Sex differences in cognition

Last updated

Sex differences in cognition are widely studied in the current scientific literature. Biological and genetic differences in combination with environment and culture have resulted in the cognitive differences among males and females. Among biological factors, hormones such as testosterone and estrogen may play some role mediating these differences. Among differences of diverse mental and cognitive abilities, the largest or most well known are those relating to spatial abilities, social cognition and verbal skills and abilities.

Contents

Cognitive abilities

Cognitive abilities are mental abilities that a person uses in everyday life, as well as specific demand tasks. The most basic of these abilities are memory, executive function, processing speed and perception, which combine to form a larger perceptual umbrella relating to different social, affective, verbal and spatial information. Memory, which is one of the primary core of cognitive abilities can be broken down into short-term memory, working memory and long-term memory. There are also other abilities relating to perceptual information such as mental rotation, spatial visualization ability, verbal fluency and reading comprehension. Other larger perceptual umbrellas include social cognition, empathy, spatial perception and verbal abilities.

Sex differences in memory

Short term memory

Various researchers have conducted studies to determine the differences between males and females and their abilities within their short-term memory. For example, a study conducted by Lowe, Mayfield, and Reynolds (2003) examined sex differences among children and adolescents on various short-term memory measures. This study included 1,279 children and adolescents, 637 males and 642 females, between the ages of 5 and 19. They found that females scored higher on two verbal subtests: Word Selective Reminding and Object Recall, and males scored higher on the Memory for Location and Abstract Visual Memory subtests, the key spatial memory tasks. In two different studies researchers have found that women perform higher on verbal tasks and men perform higher on spatial tasks (Voyer, Voyer, & Saint-Aubin, 2016). These findings are consistent with studies of intelligence with regards to pattern, females performing higher on certain verbal tasks and males performing higher on certain spatial tasks (Voyer, Voyer, & Saint-Aubin, 2016). Same results have been also found cross culturally. [1] Sex differences in verbal short-term memory have been found regardless of age even among adults, for example a review published in the journal Neuropsychologia which evaluated studies from 1990 to 2013 found greater female verbal memory from ages 11–89 years old. [2] [3]

Working memory

There are usually no sex differences in overall working memory except those involving spatial information such as space and object. A 2004 study published in the journal of Applied Cognitive Psychology found significantly higher male performance on four visuo-spatial working memory. [4] Another 2010 study published in the journal Brain and Cognition found a male advantage in spatial and object working memory on an n-back test but not for verbal working memory. [5] Similarly another study published in the journal Human Brain Mapping found no sex differences in a verbal n-back working memory task among adults from ages 18–58 years old. [6] There was also no sex differences in verbal working memory among a study of university students published in the Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences. However, they still found greater male spatial working memory in studies published in the journals Brain Cognition and Intelligence. [7] [8] Also, even though they found no sex differences in verbal working memory, researchers have found lower brain activity or thermodynamics in the prefrontal cortex of females which suggested greater neural efficiency and less effort for the same performance. [9] Researchers indicate females might have greater working memory on tasks that only relies on the prefrontal cortex. [9] However, in another study of working memory, where the goal was to detect sex differences under high loads of working memory, males outperformed females under high loads of working memory. The authors of the study state: "Results indicated sex effects at high loads across tasks and within each task, such that males had higher accuracy, even among groups that were matched for performance at lower loads". [10] A 2006 review and study on working memory published in the journal European Journal of Cognitive Psychology also found no sex differences in working memory processes except in a double-span task where females outperformed males. [11] There have also been no sex differences found in a popular working memory task known as n-back among a large number of studies. [9] [11] [12] [13] [14]

Long term memory

Studies have found a greater female ability in episodic memory involving verbal or both verbal and visual-spatial tasks while a higher male ability that only involves complex visual-spatial episodic memory. [15] [16] For example, a study published in the journal Neuropsychology found that women perform at a higher level on most verbal episodic tasks and tasks involving some or little visual-spatial episodic memory. [17] Another study published the following year found that women perform at a higher level in verbal and non-verbal (non-spatial visual) episodic memory but men performed at a higher level in complex visual-spatial episodic memory. [18] A review published in the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science by researcher Agneta Herlitz also conclude that higher ability in women on episodic-memory tasks requiring both verbal and visuospatial episodic memory and on face-recognition tasks, while men have higher abilities for episodic memory, where visual-spatial skills of high complexity are required. [15]

Sex differences in semantic memory have also been found with a higher female ability which can be explained by a female advantage in verbal fluency. [19] One other study also found greater female free-recall and long term retrieval among the ages 5–17. [20]

In another study, when using multiple tests for episodic memory, there were no differences between men and women. [21] A similar result was also found among children from 3 to 6 years old. [22] As for semantic memory related to general knowledge and knowledge of facts from the world. That is, in most areas of cognition, men show higher results on semantic memory. [23] [24] [25] [26] [27]

Sex differences in executive functions

There has not been enough literature or studies assessing sex difference in executive functioning, especially since executive functions are not a unitary concept. However, in the ones that have been done, there have been differences found in attention and inhibition.

