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Summary
Family resemblance in masculine and feminine behaviors is not explained by genetics or X-linkage. Findings support same-sex identification theory for gender identity acquisition, though other factors may also play a role.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Behavioral Genetics
- Human Sexuality
Background:
- Understanding the origins of gender identity is crucial in psychology.
- Previous theories have proposed genetic, X-linkage, and identification-based mechanisms.
- Empirical evidence is needed to differentiate between these proposed models.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate family resemblances in masculine and feminine behaviors.
- To test predictions from genetic, X-linkage, and same-sex identification theories.
- To determine the best fit for explaining gender-identity acquisition patterns within families.
Main Methods:
- Collected self-report data on 70 masculine and feminine behaviors from 177 undergraduates and their families.
- Calculated within-family correlations for various family pairs (e.g., mother-daughter, sister-sister).
- Compared observed family correlations with theoretical predictions from genetic, X-linkage, and same-sex identification models.
Main Results:
- Observed significant correlations within same-sex family pairs (e.g., mother-daughter: .26, sister-sister: .28, father-son: .33, brother-brother: .23).
- Found near-zero correlations for opposite-sex family pairs.
- These patterns strongly rejected simple additive-genetic and X-linkage models.
- The data were consistent with a same-sex identification theory of gender identity.
Conclusions:
- Family resemblance in gender-typed behaviors is not adequately explained by simple genetic or X-linkage models.
- Findings provide support for the same-sex identification theory in gender-identity acquisition.
- While suggestive, within-family correlations do not definitively prove causation; other factors like social class may also influence sex-role identification.