Gender and
Sexual Orientation
Explore the psychological foundations of gender identity, gender roles, and sexual orientation through biological, cognitive, and sociocultural lenses.
AP Psychology
Defining Gender vs. Sex
Understanding the difference between sex and gender is foundational in psychology. These terms are related but describe distinct aspects of human identity.
Biological Sex
The biological classification of male or female based on chromosomes (XX, XY), hormones, and reproductive anatomy.
Gender
The socially constructed roles, behaviors, and identities that a culture considers appropriate for men, women, and other identities.
Gender Identity and Gender Roles
Gender Identity
A person's internal, deeply felt sense of being male, female, both, neither, or another gender. Develops early in childhood.
Gender Roles
Cultural expectations for how men and women should behave, think, and feel. These vary across cultures and time periods.
Gender Typing
The process by which children acquire a gender identity and develop behaviors that their culture deems gender-appropriate.
Understanding Sexual Orientation
Sexual orientation refers to an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attraction to men, women, both, or neither sex. It is a separate construct from gender identity.
Biological Influences on Gender and Orientation
Research has identified several biological factors that influence both gender development and sexual orientation. The AP exam emphasizes the interaction of biology with environment.
1
Genetics and Chromosomes: XX typically leads to female development; XY to male. Twin studies show higher concordance for sexual orientation in identical twins than fraternal twins.
2
Prenatal Hormones: Exposure to androgens (like testosterone) during critical periods of fetal development influences brain structure and later gender-typed behavior.
3
Brain Differences: Research by Simon LeVay found structural differences in the hypothalamus (INAH-3) between heterosexual and homosexual men, suggesting a neuroanatomical component.
4
Fraternal Birth Order Effect: Each older biological brother increases the probability of homosexuality in later-born males, likely through a maternal immune response.
Psychological and Social Theories
Social Learning Theory
Children learn gender roles through observation, imitation, and reinforcement. Parents, peers, and media model gender-typed behavior (Bandura).
Gender Schema Theory
Children form mental frameworks (schemas) about gender that guide their perceptions and behavior. They actively organize experiences as "for boys" or "for girls" (Sandra Bem).
Cognitive Development
Kohlberg proposed children pass through stages: gender identity (age 2-3), gender stability (age 4), and gender constancy (age 6-7).
Psychodynamic View
Freud argued gender identity develops through identification with the same-sex parent during the phallic stage (ages 3-6) of psychosexual development.
The Biopsychosocial Model
The AP Psychology framework emphasizes that gender identity and sexual orientation arise from the interaction of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors: no single factor is sufficient.
Gender Identity vs. Sexual Orientation
These two concepts are independent dimensions of human identity. Knowing someone's gender identity does not predict their sexual orientation, and vice versa.
| Gender Identity | Sexual Orientation | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Who you are | Who you are attracted to |
| Focus | Internal sense of self | Emotional/romantic/sexual attraction |
| Examples | Cisgender, transgender, nonbinary | Heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual |
| Emerges | Early childhood (ages 2-4) | Typically puberty/adolescence |
| Key Researchers | Kohlberg, Bem, Money | Kinsey, LeVay, Bailey |
How to Analyze AP Exam Questions
Follow this step-by-step approach when encountering questions about gender and sexual orientation on the AP Psychology exam.
1
Identify the construct: Is the question about sex (biology), gender identity (self-concept), gender roles (cultural expectations), or sexual orientation (attraction)?
2
Match the theoretical lens: Does the question reference biological (hormones, genetics), social learning (modeling, reinforcement), or cognitive (schemas, stages) factors?
3
Check for interaction: If the answer choices include "biopsychosocial" or "interaction of multiple factors," that is usually the strongest answer.
4
Eliminate reductionism: Any answer claiming gender or orientation is caused by a single factor (only genes, only parenting) is almost always wrong.
5
Name the researcher: If a specific study is described, match it to the researcher: Kinsey (spectrum), Bem (gender schema), LeVay (brain), Bandura (social learning).
Example 1: Social Learning in Action
1
Observation: The child watches his father (a model) performing a behavior.
2
Imitation: The child reproduces the behavior in his own play.
3
Reinforcement: The mother provides positive reinforcement (praise), making the behavior more likely to continue.
Example 2: Gender Schema at Work
1
Schema formation: The child has built a mental framework that categorizes toys as "for girls" or "for boys" from cultural cues.
2
Active construction: Unlike social learning (which emphasizes external reinforcement), the child actively organizes her world through gender categories.
