Starnes Passion Blog

On Friday, March 13, 1964, a 28-year-old woman, Kitty Genovese, was heading home from work when she was attacked and stabbed by a man later identified as Winston Moseley. Despite her calling for help many times, no one in the surrounding apartments responded to her call; after being stabbed multiple times, it wasn’t until 20 minutes later that the police were called. Several witnesses reported to have seen Wilson assault and kill, yet it still took 30 minutes for the police to arrive. 

While this example is extremely horrifying, it reflects the bystander effect in which people who should help another do not as they believe it is their responsibility. Oftentimes, this happens as a result of the diffusion of responsibility. Because people know that there are other observers, they do not feel as much pressure to act.  The responsibility is thought to be shared among all those present; the greater number of people there are present, the less likely they are going to be willing to help. In a series of studies, when participants were placed in a room filled with smoke alone, 75% of them reported it. When they were placed in the same room with just two others, it was only reported 38% of the time. On top of that, if the other people ignored it, it dropped as low as 10%. Despite being in a dire situation, people simply ignored the smoke just because others did and they refused to believe it was their responsibility.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSsPfbup0ac

(this video reflects the bystander effect under different conditions)

Oftentimes, we feel the need to act in socially acceptable ways. When others fail to act, we take this information as a social cue that nothing is wrong and we can go on as usual. Furthermore, if the situation is ambiguous people are even less likely to act. For example, witnesses of the Kitty Genovese murder claimed they simply believed it was a lover’s quarrel and chose not to get involved. Despite the crying and screaming they convinced themselves that the situation was under control. 

(https://medium.com/@tedbauer2003/organizations-have-a-massive-bystander-effect-as-well-cdbe183bed9)

Action over apathy is an extremely difficult choice and is sometimes made only if the person is similar to ourselves, we are feeling guilty, we have just observed someone else being helpful, or we are in a good mood. In order to overcome the bystander effect, it is important to simply be aware of this tendency. By doing so, we are able to understand other bystanders activities. If you are in trouble, it is important to single someone out in the crowd and attempt to individualize your request. We must break our natural tendencies and not just do things to socially conform.

Cherry, Kendra. “What Psychology Says About Why Bystanders Sometimes Fail to Help.” Verywell Mind, Verywell Mind, 15 Aug. 2019, www.verywellmind.com/the-bystander-effect-2795899.

For this week’s passion blog I am going to write about the topic of hypnosis, how it occurs and the biology behind it. I have always been extremely curious about this topic and have never completely understood the science behind it. It is a psychological phenomenon in which people are in a state of highly focused attention associated with high levels of relaxation. Under this “trance” suggestibility is heightened and oftentimes people are given post hypnotic suggestions that they will perform once out of the relaxed state. While most people believe that hypnosis is simply an act, it has been used for centuries for pain control. Within the Civil War, army soldiers were often hypnotized before an amputation to help with the pain. Patients who receive hypnosis before surgery report less post-surgical pain, nausea, fatigue and discomfort. Hypnosis can help to ease people throughout a surgery reducing stress and speeding up the process (“Hypnosis today”). 

People vary widely in their ability to respond to hypnotic suggestions. While in some cases, hypnosis is very effective it has been known to be extremely detrimental as well. In the 1990’s some patients were convinced by their therapists that they had been molested or abused as children due to hypnotically induced memories. As a result, many innocent people were wrongly put in jail; as a result, in a 2007 Supreme Court decision, post-hypnotic evidence was determined inadmissible. In other ways it has been beneficial; when looking at 59 studies of the effect on hypnosis on smoking, it was determined that hypnosis was more effective than regular treatment at helping patients (“Hypnosis today”). Hypnosis has also proven to be effective to obtain REM sleep as well as weight loss (“Does Hypnosis Work?”). 

(https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Effects-of-the-North-Carolina-hypnosis-treatment-protocol-for-IBS-on-bowel-symptoms-in_fig1_277871259)

Hypnosis happens naturally as well as clinically; during routine parts of the day, your brain enters a hypnotic state. Under hypnosis, we enter an unaltered state of unconsciousness in which behavioral control is dissociated from awareness. For example, in one experiment a hypnotized group of subjects was asked to place their hands in cold water. The hypnotized patients were able to bypass their original thought of pulling their hands out of the water and instead left them in for a longer period of time. Another example of suggestibility that may occur within our own lives is within wine tasting. When a subject is offered 2 glasses of the same type of wine and told one is a more expensive wine, the subject will almost always associate the more expensive wine with a better taste (“Does Hypnosis Work?”). 

