Male/female Differences (female + difference)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Gender and the Limits to Diversity in the Contemporary British Army

GENDER, WORK & ORGANISATION, Issue 1 2006
Rachel Woodward
This article considers equal opportunities and diversity management policies in the contemporary British Army for what they indicate, not only about policy frameworks for women's military participation, but also for what they tell us about the construction of ideas about gender and difference within that organization. The article sets out contextual information on women in the British Army and describes the research methodology on which this article is based. It looks at the evolution of equal opportunities policies and the more recent shift towards diversity management policies in the Army, focusing on their contributions towards female equity. The article examines the consequences of the shift towards the management of diversity, noting how embracing the ideas of diversity management is ultimately limited by the Army's construction of female difference. It concludes with a discussion of the issues of female and military specificity in relation to the management of diversity. [source]


Developmental shifts in gene expression in the auditory forebrain during the sensitive period for song learning

DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROBIOLOGY, Issue 7 2009
Sarah E. London
Abstract A male zebra finch begins to learn to sing by memorizing a tutor's song during a sensitive period in juvenile development. Tutor song memorization requires molecular signaling within the auditory forebrain. Using microarray and in situ hybridizations, we tested whether the auditory forebrain at an age just before tutoring expresses a different set of genes compared with later life after song learning has ceased. Microarray analysis revealed differences in expression of thousands of genes in the male auditory forebrain at posthatch day 20 (P20) compared with adulthood. Furthermore, song playbacks had essentially no impact on gene expression in P20 auditory forebrain, but altered expression of hundreds of genes in adults. Most genes that were song-responsive in adults were expressed at constitutively high levels at P20. Using in situ hybridization with a representative sample of 44 probes, we confirmed these effects and found that birds at P20 and P45 were similar in their gene expression patterns. Additionally, eight of the probes showed male,female differences in expression. We conclude that the developing auditory forebrain is in a very different molecular state from the adult, despite its relatively mature gross morphology and electrophysiological responsiveness to song stimuli. Developmental gene expression changes may contribute to fine-tuning of cellular and molecular properties necessary for song learning. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 2009 [source]


Sex differences in humeral bilateral asymmetry in two hunter-gatherer populations: California Amerinds and British Columbian Amerinds

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 1 2009
Elizabeth Weiss
Abstract This study uses two prehistoric Amerindian populations of hunter-gatherer subsistence patterns to determine whether levels of sexual dimorphism in humeral bilateral cross-sectional asymmetry are related to sex-specific differences in activities among these populations. Results confirmed that males of the California Amerind population who engaged in the more unimanual activities of spear hunting and warfare were more asymmetrical than were their female counterparts who engaged in the more bimanual activities of grinding acorns. California Amerind males were also more asymmetrical than British Columbian Amerind males who rowed (using both arms) extensively. Sex differences within British Columbian Amerinds were not statistically significant, nor were female differences between populations. In general, levels of humeral asymmetry appear to be more dependent on sex and population-specific behaviors rather than broad subsistence patterns. Am J Phys Anthropol 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Factors explaining male/female differences in attitudes and purchase intention toward genetically engineered salmon,,

JOURNAL OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR, Issue 2 2008
Wei Qin
Frequently observed male/female differences in attitudes toward genetically engineered (GE) foods have not received adequate explanations. We examined (a) the ability of two hypotheses (safety concern and institutional trust) to explain male/female attitudes toward GE salmon and (b) the effect of attitudes on male/female differences in purchase intent. A survey (n,=,501) was administered in two branches of a regional supermarket chain. After reading an information booklet, men and women's scores on a knowledge quiz did not differ but women had significantly more negative attitudes toward GE salmon than men. Attitudinal male/female differences were attributed to women's lower trust in government agencies and scientific organizations, and higher level of perceived health risks compared to men , supporting both hypotheses. But the essential basis of these attitudinal male/female differences appeared to be women's greater concern about the ethics/morality of this application. Attitude differences were the major contributor to male/female differences in purchase intention. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]