| Title | Are males better systemizers than females: critically discuss evidence and possible explanations | |
| Authors | Vassiliki-Sofia Grech¹, Maria Grech², Antonios Togias³ and Ioanna Grech⁴
1. Bachelor of Medical Biochemistry, King’s College University, Student of Medicine, Medical University of Pecs, Hungary 2. Medical Resident in Pediatrics, Children’s Hospital Aglaia Kyriakou, Athens, Greece 3. Medical Resident in Pediatrics, General Hospital of Kalamata 4. Technological Education Institution of Athens, Egaleo, Athens, Greece |
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| Citation | Grech, V.S., Grech, M., Togias, A., Grech, I.: Are males better systemizers than females: critically discuss evidence and possible explanations, Epitheorese Klin. Farmakol. Farmakokinet. 25(3): 159-163 (2011) | |
| Publication Date | Accepted for publication: November 10, 2011 | |
| Full Text Language | English | |
| Order – Buy | Ηλεκτρονική Μορφή: pdf (10 €) – Digital Type: pdf (10 €)
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| Keywords | Brain types, systemizing, empathizing. | |
| Other Terms | review article | |
| Summary | Do men and women think alike? Could they act alike? Sex differences in brain are one of the most tempting, energetic and controversial territories for neuroscience. Traditionally, evolutionary scientists, imply that females are more kin on childcare and males are better in intra-group and inter-group competition for resources and mates. However these assumptions were not strongly funded, due to the lack of parameter encounter, for instance, cultural clouts. Today, Baron-Cohen, one of the most important researchers for development psychopathology, strongly supports that male brain is principally indented for systemizing and female brain is principally intended for empathizing, as written on his book THE ESSENTIAL DIFFERENCE. Systemizing refers to the ability of figuring out how things work and extract the underlying rules regulating the behaviour of a system. Empathizing on the other hand, is the ability of identifying another person’s emotions and thoughts and respond to them appropriately. These terms subsequently introduced different brain types. Firstly, TYPE S or the male brain indicates the brain of someone with better systemizing skills than empathizing, secondly TYPE E or female brain indicated the brain of someone with better empathizing skills than systemizing. Still there is a third type called TYPE B describing a brain type when both systemizing and empathizing skills are balanced. However, great variations can be seen in pathological cases, for example in Asperger’s syndrome. For what is more, the present article does not only focus on Baron-Cohen’s point of view. Substantiations and validations from a number of other researchers, proving the male systemizing performance, are taken into account. Studies based on historical evidence, newborn’s behaviour experiments, Mental Rotation Test, statistics, biological, genetic and hormonal regulation confirmations are supporting the case, giving males an advantage on scheme adaptation. Nevertheless, there are a number of parameters, possible mistakes and everyday life paradigms that can deplete the above evidences, all analyzed and discussed here. | |
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