Attention

A 2002 study published in the Journal of Vision found that males were faster at shifting attention from one object to another as well as shifting attention within objects. [28] 2012–2014 studies published in the Journal of Neuropsychology with a sample size ranging from 3500 to 9138 participants by researcher Ruben C Gur found higher female attention accuracy in a neurocognitive battery assessing individuals from ages 8–21. [29] [30] A 2013 study published in the Chinese Medical Journal found no sex differences in executive and alerting of attention networks but faster orientation of attention among females. [31] A 2010 study published in Neuropsychologia also found greater female responsiveness in attention to processing overall sensory stimulation. [32]

Inhibition and self-regulation

A 2008 study published in the journal Psychophysiology found faster reaction time to deviant stimuli in women. [33] The study also analyzed past literature and found higher female performance in withholding social behavior such as aggressive responses and improper sexual arousal. [33] Furthermore, they found evidence that women were better at resisting temptation in tasks, delaying gratification and controlling emotional expressions. [33] They also found lower female effort in response inhibition in equal performance for the same tasks implying an advantage for females in response inhibition based on neural efficiency. [33] In another study published in 2011 in the journal Brain and Cognition, it was found that females outperformed males on the Sustained Attention to Response Task which is a test that measures inhibitory control. [34] Researchers have hypothesized that any female advantage in inhibition or self-regulation may have evolved as a response to greater parenting responsibilities in ancestral settings. [33]

Sex differences in processing speed

Sex differences in processing speed has been largely noted in literature. Studies published in the journal Intelligence have found faster processing speed in women. For example, a 2006 study published in Intelligence by researcher Stephen Camarata and Richard Woodcock found faster processing speed in females across all age groups in a sample of 4,213 participants. [35] This was followed by another study published in 2008 by researchers Timothy Z Keith and Matthew R. Reynolds who found faster processing speed in females from ages 6 to 89 years old. [36] The sample also had a number of 8,818 participants. [36] Other studies by Keith have also found faster processing speed in females from ages 5 to 17. [20] In one recent study, groups of men and women were tested using the WAIS-IV and WAIS-R tests. According to the research results, there were no differences in processing speed between men and women. [37]

Sex differences in semantic perception

Studies of sex differences in semantic perception (attribution of meaning) of words reported that males conceptualize items in terms of physical or observable attributes whereas females use more evaluative concepts. [38] [39] Another study of young adults in three cultures showed significant sex differences in semantic perception (attribution of meaning) of most common and abstract words. Contrary to common beliefs, women gave more negative scores to the concepts describing sensational objects, social and physical attractors but more positive estimations to work- and reality-related words, in comparison to men [40] This suggests that men favour concepts related to extreme experience and women favour concepts related to predictable and controllable routines. In a light of the higher rates of sensation seeking and deviancy in males, in comparison to females, these sex differences in meaning attribution were interpreted as support for the evolutionary theory of sex. [41]

Sex differences in spatial abilities

Rubik's cube puzzle involving mental rotation Rubik's cube 2.svg
Rubik's cube puzzle involving mental rotation

Sex differences in spatial abilities are widely established in literature. Males have much higher level of performance in three major spatial tasks which include spatial visualization, spatial perception and mental rotation. [42] [43] Spatial visualization elicits the smallest difference with a deviation of 0.13, perception a deviation of 0.44 and mental rotation the largest with a deviation of 0.73. [42] [44] [45] Another 2013 meta-analysis published in the journal Educational Review found greater male mental rotation in a deviation of 0.57 which only grew larger as time limits were added. [46] These male advantages manifests themselves in math and mechanical tasks for example significantly higher male performance on tests of geometry, measurement, probability, statistics and especially mechanical reasoning. [47] It also manifests and largely mediates higher male performance in arithmetic and computational fluency [48] All of these math and technical fields involve spatial abilities such as rotation and manipulation of imagined space, symbols and objects. Mental rotation has also been linked to higher success in fields of engineering, physics and chemistry regardless of gender. [49] Spatial visualization on the other hand also correlate with higher math achievement in a range of 0.30 to 0.60. [50] Furthermore, male advantage in spatial abilities can be accounted for by their greater ability in spatial working memory. [7] Sex differences in mental rotation also reaches almost a single deviation (1.0) when the tasks require navigation, as found in one study with participants who used Oculus Rift in a virtual environment. [51]

Even though most spatial abilities are higher in men, object location memory or the ability to memorize spatial cues involving categorical relations are higher in women. [2] [52] But it depends on the type of stimulus (object) and the task. In some conditions, men's productivity is higher (for example, when "male" objects are used), in other conditions, women's productivity may be higher or there are no differences between the sexes. [52] Higher female ability in visual recognition of objects and shapes have also been found. [53] [54]


Sex differences in verbal abilities

Like spatial ability, sex differences in verbal abilities have been widely established in literature. There is a clear higher female performance on a number of verbal tasks prominently a higher level of performance in speech production which reaches a deviation of 0.33 and also a higher performance in writing. [43] [44] [55] [56] [57] Studies have also found greater female performance in phonological processing, identifying alphabetical sequences, and word fluency tasks. [58] [59] [60] Studies have also found that females outperform males in verbal learning especially on tests such as Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test and Verbal Paired Associates. [61] [62] It has also been found that the hormone estrogen increases ability of speech production and phonological processing in women, which could be tied to their advantages in these areas. [47] Overall better female performance have also been found in verbal fluency which include a trivial advantage reading comprehension while a significantly higher performance in speech production and essay writing. [49] [55] This manifests in higher female international PISA scores in reading and higher female Grade 12 scores in national reading, writing and study skills. [63] [64] Researchers Joseph M. Andreano and Larry Cahill have also found that the female verbal advantage extends into numerous tasks, including tests of spatial and autobiographical abilities. [16]

