selection of men and women may well lead to more women than men in certain roles (and vice versa). However, the evidence also suggests that men and women are just as likely to learn and pursue specific social roles in different proportions, by virtue of internal preferences and irrespective of external selection.[35]

The specific studies and numbers that are quoted in the chapter mainly focus on male advantages in abstract theoretical reasoning, in particular traditional theoretical mathematics.[36] The general picture presented is of a male preference to systematize, where the female preference is to sympathize.[37] These stereotypes are not new, it was the popularization of peer-reviewed study of them that was new.

Chapter Seven: Hearts and minds

“ Physically, men and women are generally attracted to each other because of their differences. Ask any group of men from any culture to assess the attractiveness of a female, and they will tend to opt for the figure which curves where they are flat, is soft where they are strong and — though this may be a matter for aesthetic as much as scientific debate — swells where they are narrow. The same, in reverse, is true of women, who will tend to express a preference for men with broad shoulders tapering to narrow hips. ... Yet in every other respect, we expect the sexes to be attracted to each other because of their similarities. Any computer-dating questionnaire will try to match intellectual like with like.[38] ”

This chapter considers the differences in erotic preferences and behaviour between men and women. It starts by introducing difference in expressed preferences for certain physical features,[39] but then turns to psychological and relational aspects.[40] After some caveats regarding the subjectivity of previous work on sexual anthropology,[41] treatment of scientific studies of hormonal influences on libido is introduced.[42] The chapter includes treatment of well-known generalizations like: men being more sexually driven than women,[43] arousal being visual for men and by touch for women,[44] and men wanting sex where women want a relationship.[45] Hormonal explanations for these tendencies are offered, and reference to studies where available. There is a sustained conversational style of presentation in this chapter, which continually returns to the practical difficulties of misunderstandings arising in male-female relationships due to different expectations, especially if the differences between the sexes are denied.

Chapter Eight: Like minds

“ The hormonal theory [of sexual deviancy] would explain why sexual deviancy is so much more common in men. Men have to go through a hormonal process to change their brains from the natural female pattern present in all of us, whatever our eventual sex, from the first weeks of our life in the womb; they have to be soaked in extra male hormone and restructured — so in the process of reconstruction the chance of mistakes is much greater than in the female, who doesn't need any reconstruction of her brain.[46] ”

Treatment of like mindedness in couples is actually the consistent theme of chapter seven. In this chapter, it is homosexual couples that are on view, in particular male homosexuals — in other words sexual partners with similarly structured brains. Male homosexuals are particularly on view because it would appear that homosexuality in men and women is motivated and expressed quite differently. It would also appear that male homosexuality has been considerably more studied than female homosexuality. The chapter features the work of an East German scientist, Gunter Dörner, from the cold war era. It concludes with a quote from Sigmund Freud — "bear in mind that some day all our provisional formulations in psychology will have to be based on an organic foundation . . . It will then probably be seen that it is special chemical substances and processes which achieve the effects of sexuality."[47]

Chapter Nine: The marriage of two minds

“ Our new knowledge of what makes us tick, and tick to different rhythms, is not of itself going to revolutionise the complex design of marriage — we will present no new marital blueprint. But we do believe that much of the stress in this most vital of relationships stems from the misconception that men and women are essentially the same people. The contradiction between this assumption and the facts can lead to exasperation, bitterness and recrimination.[48] ”

This chapter addresses the issue of marital conflict, which it believes to be inevitable, but not fatal. Men and women typically express different goals in life generally, and in personal relationship in particular. The main concern of the chapter is that by educating boys and girls in the same things, and in teaching them that they are the same, society is undermining their future marriages.[49] Essentially the chapter deconstructs modern assumptions regarding equality and power in interpersonal relationships. This is treated mainly from the perspective of women's frustrations within marriages — "the inequality of the emotional contract."[50] It is seen as an inevitability, only made more painful by denial. The chapter concludes by summarizing its warning, while reasserting the complementary diversity it sees as a constructive feature of sexual differences, if embraced. "Marriages go wrong when men and women fail to acknowledge, or begin to resent, each other's complementary differences."[51]

Chapter Ten: Why mothers are not fathers

“ Nothing is said to bring men and women closer to each other than the shared experience of parenthood. The truth more often is that, because of the different perspective each partner brings to it, few things more dramatically define the difference between men and women. However disappointing the fact may be to a devoted father, there is something unique in the relationship between a mother and a baby. No known society replaces the mother as a primary provider of care.[52] ”

There are two main themes to this chapter — the complexity and demanding nature of parenting, and the advantages the typical female brain seems to have in applying itself to the challenges. The chapter is explicit in addressing motherhood and fatherhood, not gender-neutral parenthood. It also addresses both a widespread desire among women to be mothers, and the common experience of guilt among women regarding time spent away from their children. The evolution of social structures in the Israeli kibutz is reported, where despite an ideological commitment to community, rather than family, investment in raising children, it is the women who have sought and regained the role of motherhood. There is only limited treatment of the role of fatherhood in this chapter.

