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This edited volume challenges popular notions of sex, gender and biology and features international, trans-disciplinary research. Challenging Popular Myths of Sex, Gender and Biology begins with an exploration of supposedly 'natural' sexual differences, then looks at research in evolutionary biology and examines topics such as gender stereotypes in humans.
The first chapters explore important questions: What are the fundamental sex differences? How do genes and hormones influence an individual's sex? Subsequent chapters concern topics including: sex stereotypes in the field of sexual conflict, how the focus on genes in evolutionary biology disregards other means of inheritance, and the development of Darwin's theory of sex differences.
The last three chapters look at humans, discussing: an interdisciplinary approach to the evolution of sex differences in body height, biological versus social constructive perspectives on the gendering of voices and nature-culture arguments in the current political debate on paternity leave in Norway.
1 Introduction
Malin Ah-King.
1.1 Sex or gender?
1.2 Cultural influence on science
1.3 Implications for society
1.4 The chapters
2. Fundamental differences between females and males?
Root Gorelick, Jessica Carpinone, and Lindsay Jackson Derraugh.
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Definitions
2.3 Deconstruction: debunking accepted differences between females and males
2.4 Reconstruction: possible differences between females and males
2.5 Concluding remarks
2.6 Summary
3 Genes and hormones – what make up an individual's sex?
Daniela Crocetti.
3.1 Chromosomal Sex
3.2 Hormones make the Man, or the Myth that hormones have gender
3.3 Conclusion
Chapter 4 Sexual conflict and the dilemma of stereotyping the sexes
Josefin A. Madjidian, Kristina Karlsson Green, Åsa Lankinen.
4.1 What is evolution?
4.2 Active males and reactive females – gender stereotypes in sexual conflict research
4.3 Stereotyping in sexual conflict research - problems for science and society
5 Sex, gender and evolution beyond genes
Jonathan P. Drury.
5.1 An interesting misunderstanding
5.2 Natural selection on non-genetic “sex” traits
5.3 Environment, genes, and the evolution of the sexes
5.3.1 Genetic accommodation and flexible reproductive behavior
5.4 Beyond genes, beyond determinism
6 Beyond coy females and eager males: the evolution of Darwin’s sexual selection
Thierry Hoquet.
6.1 Darwin’s sexual selection
6.2 Bateman’s hardening of sexual dichotomies
6.3 Expanding Bateman’s paradigm
6.4 Anisogamy and the feminist challenge to sexual selection
6.5 Perspectives: the search for gender-neutral models
7 Human sex differences in height: Evolution due to gender hierarchy?
Priscille Touraille.
7.1 The danger of giving birth in humans
7.2 Sex differences in the size of mammals: A brief survey
7.3 Human sex differences in height
7.4 Genetics of height
7.5 The classical selective model: increase of male stature
7.6 The missing data in the classical explanation
7.7 Hypothesis of nutritional constraints on women’ size selection
7.8 Gender order: a decisive piece of the puzzle?
7.8 Mate choice: another hypothesis linked to gender
7.9 Conclusion
8 How do voices become gendered? A critical examination of everyday and medical constructions of the relationship between voice, sex and gender identity
David Azul.
8.1 The common-sense view/medical perspective
8.2 Challenging the “natural binary”
8.3 How voices become ‘appropriately’ and ‘inappropriately’ gendered
8.4 Conclusion
9 Parenthood in Norway: Between politics and science
Ole Jacob Madsen.
9.1 Scandinavia at the forefront
9.2 Paternity leave
9.3 Discussion