In a fairly large meta-analysis that analyzed 165 different studies, a very small difference of 0.11 standard deviations was found. The authors of this study postulate: "The difference is so small that we argue that gender differences in verbal ability no longer exist." [65]

Sex differences in social cognition

Current literature suggests women have higher level of social cognition. A 2012 review published in the journal Neuropsychologia found that women are better at recognizing facial effects, expression processing and emotions in general. [66] Men were only better at recognizing specific behaviour which includes anger, aggression and threatening cues. [66] A 2012 study published in the journal Neuropsychology with a sample of 3,500 individuals from ages 8–21, found that females outperformed males on face memory and all social cognition tests. [29] In 2014, another study published in the journal Cerebral Cortex found that females had larger activity in the right temporal cortex, an essential core of the social brain connected to perception and understanding the social behaviour of others such as intentions, emotions, and expectations. [67] In 2014, a meta-analysis of 215 study sample by researcher A.E. Johnson and D Voyeur in the journal Cognition and Emotion found overall female advantage in emotional recognition. [68] Other studies have also indicated greater female superiority to discriminate vocal and facial expression regardless of valence, and also being able to accurately process emotional speech. [69] Studies have also found males to be slower in making social judgments than females. [70] Structural studies with MRI neuroimaging has also shown that women have bigger regional grey matter volumes in a number of regions related to social information processing including the Inferior frontal cortex and bigger cortical folding in the Inferior frontal cortex and parietal cortex [70] Researchers suppose that these sex differences in social cognition predisposes males to high rates of autism spectrum disorders which is characterized by lower social cognition. [70]

A recent study that aimed to identify gender differences in social cognition did not show significant differences, with few exceptions. The study authors state: "The presence of sex differences in social cognition is controversial". [71] Results showed no significant sex differences in affective and cognitive ToM, in the recognition of emotional facial expressions, or in the ability to identify and regulate one's own emotions. [72]

Empathy

Empathy is a large part of social cognition and facilitates its cognitive components known as theory of mind. Current literature suggests a higher level of empathy in women compared to men. [73] [74] [75]

A 2014 analysis from the journal of Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews reported that there is evidence that "sex differences in empathy have phylogenetic and ontogenetic roots in biology and are not merely cultural byproducts driven by socialization." [74] Other research has found no differences in empathy between women and men, and suggest that perceived gender differences are the result of motivational differences. [76] [77] [78]

See also

Related Research Articles

Working memory is a cognitive system with a limited capacity that can hold information temporarily. It is important for reasoning and the guidance of decision-making and behavior. Working memory is often used synonymously with short-term memory, but some theorists consider the two forms of memory distinct, assuming that working memory allows for the manipulation of stored information, whereas short-term memory only refers to the short-term storage of information. Working memory is a theoretical concept central to cognitive psychology, neuropsychology, and neuroscience.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baddeley's model of working memory</span> Model of human memory

Baddeley's model of working memory is a model of human memory proposed by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974, in an attempt to present a more accurate model of primary memory. Working memory splits primary memory into multiple components, rather than considering it to be a single, unified construct.

Sex differences in psychology are differences in the mental functions and behaviors of the sexes and are due to a complex interplay of biological, developmental, and cultural factors. Differences have been found in a variety of fields such as mental health, cognitive abilities, personality, emotion, sexuality, friendship, and tendency towards aggression. Such variation may be innate, learned, or both. Modern research attempts to distinguish between these causes and to analyze any ethical concerns raised. Since behavior is a result of interactions between nature and nurture, researchers are interested in investigating how biology and environment interact to produce such differences, although this is often not possible.

The Levels of Processing model, created by Fergus I. M. Craik and Robert S. Lockhart in 1972, describes memory recall of stimuli as a function of the depth of mental processing. More analysis produce more elaborate and stronger memory than lower levels of processing. Depth of processing falls on a shallow to deep continuum. Shallow processing leads to a fragile memory trace that is susceptible to rapid decay. Conversely, deep processing results in a more durable memory trace. There are three levels of processing in this model. Structural processing, or visual, is when we remember only the physical quality of the word E.g how the word is spelled and how letters look. Phonemic processing includes remembering the word by the way it sounds. E.G the word tall rhymes with fall. Lastly, we have semantic processing in which we encode the meaning of the word with another word that is similar or has similar meaning. Once the word is perceived, the brain allows for a deeper processing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mental rotation</span> Rotation of an object in the mind

Mental rotation is the ability to rotate mental representations of two-dimensional and three-dimensional objects as it is related to the visual representation of such rotation within the human mind. There is a relationship between areas of the brain associated with perception and mental rotation. There could also be a relationship between the cognitive rate of spatial processing, general intelligence and mental rotation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memory and aging</span> Aspect of senescence

Age-related memory loss, sometimes described as "normal aging", is qualitatively different from memory loss associated with types of dementia such as Alzheimer's disease, and is believed to have a different brain mechanism.

