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The evolution of sex took place about two billion years ago and has become the topic of much research interest, given its quality of being open to more than one interpretation. Besides gender differences in molecular biology, many scientists have tried to decipher how males and females diverge regarding psychology, specifically emotions, and how it can be understood and influenced by social/cultural constructs. There is a common misconception in present-day society that females are more emotional than males; however, this interpretation is not entirely true. Although women can express their emotions more readily, both men and women express the same amount and intensity of emotions. The reason for this stereotype is the social construction of gender in society and cultural normalities.
From a young age, children are conditioned into encapsulating one of two genders: male or female. If male, this child will be groomed into being someone aggressive, decisive, independent, and emotionally stable. If female, this child will be groomed into being someone dependent, nurturing, emotional, and meek. Given these gender normalities, it is not socially acceptable for males to be emotional. Gender differences are also more pronounced when an individual is with or without someone they know. To elaborate, if a male is with a parent or with someone they trust, they will be inclined to be more expressive or emotional, however, if they are with someone they do not really know, they will abide by their gender roles and inhibit their external emotions. As a result, males develop restrictive emotionality – a tendency to hold back certain emotions and an inability to disclose personal feelings – in order to encompass the principles that define masculinity within society.
Researchers investigated how gender stereotypes affect females’ and males’ perception and understanding of emotion. Expectant parents were shown a series of videos of a crying baby in which they had to identify if the baby was crying or being angry. If the baby had on pink clothes, most male participants would likely say that the baby was crying. If the baby had on blue clothes, most males would say that the baby was being angry. Female participants were able to correctly identify the babys emotions. This discourse makes it evident that gender stereotyping creates the misconception that women can express all types of emotions except anger, which is a highly masculinized emotion that exerts dominance and power.
Another study from Georgia State University found that although women are more emotionally expressive, the intensity of each emotion felt by each sex had no significance given self-reports. Interestingly, when the same participants were asked to rate each emotion felt when in contact with someone of the same or opposite sex, the intensity of each emotion varied. For example, if a male was in contact with another male and questioned about anger, the participant was more likely to express a higher intensity of anger. Conversely, if a male was in contact with a female and questioned about anger, the participant was likely to express a moderate to low intensity of anger. Together these studies not only show that both men and women exert the same intensity of emotion, but that certain emotions are also gender biased. Men are free to express emotions that complement strength such as pride and anger, while women are free to express emotions that contribute to inferiority such as sadness and fear. In the following paragraphs, the emotions of crying/sadness, fear, and anger will be emphasized alongside gender differences in the expression of these emotions.
In his book ‘Crying: The Mystery of Tears’, Dr. Frey found that between the ages of 2 and 12, both males and females cried at the same frequencies. The divergence between the sexes arises during puberty and throughout adulthood. Through a longitudinal study, it was found that by the age of 18, women cried about four times as much as men. This difference can be due to multiple factors, including hormones and socialization. Prolactin, which is largely found in mammary glands and promotes lactation, is also present in tear glands. Before puberty, boys and girls have roughly equal levels of prolactin streaming throughout their bodies, however, after the initiation of puberty, prolactin levels in women increase, causing tear production to happen more readily. Although women have a larger increase in prolactin during puberty and adulthood, men also experience a small increase in prolactin that can have a similar effect as in women. In addition, it has been reported that females have smaller tear ducts than men, which can also explain why women cry at a greater frequency. Since their tear ducts are smaller, females tear ducts are able to fill and produce tears at a faster rate than men’s. Inversely, there is a stigma surrounding this type of emotion and behavior in men. Most men are shamed and often ridiculed when they cry (especially during puberty and early adulthood) because it is seen as an attack on masculinity. Women, in contrast, are allowed, even socially encouraged, to cry or show sadness which can explain, why women cry at a higher frequency than men.
A study found that in the case of very serious incidents, such as the death of a loved one, there are no significant differences in crying behavior between men and women. This difference can be explained by the fact that women and men adhere to different emotional rules implying that women are allowed to cry in a far larger variety of situations. It also suggests that when mourning the death of a loved one, men are allowed to cry and grieve because it is an event that does not have to adhere to gender roles. This explanation is supported by a study that found that traditional men are less likely to cry than non-traditional men, suggesting that their different norms result in different crying frequencies. It also argues that culture may be a factor in why we see differences in emotions between the sexes. For example, if one grows up in an environment where gender roles are not emphasized, it would not be surprising to see more expressive males within society.
Fear is another emotion that is associated with and largely expressed in women. There are also quantitative differences in fear responses between men and women. For example, in one study looking at the fear of snakes, there was a significant difference in behavior between men and women who reported the same amount of fear given questionnaires. In the study, fearful women stayed away from the snake, whereas fearful men entered the room and picked it up. This suggests that even when frightened men have to compose themselves and appear fearless. Similarly, when recording the heart rate of both female and male individuals, a study found that there was no significant difference in heart rate when shown images that produced horror, however, women did report a higher intensity of emotion.
Another study found that in regards to aggression, males are more likely to display this form of anger through fighting and roughhousing as opposed to females, given that it is largely associated with masculinity. This emotion is also one of the few emotions that are socially acceptable for males to partake in because it can assert dominance. In some instances, both men and women show equal levels of aggression (women sometimes being a little bit higher). However, this does not mean that women are being physically aggressive, instead, most women are more inclined to be aggressive indirectly and away from public settings. In this study, males are the ones that have a more external reaction and expression of emotion, while females express it internally. Women can also exert their aggression through crying, which can account for the large differences in crying frequencies that were discussed earlier.
When reflecting upon the stereotype that women are more emotional than men, emotionality is commonly confused and related to impulsivity or instability within an individual. As a direct result, a lot of women are often denied the opportunity to hold positions of leadership or power because individuals, mostly men, believe that emotionality clouds logic and reasoning. Instead, women are categorized into holding jobs that relate to the household, caring for children, or jobs that carry emotions such as being a nurse. To elaborate, someone who wants to be a nurse has to be nurturing and show empathy because these are traits deemed characteristic of females, not males. However, given the studies presented in this essay, it is evident that this stereotype is nothing more than a blanket statement. Men and women share and have the same emotions, the only thing that differs is that women are more socially acceptable to exert these emotions and men are not. These social and gender roles lead to bias in the understanding of the sexes.
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