What is the difference between a male and a female brain and what does it affect?

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

The structure and weight of the brain depends on gender, but its cognitive ability is practically not.

The size

The average man's brain is 8-13% more A meta-analysis of sex differences in human brain structure than that of the average woman. But we are talking about absolute indicators without conversion to body weight. Considering that the average height and weight of men is also higher, this is not surprising. With the same parameters, Gender Differences in Human Brain: A Review, the probability that the brain will weigh the same is great.

However, this is a case where size really doesn't matter. In men, the brain weighs an average of 1, 345 kg Reader in Gender Archeology, in women - 1, 222 kg. The elephant brain weighs 4, 6 The elephant brain in numbers kg, but you hardly consider it as a serious rival in an intellectual duel. By the way, Albert Einstein's brain weighed 1, 23 The strange afterlife of Einstein's brain kg.

Brain structure

Men, on average, A meta-analysis of sex differences in human brain structure have a greater volume and a higher density of tissues in the amygdala of the left hemisphere, hippocampus, cortex, putamen. Individual parts of the brain surpass similar areas in women only in volume or density.

The average woman, in turn, boasts a higher density of the frontal pole of the left hemisphere and a superior volume of the frontal pole of the right hemisphere, the inferior and middle frontal gyri, the triangular part of the frontal lobe, and more.

It would seem that such differences should lead to revolutionary conclusions, but everything remained at the level of unconfirmed assumptions.

For example, it is believed that a woman can do a hundred things at a time, while a man can only focus on one task at a time. The theory was based on the assumption of the Brain Connectivity Study Reveals Striking Differences Between Men and Women that women have better communication between the hemispheres of the brain, while in men neurons are more active in transmitting information within one hemisphere. But research has not confirmed this Are women better than men at multi-tasking? … In an experiment involving 240 people, men even performed slightly better in multitasking tests than women.

We can definitely say that men, on average, show the effect of sex steroids on the development of the brain the best results in spatial orientation, performing tasks on the rotation of figures, while women are superior to them in memorizing objects and their localization. In addition, men are more aggressive and more prone to antisocial behavior.

White and gray matter

There is also a difference in the distribution of white and gray matter. Gray matter represents information processing centers, and white matter is the connection between these centers. Men have about 6.5 times more gray matter in Intelligence In Men And Women And Women Is A Gray And White Matter, and women have almost 10 times more white matter. The researchers suggest that this may be what determines the success of men in solving math problems and the verbal ability of women.

Despite the differences, female and male brains have the same overall performance on broad measures of cognitive ability.

By the way, things are not easy with math skills Culture, Gender, and Math. On average, boys are better at tasks than girls. But in countries that strive for equality, the average mathematical ability of girls becomes at least the same. Therefore, the features of gender socialization in this matter may be of greater importance than the structure of the brain.

Brain activation patterns

Researchers have found that the activity of the male and female brains is different when solving similar tasks or responding to the same stimuli.

In one of the experiments, Brain activation during human navigation: gender-different neural networks as substrate of performance. the subjects had to find a way out of the virtual maze. MRI data showed that when solving problems in men, the hippocampus on the left was activated, which is associated with context-dependent memory. In women, the posterior parietal cortex, which is responsible for spatial perception and attention, and the prefrontal cortex of the right hemisphere, associated with episodic memory, were recruited.

There is a difference Resting brain activity: Differences between genders in brain activity and at rest. The brains of men and women organize their activities differently, and this, according to some Brain Connectivity researchers, explains the difference in their behavior.

Synchronization of nervous activity

Scientists have studied Brain activity differs between men and women when cooperating models of cooperation between men and women. Couples of a man and a man, a woman and a woman, a man and a woman performed the same simple task. Synchronization of nervous activity was higher in same-sex couples, but was observed in different areas in men and women.

The nucleus of sexual dimorphism

This site is located in the hypothalamus and is responsible for libido. In men, the nucleus of sexual dimorphism is in 2, 5 The suprachiasmatic nucleus of the human brain in relation to sex, age and senile dementia. times more than women. Moreover, the sex difference in this issue is outlined only by the age of four and becomes apparent by the age of 6–10. Sexual differentiation of the human hypothalamus: Ontogeny of the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the preoptic area.

Congenital brain-related tendencies

Scientists suggest that some of the behaviors associated with reproduction and survival may be innate, not acquired, and therefore, they are tied to the brain. For example, the experiment Sex differences in rhesus monkey toy preferences parallel those of children on monkeys showed that small males preferred toys with wheels, and small females preferred stuffed animals.

Similar results were found in the Preferences for 'Gender-typed' Toys in Boys and Girls Aged 9 to 32 Months study for a group of 9 months to 2.5 year olds. According to scientists, at this age, the child is still far from the formation of gender stereotypes.

However, the results of this study have been criticized. First, there is no data at which age the child absorbs gender attitudes. Secondly, only 101 children participated in the experiment. As for monkeys, critics point out that although a person has an ancestor in common with them, he is much more susceptible to influence on the behavior of external factors, and not just biological ones.

Whose brain is better

There are differences between the male and female brains, but scientists are not completely clear what this gives. And the average characteristics are more important for science than for assessing the abilities of a particular person or a small group of people, since individual variability is higher than gender.

There may be more difference between two random men than between one of them and a woman.

For clarity, an example with growth is suitable. On average, men are taller than women. But the Russian woman with a height of 180 cm is already taller than most of her compatriots. And if a short man approaches her with the statement “You are a woman, then you are lower,” this will only cause bewilderment. This principle also works with the abilities of the brain. Moreover, a typically "female" or "male" brain occurs Sex beyond the genitalia: The human brain mosaic a little more often than unicorns.

In addition, in the gender classification of the brain, it is assumed that only hormones affect its development, and each of its parts has a specific function that can be tied to men and women. But in both cases, this is not the case.

First, the formation of the brain is influenced by A meta-analysis of sex differences in human brain structure, experience and external circumstances, human nutrition in childhood and many other factors, including gender socialization and gender stereotypes.

Secondly, the brain is still not fully understood, and scientists are not ready. Brain activity is too complicated for humans to decipher. Machines can decode it for us to subdivide it into areas with specific indication of how these areas affect behavior and abilities.

In terms of research, understanding the differences in the male and female brain helps improve the treatment of diseases related to the contents of the skull. For example, women are more likely to be diagnosed with the effect of sex steroids on brain development for depression, and men are more likely to be diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Studying the difference between male and female brains should clarify why this happens and how to fix the situation.