Spatial visualization ability or visual-spatial ability is the ability to mentally manipulate 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional figures. It is typically measured with simple cognitive tests and is predictive of user performance with some kinds of user interfaces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mate choice</span> One of the primary mechanisms under which evolution can occur

Mate choice is one of the primary mechanisms under which evolution can occur. It is characterized by a "selective response by animals to particular stimuli" which can be observed as behavior. In other words, before an animal engages with a potential mate, they first evaluate various aspects of that mate which are indicative of quality—such as the resources or phenotypes they have—and evaluate whether or not those particular trait(s) are somehow beneficial to them. The evaluation will then incur a response of some sort.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Effects of alcohol on memory</span> Health effect of alcohol consumption

Ethanol is the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages. It is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid that acts as a central nervous system depressant. Ethanol can impair different types of memory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adaptive memory</span>

Adaptive memory is the study of memory systems that have evolved to help retain survival- and fitness-related information, i.e., that are geared toward helping an organism enhance its reproductive fitness and chances of surviving. One key element of adaptive memory research is the notion that memory evolved to help survival by better retaining information that is fitness-relevant. One of the foundations of this method of studying memory is the relatively little adaptive value of a memory system that evolved merely to remember past events. Memory systems, it is argued, must use the past in some service of the present or the planning of the future. Another assumption under this model is that the evolved memory mechanisms are likely to be domain-specific, or sensitive to certain types of information.

Spatial cognition is the acquisition, organization, utilization, and revision of knowledge about spatial environments. It is most about how animals including humans behave within space and the knowledge they built around it, rather than space itself. These capabilities enable individuals to manage basic and high-level cognitive tasks in everyday life. Numerous disciplines work together to understand spatial cognition in different species, especially in humans. Thereby, spatial cognition studies also have helped to link cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Scientists in both fields work together to figure out what role spatial cognition plays in the brain as well as to determine the surrounding neurobiological infrastructure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neuroscience of sex differences</span> Characteristics of the brain that differentiate the male brain and the female brain

The neuroscience of sex differences is the study of characteristics that separate brains of different sexes. Psychological sex differences are thought by some to reflect the interaction of genes, hormones, and social learning on brain development throughout the lifespan. A 2021 meta-synthesis led by Lise Eliot found that sex accounted for 1% of the brain's structure or laterality, finding large group-level differences only in total brain volume. A subsequent 2021 led by Camille Michèle Williams contradicted Eliot's conclusions, finding that sex differences in total brain volume are not accounted for merely by sex differences in height and weight, and that once global brain size is taken into account, there remain numerous regional sex differences in both directions. A 2022 follow-up meta-analysis led by Alex DeCasien analyzed the studies from both Eliot and Williams, concluding that "the human brain shows highly reproducible sex differences in regional brain anatomy above and beyond sex differences in overall brain size" and that these differences are of a "small-moderate effect size" A review from 2006 and a meta-analysis from 2014 found that some evidence from brain morphology and function studies indicates that male and female brains cannot always be assumed to be identical from either a structural or functional perspective, and some brain structures are sexually dimorphic.

This relationship between autism and memory, specifically memory functions in relation to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), has been an ongoing topic of research. ASD is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by social communication and interaction impairments, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior. In this article, the word autism is used to refer to the whole range of conditions on the autism spectrum, which are not uncommon.

Although there are many physiological and psychological gender differences in humans, memory, in general, is fairly stable across the sexes. By studying the specific instances in which males and females demonstrate differences in memory, we are able to further understand the brain structures and functions associated with memory.

Sex differences in human intelligence have long been a topic of debate among researchers and scholars. It is now recognized that there are no significant sex differences in average IQ, though particular subtypes of intelligence vary somewhat between sexes.

Sense of direction is the ability to know one's location and perform wayfinding. It is related to cognitive maps, spatial awareness, and spatial cognition. Sense of direction can be impaired by brain damage, such as in the case of topographical disorientation.

Emotional intelligence (EI) involves using cognitive and emotional abilities to function in interpersonal relationships, social groups as well as manage one's emotional states. It consists of abilities such as social cognition, empathy and also reasoning about the emotions of others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spatial ability</span> Capacity to understand 3D relationships

Spatial ability or visuo-spatial ability is the capacity to understand, reason, and remember the visual and spatial relations among objects or space.

The evolution of cognition is the process by which life on Earth has gone from organisms with little to no cognitive function to a greatly varying display of cognitive function that we see in organisms today. Animal cognition is largely studied by observing behavior, which makes studying extinct species difficult. The definition of cognition varies by discipline; psychologists tend define cognition by human behaviors, while ethologists have widely varying definitions. Ethological definitions of cognition range from only considering cognition in animals to be behaviors exhibited in humans, while others consider anything action involving a nervous system to be cognitive.

Spatial anxiety is a sense of anxiety an individual experiences while processing environmental information contained in one's geographical space, with the purpose of navigation and orientation through that space. Spatial anxiety is also linked to the feeling of stress regarding the anticipation of a spatial-content related performance task. Particular cases of spatial anxiety can result in a more severe form of distress, as in agoraphobia.

