ABSTRACT
In recent decades people have begun to talk of the gender rather than the sex of a child, to challenge the idea of gender as biologically given, and suggest a cultural influence on these matters. Of course it is also possible to be, or be seen to be, either more or less masculine or feminine, irrespective of biological gender, and many do not identify as the gender ascribed to them. Genders can be viewed as a spectrum, with some males and females considered more or less feminine or masculine. Research about gender reveals a mixture of clear facts and more fuzzy ideas that ask as many questions as they answer. Why are most violent criminals, mathematical geniuses and political leaders men while women are underrepresented in fields such as science (Ceci et al., 2009), are paid less and do disproportionate amounts of childcare? Is this nature or nurture?
