ABSTRACT
I have taught this material many times, and there always have been students who are profoundly disturbed by the possibility that even a small portion of the sex differences in cognitive abilities may be attributable to biological factors. When reading this chapter and the following one devoted to sex-related brain differences, it is important to keep in mind that even if we were to conclude that biological variables are partial determinants of sex differences in cognitive abilities, the importance of psychosocial factors is not necessarily diminished. Biological and psychosocial variables interact in their influence on the development of individuals, and although biological and psychosocial hypotheses are presented in separate chapters, this organization is not meant to imply that they are diametrically opposed or independent concepts. As you read the chapters that focus on biological and environmental factors, keep in mind the psychobiosocial model that was presented in chapter 1 of this book-it is an integral conceptualization of nature and nurture. To understand broad topics, like the variables that create and influence human cognition, we have to break them down into smaller units, but they also have to be put back together again, a feat that is accomplished in the last chapter in this book.