References

  1. ↑ Mann VA, Sasanuma S, Sakuma N, Masaki S (1990-01-01). "Sex differences in cognitive abilities: a cross-cultural perspective". Neuropsychologia. 28 (10): 1063–77. doi: 10.1016/0028-3932(90)90141-A . PMID   2267058. S2CID   23833686.
  2. 1 2 Li R (September 2014). "Why women see differently from the way men see? A review of sex differences in cognition and sports". Journal of Sport and Health Science. 3 (3): 155–162. doi:10.1016/j.jshs.2014.03.012. PMC   4266559 . PMID   25520851.
  3. ↑ Kramer, Joel H.; Delis, Dean C.; Daniel, Mark (1988). "Sex differences in verbal learning". Journal of Clinical Psychology. 44 (6): 907–915. doi:10.1002/1097-4679(198811)44:6<907::AID-JCLP2270440610>3.0.CO;2-8.
  4. ↑ Bosco A, Longoni AM, Vecchi T (July 2004). "Gender effects in spatial orientation: cognitive profiles and mental strategies". Applied Cognitive Psychology. 18 (5): 519–532. doi:10.1002/acp.1000. PMC   2909401 . PMID   20676381.
  5. ↑ Lejbak L, Crossley M, Vrbancic M (June 2011). "A male advantage for spatial and object but not verbal working memory using the n-back task". Brain and Cognition. 76 (1): 191–6. doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2010.12.002. PMID   21411205. S2CID   205789245.
  6. ↑ Schmidt H, Jogia J, Fast K, Christodoulou T, Haldane M, Kumari V, Frangou S (November 2009). "No gender differences in brain activation during the N-back task: an fMRI study in healthy individuals". Human Brain Mapping. 30 (11): 3609–15. doi:10.1002/hbm.20783. PMC   6870785 . PMID   19387979.
  7. 1 2 Kaufman SB (2007). "Sex differences in mental rotation and spatial visualization ability: Can they be accounted for by differences in working memory capacity?". Intelligence. 35 (3): 211–223. doi:10.1016/j.intell.2006.07.009.
  8. ↑ Duff SJ, Hampson E (December 2001). "A sex difference on a novel spatial working memory task in humans". Brain and Cognition. 47 (3): 470–93. doi:10.1006/brcg.2001.1326. PMID   11748902. S2CID   41875374.
  9. 1 2 3 Li T, Luo Q, Gong H (May 2010). "Gender-specific hemodynamics in prefrontal cortex during a verbal working memory task by near-infrared spectroscopy". Behavioural Brain Research. 209 (1): 148–53. doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2010.01.033. PMID   20117145. S2CID   2454243.
  10. ↑ Reed, Jessica L.; Gallagher, Natalie M.; Sullivan, Marie; Callicott, Joseph H.; Green, Adam E. (2017-04-01). "Sex differences in verbal working memory performance emerge at very high loads of common neuroimaging tasks". Brain and Cognition. 113: 56–64. doi: 10.1016/j.bandc.2017.01.001 . ISSN   0278-2626. PMID   28119206. S2CID   2337056.
  11. 1 2 Robert M, Savoie N (2006). "Are there gender differences in verbal and visuospatial working-memory resources?". European Journal of Cognitive Psychology. 18 (3): 378–397. doi:10.1080/09541440500234104. S2CID   144420975.
  12. ↑ "N -back task to assess sex difference in working memory: A pilot study". ResearchGate. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
  13. ↑ Harness A, Jacot L, Scherf S, White A, Warnick JE (August 2008). "Sex differences in working memory". Psychological Reports. 103 (1): 214–8. doi:10.2466/pr0.103.1.214-218. PMID   18982954.
  14. ↑ Goldstein JM, Jerram M, Poldrack R, Anagnoson R, Breiter HC, Makris N, et al. (July 2005). "Sex differences in prefrontal cortical brain activity during fMRI of auditory verbal working memory". Neuropsychology. 19 (4): 509–19. doi:10.1037/0894-4105.19.4.509. PMID   16060826. S2CID   16100987.
  15. 1 2 Herlitz A, Rehnman J (2008). "Sex Differences in Episodic Memory". Current Directions in Psychological Science. 17 (1): 52–56. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8721.2008.00547.x. S2CID   145107751.
  16. 1 2 Andreano JM, Cahill L (April 2009). "Sex influences on the neurobiology of learning and memory". Learning & Memory. 16 (4): 248–66. doi: 10.1101/lm.918309 . PMID   19318467.
  17. ↑ Herlitz A, Airaksinen E, Nordström E (October 1999). "Sex differences in episodic memory: the impact of verbal and visuospatial ability". Neuropsychology. 13 (4): 590–7. doi:10.1037/0894-4105.13.4.590. PMID   10527068.
  18. ↑ Lewin C, Wolgers G, Herlitz A (April 2001). "Sex differences favoring women in verbal but not in visuospatial episodic memory". Neuropsychology. 15 (2): 165–73. doi:10.1037/0894-4105.15.2.165. PMID   11324860.
  19. ↑ Maitland SB, Herlitz A, Nyberg L, Bäckman L, Nilsson LG (October 2004). "Selective sex differences in declarative memory". Memory & Cognition. 32 (7): 1160–9. doi: 10.3758/BF03196889 . PMID   15813497. S2CID   39106894.
  20. 1 2 Keith TZ, Reynolds MR, Roberts LG, Winter AL, Austin CA (2011). "Sex differences in latent cognitive abilities ages 5 to 17: Evidence from the Differential Ability Scales—Second Edition". Intelligence. 39 (5): 389–404. doi:10.1016/j.intell.2011.06.008.
  21. ↑ Cheke, Lucy G.; Clayton, Nicola S. (2013-09-01). "Do different tests of episodic memory produce consistent results in human adults?". Learning & Memory. 20 (9): 491–498. doi: 10.1101/lm.030502.113 . ISSN   1072-0502. PMID   23955172.
