GENDERED BRAINS: COMPARING AND CONTRASTING STUDIES AND CONCLUSIONS 1

Gendered Brains: Comparing and Contrasting Studies and Conclusions

Reilly A. A. Tickle
GENDERED BRAINS: COMPARING AND CONTRASTING STUDIES AND CONCLUSIONS 2

Abstract

Three articles are cited that each reference different studies conducted for similar purposes: to

seek a correlation between gender and brain size. Each article discusses the findings of these

studies as well as how they impact the debate on whether or not gendered brains are an actual

common phenomenon, and the need for further research and discussion. Though there are

disparities between the articles, they have common central ideas and facts. These articles serve

to bolster an argument that brain makeup does not have a significant correlation with gender,

and provide a stable ground for the idea that the strict gender binary is a problematic social

construct.
GENDERED BRAINS: COMPARING AND CONTRASTING STUDIES AND CONCLUSIONS 3

The idea our biology (usually discussed is the brain) is a basis for genders, and

therefore discrimination, violence, and harmful social norms, is an outdated concept that has

been well refuted. The question of whether or not the strict gender binary is problematic can be

tackled from many perspectives. One can choose to focus on the social aspects surrounding

cisgender individuals or members of the LGBTQA+ community, or the political issues

surrounding rights, or the historical context of the gender binary, or even the biological basis, if it

exists, for gender standards. The articles cited below focus primarily on the brain and whether

or not there is conclusive evidence to support or refute claims of gendered brains. The gender

binary is essentially an easy topic to understand; it is the idea that gender is distinctly either

male or female. That notion, in and of itself, can be problematic; the idea of a strict gender

binary leads to gender-specific ideals and imposes them on all people, which, in turn, leads to

societal expectations and the development of norms and rules across society. The strict gender

binary is something that has almost certainly touched everyone at some point in their lives,

whether or not they are aware of it. It can be found in everything from the models in television

ads, to how people look at neighbors who do not seem to fit their ideals, to a parent not allowing

a child have the toy that they covet because it was designed, at least in the parents mind, for a

child of the opposite gender.

Michael Price (2017), in his article Study, finds some significant differences in brains of

men and women in Science, describes a study done on the brains of more than 5,000 people

aged 44-77 at the University of Edinburgh. That study uncovered some measurable physical

differences in the volume and density of some parts of the brains between males and females.

Price does not go into detail as to what he believes the implications of this study are, though he

hints at possible applications, noting that scientific research has previously connected the dots

to higher physical aggression in men. Price does admit that there are still many questions

regarding the implications of these results for the intelligence and behavior of individuals. He,
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as well, identifies the potential questions about the accuracy of these findings due to age range

(44 - 77) of the brains studied.

Kate Wheeling, in her article The brains of men and women arent really that different,

study finds published in the journal Science, discusses a study conducted by Daphna Joel at

Tel Aviv University of images from more than 1,400 brains. This study measured gray matter

and white matter and traced how white matter connected different parts of the brain. The study

also compared brain structures to the behavior of the studied individuals on a scale of

maleness to femaleness. Ultimately, in contrast to historical expectations, few structural

differences between male and female brains. In fact, Wheeling explains one can find a

significant overlap between the brains of males and females. Yet, while the study concluded that

most brains are a mosaic of male and female structures (Wheeling 2015), Wheeling does

believe that, given studies of mice that find higher rates of autism in males and depression in

females, there may be good reason to continue studying gender differences in brains.

Scientific American ran a piece by G. Stix entitled Is the Brain Gendered? A Q&A with

Harvard's Catherine Dulac, a professor of molecular and cellular biology. In it, Stix and Dulac

discuss Dulacs research on the brains of mice and their behaviors, as well as her views on the

implications of her findings and the findings of others. Dulac also analyzes some of the social

aspects that could have led to the perceived behavioral differences between males and

females, as well as the history of these perceived differences and their being refuted.

All three articles mentioned above note that the recent studies grew out of long-standing

speculation that the brains of men and women are structurally different and that those

differences are responsible for dictating behaviors considered male and female. Price mentions

specifically the question of whether gender differences in brains may influence intelligence and
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behavior. Wheeler (2015) explains that researchers in the mid-19th century were so certain of

the brain-gender connection they claimed they could tell the sex of an individual just by looking

at their disembodied brain. Dulac (2015) notes, Indeed, it is assumed that the male and

female brains are very different because male and female behaviors differ so significantly.