Chapter Eleven: Minds at work

“ We live in a world where we are no longer surprised to find a female prime minister, a female judge, a female rabbi or a female pilot. But there are still remarkably few women in top jobs, considering the large increase in the number of well-educated women. That is likely to remain the case.[53] ”

The main point of chapter eleven is that men and women appear to perceive success differently, they articulate different ambitions. A comparison between the priorities of male and female academics is given. The men, in general, seek publication and status, where the women seek to provide quality education for their students.[54] Several examples of studies along these lines are presented in the body of the chapter. Both publication and personal coaching of students are important contributions to the vitality of educational institutions within the field of academia. The chapter concludes by suggesting that in many fields, the distinctive contributions of typical men and women are actually complementary. Combining the different patterns of talent, rather than denying their existence, is suggested to be a more logical approach to increased productivity in the workplace.[55]

Chapter Twelve: Bias at work

“ The Wall Street Journal once spoke of female careers being 'sabotaged by motherhood', demonstrating, in a few words, several misconceptions. First, many women do not see their retirement from the world of paid work as a disaster — home and family are a fulfilling and rewarding occupation. Secondly, motherhood is a career in itself, as any single-parent journalist will soon find out; and finally, even the most reluctant mothers, holding their new-born baby, find the notion that they have been somehow 'sabotaged' simply does not arise. If there is any question of sabotage, it is women who sabotage their own self-esteem. Too often they have defined career success and achievement in male terms.[56] ”

The final chapter of the book argues first that the typical female preference and aptitude for "personal relationships" suits them to employment in workplace roles that capitalize on this.[57] It continues this line of thinking in a creative way, suggesting we have a genuine social problem regarding stereotyping in the workplace; but this problem is not the problem of stereotyping the sexes, rather it is the problem of stereotyping the roles. Management and decision making stereotypes are discussed, and it is suggested that particular, "macho" stereotypes predominate. If we want female managers, we should be allowing them to manage in feminine ways, and we might just find these to be workable, and even superior in certain contexts.[58]

References

The reference section of the book is divided into several sections: "General References" (a page-and-a-half), references by chapter (fifteen pages of bibliography), and twelve books described as "Summary References". These sections are followed by eight-and-a-half pages of citations for the end notes marked in the main text.

Reviews

  • "This book is a thoroughly good read, couched comfortably in layman's language and carrying the reader on at a spanking pace." — Glasgow Herald
  • "For the past 30 years we have been told that men and women are interchangeable in every way. Now a sensational book explodes the myth of sexual sameness." — Daily Mail
“ The genders are different because their brains are different. The brain is differently constructed in men and in women; it processes information in a different way, which results in different perceptions, priorities and behaviour. Men and women are equal only in their common membership to the same species, humankind. ”

'Brain Sex—Testosterone Role in Personality Evolution; Females and Males Are Different?' The Journal of Sexual Medicine 3 (2006): 81-82.

“ Feminism holds that, except for obvious anatomical differences related to reproduction, men and women are essentially the same. Feminists argue that psychological differences — differences in interests, mental abilities, or emotions — are caused by social conditioning, not by genes. This book directly contradicts modern feminist theory, and it documents its conclusions with a myriad of scientific studies. ”

'Brain Sex'. National Vanguard Magazine 116 (August-September 1996)

See also

References

  1. ^ K Millet, Sexual Politics, (London: Virago, 1977), p. 28.
  2. ^ Moir and Jessel, Brain Sex, (Mandarin, 1991): 177.
  3. ^ Ibid., p. 5.
  4. ^ Ibid., p. 12.
  5. ^ Ibid., p. 190.
  6. ^ Ibid., p. 9.
  7. ^ Ibid., pp. 12ff.
  8. ^ Ibid., p. 21.
  9. ^ Ibid., pp. 21ff.
  10. ^ Ibid., p. 24-25.
  11. ^ Ibid., p. 25-29.
  12. ^ Ibid., p. 29-37.
  13. ^ Ibid., p. 38.
  14. ^ Ibid., p. 38.
  15. ^ Ibid., p. 38.
  16. ^ Ibid., pp. 39ff.
  17. ^ Ibid., pp. 42ff.
  18. ^ Ibid., p. 53.
  19. ^ Ibid., p. 55.
  20. ^ Ibid., p. 56.
  21. ^ Ibid., pp. 57ff.
  22. ^ Ibid., p. 54.
  23. ^ Ibid., p. 66.
  24. ^ Ibid., pp. 68f.
  25. ^ Ibid., p. 67.
  26. ^ Ibid., p. 68-69.
  27. ^ Ibid., pp. 70ff.
  28. ^ Ibid., pp. 73, 75, 77, 78.
  29. ^ Ibid., pp. 79ff.
  30. ^ Ibid., pp. 85ff.
  31. ^ Ibid., p. 88.
  32. ^ Ibid., pp. 89ff.
  33. ^ Ibid., pp. 91ff.
  34. ^ Ibid., p. 98.
  35. ^ Ibid., p. 97.
  36. ^ Ibid., p. 89-91.
  37. ^ Ibid., p. 95-97.
  38. ^ Ibid., p. 99.
  39. ^ Ibid., p. 99.
  40. ^ Ibid., pp. 100f.
  41. ^ Ibid., pp. 102f.
  42. ^ Ibid., pp. 103f.
  43. ^ Ibid., p. 102 and others.
  44. ^ Ibid., p. 106.
  45. ^ Ibid., p. 107 and others.
  46. ^ Ibid., p. 117.
  47. ^ Sigmund Freud, location not provided in Moir and Jessel.
  48. ^ Ibid., p. 126.
  49. ^ Ibid., p. 127.
  50. ^ Ibid., p. 135.
  51. ^ Ibid., p. 140.
  52. ^ Ibid., p. 141.
  53. ^ Ibid., p. 153.
  54. ^ Ibid., p. 157.
  55. ^ Ibid., p. 164.
  56. ^ Ibid., p. 165.
  57. ^ Ibid., pp. 166ff.
  58. ^ Ibid., pp. 168ff.

Literature
 
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Brain_Sex". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia.
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