  22. ↑ Cheke, Lucy G.; Clayton, Nicola S. (September 2015). "The six blind men and the elephant: Are episodic memory tasks tests of different things or different tests of the same thing?". Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 137: 164–171. doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2015.03.006. ISSN   0022-0965. PMC   4454356 . PMID   25931424.
  23. ↑ Lynn, Richard; Irwing, Paul (November 2002). "Sex differences in general knowledge, semantic memory and reasoning ability". British Journal of Psychology. 93 (Pt 4): 545–556. doi:10.1348/000712602761381394. ISSN   0007-1269. PMID   12519533.
  24. ↑ Lynn, Richard; Ivanec, Dragutin; Zarevski, Predrag (June 2009). "Sex differences in general knowledge domains". Collegium Antropologicum. 33 (2): 515–520. ISSN   0350-6134. PMID   19662772.
  25. ↑ Lynn, Richard; Irwing, Paul; Cammock, Thomas (2001-01-01). "Sex differences in general knowledge". Intelligence. 30 (1): 27–39. doi:10.1016/S0160-2896(01)00064-2. ISSN   0160-2896.
  26. ↑ Lynn, Richard; Wilberg-Neidhardt, Sylwia; Margraf-Stiksrud, Jutta (2005-12-01). "Sex differences in general knowledge in German and Northern Irish university students" . Sexualities, Evolution & Gender. 7 (3): 277–285. doi:10.1080/14616660500477755. ISSN   1479-2508.
  27. ↑ Tran, Ulrich S.; Hofer, Agnes A.; Voracek, Martin (2014). "Sex differences in general knowledge: meta-analysis and new data on the contribution of school-related moderators among high-school students". PLOS ONE. 9 (10): e110391. Bibcode:2014PLoSO...9k0391T. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110391 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   4210204 . PMID   25347190.
  28. ↑ Brown JM, Breitmeyer BG, Hand J, Browning F (2010). "JOV | Sex differences in shifting attention within and between objects". Journal of Vision. 2 (7): 13. doi: 10.1167/2.7.13 .
  29. 1 2 Gur RC, Richard J, Calkins ME, Chiavacci R, Hansen JA, Bilker WB, et al. (March 2012). "Age group and sex differences in performance on a computerized neurocognitive battery in children age 8-21". Neuropsychology. 26 (2): 251–265. doi:10.1037/a0026712. PMC   3295891 . PMID   22251308.
  30. ↑ Roalf DR, Gur RE, Ruparel K, Calkins ME, Satterthwaite TD, Bilker WB, et al. (July 2014). "Within-individual variability in neurocognitive performance: age- and sex-related differences in children and youths from ages 8 to 21". Neuropsychology. 28 (4): 506–18. doi:10.1037/neu0000067. PMC   4175525 . PMID   24773417.
  31. ↑ Liu G, Hu PP, Fan J, Wang K (June 2013). "Gender differences associated with orienting attentional networks in healthy subjects". Chinese Medical Journal. 126 (12): 2308–12. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.issn.0366-6999.20122637 . PMID   23786944.
  32. ↑ Popovich C, Dockstader C, Cheyne D, Tannock R (December 2010). "Sex differences in sensorimotor mu rhythms during selective attentional processing". Neuropsychologia. 48 (14): 4102–10. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2010.10.016. hdl: 1807/24276 . PMID   20951711. S2CID   37024633.
  33. 1 2 3 4 5 Yuan J, He Y, Qinglin Z, Chen A, Li H (November 2008). "Gender differences in behavioral inhibitory control: ERP evidence from a two-choice oddball task". Psychophysiology. 45 (6): 986–93. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.2008.00693.x. PMID   18778319.
  34. ↑ Hansen S (August 2011). "Inhibitory control and empathy-related personality traits: sex-linked associations". Brain and Cognition. 76 (3): 364–8. doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2011.04.004. PMID   21570758. S2CID   12273654.
  35. ↑ Camarata S, Woodcock R (2006). "Sex differences in processing speed: Developmental effects in males and females". Intelligence. 34 (3): 231–252. doi:10.1016/j.intell.2005.12.001.
  36. 1 2 Keith TZ, Reynolds MR, Patel PG, Ridley KP (2008). "Sex differences in latent cognitive abilities ages 6 to 59: Evidence from the Woodcock–Johnson III tests of cognitive abilities". Intelligence. 36 (6): 502–525. doi:10.1016/j.intell.2007.11.001.
  37. ↑ Pezzuti L, Tommasi M, Saggino A, Dawe J, Lauriola M (2020-03-01). "Gender differences and measurement bias in the assessment of adult intelligence: Evidence from the Italian WAIS-IV and WAIS-R standardizations". Intelligence. 79: 101436. doi:10.1016/j.intell.2020.101436. ISSN   0160-2896. S2CID   216211948.
  38. ↑ Haas A (1979). "Male and female spoken language difficulties: stereotypes and evidence". Psychological Bulletin. 86 (3): 616–626. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.86.3.616. S2CID   16973813.
  39. ↑ Poole ME (1982). "Social class-sex contrasts in patterns of cognitive style: a cross-cultural replication". Psychological Reports. 50: 19–26. doi:10.2466/pr0.1982.50.1.19. S2CID   143679219.
  40. ↑ Trofimova I (November 2013). "Understanding misunderstanding: a study of sex differences in meaning attribution". Psychological Research. 77 (6): 748–60. doi:10.1007/s00426-012-0462-8. PMID   23179581. S2CID   4828135.