The three articles are also in agreement that the expected differences, even differences

previously identified as somewhat significant (mainly size), are in fact much smaller and less

significant than has been previously asserted. The Edinburgh study cited by Price (2017)

examined 68 brain regions, including the cerebral cortex. While that study found that men had

higher volumes in every subcortical region, once the data was adjusted for brain size, the

relative differences were much smaller. In fact, the brains of men and women were found to

have a large overlap in size between them. Wheeling (2015) explains that the Tel Aviv study

found few structural differences between men and women. Furthermore, when researchers

compared the brains and behaviors on their maleness-to-femaleness scale, they found that

There is no one type of male or female brain (Wheeling 2015). Dulac agreed that there are

few differences between the male and female brain, and, in fact, stated that, for the most part,

the male and female brain including key areas engaged in the control of social behaviors, are

likely to be very similar (Dulac 2015)

The three articles discuss three very different approaches to studying the potential (but

now highly refuted) connection between brains and gender. The Edinburgh study cited by Price

tapped data from the nearly 5,000 participants (2750 women and 2466 men) in an ongoing

biomedical study (Price 2017). Using MRI brain scans, researchers measured the volumes of

68 regions of the brain (Price 2017). The study is notable for its size -- much larger than

previous such studies. According to Wheeler (2015), the Tel Aviv study focused on measuring

gray matter and white matter, and the interaction of different regions of the brain. In addition,
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researchers did something entirely new by comparing the data on a scale of maleness to

femaleness. Dulac (2015) focuses on neurons and neuronal spines, but, again, finds that the

male and female brains are not substantially different.

In considering where gender brain studies should lead, each of the articles lands in

somewhat different places. The Edinburgh researchers have focused on accurately

describing the male and female brains. The question of whether differences in the brain affect

intelligence or behavior is not considered and is something the researchers are not prepared to

speculate about (Price 2017). According to Wheeler, the Tel Aviv researchers found such

extreme variations in brains -- not related to gender -- it brings into question such things as

gendered behaviors and perhaps even our definitions of gender as a social category.

Explaining that both male and female genders share the same neural circuitry but use it

differently, Dulac suggests a number of different questions that deserve further exploration.

For example, she suggests further study could help answer who animals recognize their own

species and discern gender. Also, the Dulac article suggests that further study could help to

understand and address mental disorders like depression (which is more prevalent among

females) and autism (which is more common among males) (Dulac 2015).

The contents of all three articles, despite Prices misleading title of Study finds some

significant differences in brains of men and women, agree that there are no significant

differences between male and female brains. In other words, gender does not appear to be

associated with differences in the brain. Instead, brains vary significantly, but such variations do

not appear to dictate gender. These findings help to affirm my belief that the strict gender

binary can be problematic, due to it being a social construct with little to no biological backing,

despite historic claims of such evidence. I believe it is interesting, however, that despite the

degree of these structural similarities, males and females do react differently in certain
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circumstances. The fact that females suffer more often from depression and males have higher

rates of autism would seem to indicate that there are distinctions worth further study. Dulac

(2015) says that just by looking at the brain scan, or height, of someone plucked at random

from the study, researchers would be hard pressed to say whether it came from a man or a

woman, furthering my belief that the strict gender binary is an outdated societal idea. I tend to

agree with the Tel Aviv research that argues that brain research undermines how we, as a

society, impose gender categories. Finally, when Dulac in the Stix interview agrees that

research has changed the existing hypothesis about what gender is, I am even more

convinced that the strict gender binary is an old-fashioned concept that is creating unnecessary

problems in our society today.

Societys long-running beliefs, norms, and rules are hard to change. But scientific

research can be helpful to spurring change. There remain questions about gender, such as

how gender may correlate to certain behaviors and how animals identify the gender of other

animals, as well as how our environment shapes our gender and behaviors. Answering these

questions may be beneficial to modifying the way society views the gender and addressing

some of the problems, like discrimination, rape, and violence, associated with the strict gender

binary. Searching in a journal database for counter arguments proved difficult, but I believe that

giving three different looks at similar studies that concluded similar ideas from different

viewpoints gives a strong foundation to my argument.

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References

Dulac, C. (2015, December 28). Is the Brain Gendered? A Q&A with Harvard's Catherine Dulac

[Interview by G. Stix]. Retrieved October 31, 2017, from

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/talking-back/is-the-brain-gendereda-q-a-with-harvard-s-

catherine-dulac/

Price, M. (2017). Study finds some significant differences in brains of men and women. Science.

doi:10.1126/science.aal1025

Wheeling, K. (2015). The brains of men and women arent really that different, study finds.

Science. doi:10.1126/science.aad7499