3
Schema-consistent behavior: She rejects the truck because it doesn't fit her gender schema, even without direct instruction.
Example 3: Biological Evidence for Orientation
1
Identical twins share 100% of DNA. Higher concordance in identical vs. fraternal twins suggests a genetic component.
2
"Raised apart" controls for environment. Shared orientation despite different environments strengthens the biological argument.
3
Concordance is not 100%. This means genes are not the sole factor: environment and other influences also play a role.
Sandra Bem and Androgyny
Sandra Bem developed the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) to measure masculinity and femininity as independent dimensions, not opposites on a single spectrum.
Key Researchers to Know
Alfred Kinsey
Created the Kinsey Scale (0-6); demonstrated that sexual orientation is a continuum, not a binary.
Sandra Bem
Developed gender schema theory and the BSRI; showed masculinity and femininity are independent dimensions.
Simon LeVay
Found structural differences in the hypothalamus (INAH-3) between homosexual and heterosexual men.
Albert Bandura
Social learning theory: Gender roles are acquired through observation, imitation, and reinforcement of models.
Lawrence Kohlberg
Cognitive development theory: Children progress through gender identity, stability, and constancy stages.
Common Mistakes on the AP Exam
✕ Confusing Sex and Gender
Sex refers to biological characteristics; gender refers to socially constructed roles and identity. They are not synonyms.
✕ Conflating Identity and Orientation
Gender identity (who you are) and sexual orientation (who you're attracted to) are independent. Knowing one does not determine the other.
✕ Single-Cause Explanations
Claiming gender or orientation is caused by only genes, hormones, or parenting is reductive. The best answer is usually biopsychosocial.
✕ Mixing Up Bem's Theories
Bem's gender schema theory (cognitive) is different from the BSRI (androgyny measure). Know which concept each question asks about.
✕ Schema vs. Social Learning
Social learning = external reinforcement/modeling. Schema theory = internal cognitive organization. Look for keywords like "observes" (social) vs. "categorizes" (schema).
Theories Comparison Table
| Theory | Key Idea | Researcher | AP Keyword |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social Learning | Modeling & reinforcement | Bandura | Observation |
| Gender Schema | Cognitive categories | Bem | Organizes |
| Cognitive Dev. | Stage progression | Kohlberg | Constancy |
| Biological | Genes, hormones, brain | LeVay, Bailey | Prenatal |
| Biopsychosocial | Multi-factor interaction | Integrative | Interaction |
Question 1 of 5
A 5-year-old child says "I am a girl and I will always be a girl, even if I cut my hair short." According to Kohlberg, this child has most likely achieved which stage?
Gender constancy (around age 6-7, though sometimes emerging at 5) is the understanding that gender remains the same regardless of changes in appearance or behavior. Gender identity (age 2-3) is simply labeling oneself. Gender stability (age 4) is knowing gender stays the same over time but still being confused by superficial changes. Gender schema is Bem's theory, not a Kohlberg stage.
Question 2 of 5
Research showing that each additional older biological brother increases the probability of homosexuality in later-born males best supports which explanation?
The fraternal birth order effect is a biological phenomenon: a maternal immune response to male-specific proteins increases with each male pregnancy, affecting prenatal hormone exposure. This is a prenatal biological influence, not a social, cognitive, or psychodynamic one.
Question 3 of 5
A child who has never been told that "dolls are for girls" nonetheless refuses to play with dolls, saying "that's girl stuff." This behavior is best explained by:
Gender schema theory (Bem) explains how children actively construct cognitive frameworks that categorize objects and behaviors as gender-appropriate, even without direct instruction. The key clue: "never been told" rules out direct reinforcement (operant) and explicit modeling (social learning). The child is self-categorizing using an internalized schema.
Question 4 of 5
On the Bem Sex-Role Inventory, a person who scores high on both masculinity and femininity dimensions would be classified as:
Androgynous is the BSRI classification for individuals scoring high on both dimensions. Undifferentiated means low on both. Masculine-typed means high masculinity, low femininity. "Gender fluid" is a gender identity term, not a BSRI category.
Question 5 of 5
Which statement best reflects the biopsychosocial perspective on sexual orientation?
The biopsychosocial model holds that sexual orientation arises from the interaction of biological (genetics, prenatal hormones), psychological (cognitive development, identity), and social (cultural norms, relationships) factors. Answers that attribute orientation to a single cause (A, B, or D) are reductionist and incorrect.