  41. ↑ Trofimova I (2015). "Do Psychological Sex Differences Reflect Evolutionary Bisexual Partitioning?". The American Journal of Psychology. 128 (4): 485–514. doi:10.5406/amerjpsyc.128.4.0485. JSTOR   10.5406/amerjpsyc.128.4.0485. PMID   26721176. S2CID   4831736.
  42. 1 2 Linn MC, Petersen AC (December 1985). "Emergence and characterization of sex differences in spatial ability: a meta-analysis". Child Development. 56 (6): 1479–98. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1985.tb00213.x. PMID   4075870.
  43. 1 2 Weiss EM, Kemmler G, Deisenhammer EA, Fleischhacker WW, Delazer M (2003). "Sex differences in cognitive functions". Personality and Individual Differences. 35 (4): 863–875. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(02)00288-X . Retrieved 2016-02-01.
  44. 1 2 Maclntyre T (1997). "Gender differences in cognition: A minefield of research issues". The Irish Journal of Psychology. 18 (4): 386–396. doi:10.1080/03033910.1997.1010558158.
  45. ↑ Donnon T, DesCôteaux JG, Violato C (October 2005). "Impact of cognitive imaging and sex differences on the development of laparoscopic suturing skills". Canadian Journal of Surgery. Journal Canadien de Chirurgie. 48 (5): 387–93. PMC   3211902 . PMID   16248138.
  46. ↑ Maeda Y, Yoon S (2012-12-09). "A Meta-Analysis on Gender Differences in Mental Rotation Ability Measured by the Purdue Spatial Visualization Tests: Visualization of Rotations (PSVT:R)". Educational Psychology Review. 25 (1): 69–94. doi:10.1007/s10648-012-9215-x. ISSN   1040-726X. S2CID   143641936.
  47. 1 2 Wizemann TM, Pardue ML, et al. (Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Understanding the Biology of Sex and Gender) (2001-01-01). "Sex Affects Behavior and Perception". National Academies Press (US).{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  48. ↑ Geary DC, Saults SJ, Liu F, Hoard MK (December 2000). "Sex differences in spatial cognition, computational fluency, and arithmetical reasoning". Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 77 (4): 337–53. CiteSeerX   10.1.1.413.1464 . doi:10.1006/jecp.2000.2594. PMID   11063633.
  49. 1 2 Hyde JS, et al. (Committee on Maximizing the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering) (2006-01-01). "Women in Science and Mathematics". National Academies Press (US).{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  50. ↑ van Garderen D (2006-12-01). "Spatial visualization, visual imagery, and mathematical problem solving of students with varying abilities". Journal of Learning Disabilities. 39 (6): 496–506. doi:10.1177/00222194060390060201. PMID   17165617.
  51. ↑ Foroughi CK, Wren WC, Barragán D, Mead PR, Boehm-Davis DA (2016). "Assessing Mental Rotation Ability in a Virtual Environment with an Oculus Rift". Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting. 59 (1): 1849–1852. doi:10.1177/1541931215591399. S2CID   147973407.
  52. 1 2 Voyer, Daniel; Postma, Albert; Brake, Brandy; Imperato-McGinley, Julianne (2007-02-01). "Gender differences in object location memory: A meta-analysis". Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 14 (1): 23–38. doi: 10.3758/BF03194024 . ISSN   1531-5320. PMID   17546728. S2CID   44658445.
  53. ↑ McGivern RF, Mutter KL, Anderson J, Wideman G, Bodnar M, Huston PJ (1998). "Gender differences in incidental learning and visual recognition memory: Support for a sex difference in unconscious environmental awareness". Personality and Individual Differences. 25 (2): 223–232. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(98)00017-8 . Retrieved 2016-01-07.
  54. ↑ McGivern RF, Huston JP, Byrd D, King T, Siegle GJ, Reilly J (August 1997). "Sex differences in visual recognition memory: support for a sex-related difference in attention in adults and children". Brain and Cognition. 34 (3): 323–36. doi:10.1006/brcg.1997.0872. PMID   9292185. S2CID   2411374.
  55. 1 2 Reynolds MR, Scheiber C, Hajovsky DB, Schwartz B, Kaufman AS (2015-08-01). "Gender Differences in Academic Achievement: Is Writing an Exception to the Gender Similarities Hypothesis?". The Journal of Genetic Psychology. 176 (3–4): 211–34. doi:10.1080/00221325.2015.1036833. PMID   26135387. S2CID   609098.
  56. ↑ Olson RK, Hulslander J, Christopher M, Keenan JM, Wadsworth SJ, Willcutt EG, et al. (April 2013). "Genetic and environmental influences on writing and their relations to language and reading". Annals of Dyslexia. 63 (1): 25–43. doi:10.1007/s11881-011-0055-z. PMC   3218215 . PMID   21842316.
  57. ↑ Scheiber C, Reynolds MR, Hajovsky DB, Kaufman AS (2015). "Gender Differences in Achievement in a Large, Nationally Representative Sample of Children and Adolescents". Psychology in the Schools. 52 (4): 335–348. doi:10.1002/pits.21827.
  58. ↑ Majeres RL (December 1997). "Sex differences in phonetic processing: speed of identification of alphabetical sequences". Perceptual and Motor Skills. 85 (3 Pt 2): 1243–51. doi:10.2466/pms.1997.85.3f.1243. PMID   9450277. S2CID   21126047.
  59. ↑ Majeres RL (March 1999). "Sex differences in phonological processes: speeded matching and word reading". Memory & Cognition. 27 (2): 246–53. doi: 10.3758/bf03211409 . PMID   10226435. S2CID   40556596.
  60. ↑ Hirnstein M, Coloma Andrews L, Hausmann M (November 2014). "Gender-stereotyping and cognitive sex differences in mixed- and same-sex groups". Archives of Sexual Behavior. 43 (8): 1663–73. doi:10.1007/s10508-014-0311-5. PMC   4198804 . PMID   24923876.
  61. ↑ Basso MR, Harrington K, Matson M, Lowery N (May 2000). "Sex differences on the WMS-III: findings concerning verbal paired associates and faces". The Clinical Neuropsychologist. 14 (2): 231–5. doi:10.1076/1385-4046(200005)14:2;1-Z;FT231. PMID   10916198. S2CID   43496075.
  62. ↑ Gale SD, Baxter L, Connor DJ, Herring A, Comer J (July 2007). "Sex differences on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test and the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised in the elderly: normative data in 172 participants". Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology. 29 (5): 561–7. doi:10.1080/13803390600864760. PMID   17564921. S2CID   39966895.
  63. ↑ Stoet G, Geary DC (2013-03-13). "Sex differences in mathematics and reading achievement are inversely related: within- and across-nation assessment of 10 years of PISA data". PLOS ONE. 8 (3): e57988. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...857988S. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0057988 . PMC   3596327 . PMID   23516422.
  64. ↑ Office of Research and Development (1998). SAT® and Gender Differences (PDF). College Board.{{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  65. ↑ Hyde J, Linn M (1988). "Gender differences in verbal ability: A meta-analysis". Psychological Bulletin. 104: 53–69. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.104.1.53. S2CID   144667163.
  66. 1 2 Kret ME, De Gelder B (June 2012). "A review on sex differences in processing emotional signals". Neuropsychologia. 50 (7): 1211–21. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.12.022. PMID   22245006. S2CID   11695245.
  67. ↑ Pavlova MA, Sokolov AN, Bidet-Ildei C (October 2015). "Sex Differences in the Neuromagnetic Cortical Response to Biological Motion". Cerebral Cortex. 25 (10): 3468–74. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhu175 . PMID   25100856.
  68. ↑ Thompson AE, Voyer D (2014-01-01). "Sex differences in the ability to recognise non-verbal displays of emotion: a meta-analysis". Cognition & Emotion. 28 (7): 1164–95. doi:10.1080/02699931.2013.875889. PMID   24400860. S2CID   5402395.
  69. ↑ Schirmer A, Zysset S, Kotz SA, Yves von Cramon D (March 2004). "Gender differences in the activation of inferior frontal cortex during emotional speech perception". NeuroImage. 21 (3): 1114–23. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2003.10.048. PMID   15006679. S2CID   7152876.
  70. 1 2 3 Hall J, Philip RC, Marwick K, Whalley HC, Romaniuk L, McIntosh AM, et al. (2012-12-26). "Social cognition, the male brain and the autism spectrum". PLOS ONE. 7 (12): e49033. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...749033H. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049033 . PMC   3530576 . PMID   23300517.
  71. ↑ Di Tella, Marialaura; Miti, Francesca; Ardito, Rita B.; Adenzato, Mauro (2020-08-01). "Social cognition and sex: Are men and women really different?". Personality and Individual Differences. 162: 110045. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2020.110045. hdl: 2318/1743693 . ISSN   0191-8869. S2CID   218796635.
  72. ↑ Di Tella M, Miti F, Ardito RB, Adenzato M (2020-08-01). "Social cognition and sex: Are men and women really different?". Personality and Individual Differences. 162: 110045. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2020.110045. hdl: 2318/1743693 . S2CID   218796635.
  73. ↑ Joseph DL, Newman DA (January 2010). "Emotional intelligence: an integrative meta-analysis and cascading model". The Journal of Applied Psychology. 95 (1): 54–78. doi:10.1037/a0017286. PMID   20085406. S2CID   11238077.
  74. 1 2 Christov-Moore L, Simpson EA, Coudé G, Grigaityte K, Iacoboni M, Ferrari PF (October 2014). "Empathy: gender effects in brain and behavior". Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. 46 (Pt 4): 604–27. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2014.09.001. PMC   5110041 . PMID   25236781.
  75. ↑ Hertenstein MJ, Keltner D (January 2011). "Gender and the Communication of Emotion Via Touch". Sex Roles. 64 (1–2): 70–80. doi:10.1007/s11199-010-9842-y. PMC   3016097 . PMID   21297854.
  76. ↑ Ickes, William; Gesn, Paul L.; Graham, Tiffany (20 May 2005). "Gender differences in empathic accuracy: Differential ability or differential motivation?". Personal Relationships. 7 (1): 94–109. doi:10.1111/j.1475-6811.2000.tb00006.x.
  77. ↑ Ickles, William (15 January 1997). Empathic Accuracy. New York: The Guilford Press. p. 140. ISBN   1572301619.
  78. ↑ Klein, K. J. K.; Hodges, S. D. (2001). "Gender Differences, Motivation, and Empathic Accuracy: When it Pays to Understand". Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 27 (6): 720–730. doi:10.1177/0146167201276007. S2CID   14361887.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.