(https://farehypnosis.com/product/brain-activity-in-hypnosis/)

While the effects of hypnosis on the unconscious state are still not completely clear,  researchers have found that hypnosis causes observable changes in multiple brain areas. These areas are characteristic of consciousness, spontaneous thought, concentration, and awareness of bodily processes. These brain changes include, decreased connectivity between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the posterior cingulate cortex, increased connectivity between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the insula, and reduced activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. As a result of these brain changes, researchers have concluded the existence of an altered state of consciousness (“Brain Imaging of Hypnosis”) . 

 

“Does Hypnosis Work? Understanding the Science of Hypnotherapy.” Grace Space Hypnosis, 13 Feb. 2019, gshypnosis.com/does-hypnosis-work-understanding-the-science-of -hypnotherapy-2/.

“Brain Imaging of Hypnosis.” Brain Imaging of Hypnosis,  johnmongiovi.com/pages/brain- imaging.

“Hypnosis today.” Monitor on Psychology, American Psychological Association, www.apa.org/monitor/2011/01/hypnosis.

 

For this blog I am going to be discussing whether psychiatric medicines are safe. While progress of psychiatric medicines has been made in recent years, the long term effectiveness of these drugs has not been evaluated. Before 1955, psychiatric therapies included prayer, isolation, and physical restraints. During this time, the majority of patients resided in psychiatric hospitals. Recently, patients have been moved out of these hospitals, and the use of community mental health services as well as prescription psychiatric drugs have increased. While the FDA has approved these drugs, they only review studies that were properly designed, secretly conducted, and paid for by multinational profit-driven drug companies. The majority of these drugs are not tested for longer than three months and the industry pays researchers to fast track these drugs through the process. Many times the researchers have ties to the FDA advisory committees and have other financial conflicts of interest (Gantt).

Currently, it is not possible to definitely test the psychiatric medicines effectiveness without preventing the release of the drug for extreme periods of time. As a result, I do not believe that it will be possible for long term tests of these medications to be conducted. Because drug companies are only required to report one or two studies and can simply put a warning on the drugs, the drug companies have no interest in conducting any long term trials that may delay their income.  As a result, consumers are often unaware of the potentially fatal adverse drug effects that may include addiction, mania, psychosis, brain damage, dementia, and homicidality (Gantt). 

World famous psychiatrist warns that increased use of psychiatric drugs will translate to more mass shootings

Historically, medically ill patients did not have access to these drugs or services and the current use of them has shown a severe drop in the number of mentally ill patients. In addition, compared to 1977 when 64 percent of psychiatric visits were for psychotherapy now less than 10 percent are for that treatment. Instead, drug prescription has dramatically increased. While these statistics appear to have demonstrated the positive effects of these drugs, many of these results are misleading. Many of these drugs, including the antidepressants have reflected an increase in suicidal thinking as well as completed and attempted suicides (Gantt).

Many of these drugs while they claim they are safe, they are not especially for children. A commonly prescribed drug, Ritalin, has a similar effect on the brain to cocaine and can with long term use has been found to be neurotoxic. Many of these synthetic chemical drugs simply mask symptoms and can be highly addictive. Other drugs such as Thorazine, Haldol, and Prolixin result in serious brain damage. When examining MRI scans of treated schizophrenics, common proof of the disorder is the shrinking of the brain. The effects they experience are often the result of psychotic symptoms after beginning drug use (Gantt). Within children this may be especially harmful as their brains continue to develop. I believe that these drugs must be tested further in order to prevent complications within their use and the research must be properly evaluated. Do you guys think that these drugs are safe and should continue to be used?

Gantt, Edwin E. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues. McGraw-Hill Education Create, 2018.

In this passion blog I am going to be discussing whether free will is an illusion. Some argue that humans simply interpret the feelings and actions that arise as a result of unconscious brain activity. As a result, there is nothing we can do about these feelings because they are a direct product or processes outside of our personal control. We instead experience control over our personal interpretations to our feelings or actions. On the other hand, researchers suggest that just because neurons are activated before we become aware of our decision doesn’t mean that we are controlled by our brain. Current technology cannot differentiate between unconscious and subconscious thought, and therefore doesn’t define our decision making ability (Gantt). 

Free Will Illusionism vs. Disillusionism

While I agree that our feelings arise as a result of our actions I do not believe that they are completely out of our personal control. Neuroscience appears to have confirmed that unconscious processes drive our every action and that free will is nothing more than an illusion. In 1999, Benjamin Libet demonstrated that unconscious neural activity precedes conscious intent. Using an EEG, he discovered that there was a readiness potential before they were conscious of their intent to move their wrist. As a result, he believed that unconscious intentionality preceded conscious intention, but did not object to the existence of free will. The consciousness can still accept or reject an unconscious process. Recent studies using an functional MRI suggest that unconscious roots of our decision begin early and are completely predetermined before consciousness can begin. Despite this, I believe our subconscious thought plays a role in our actions. Currently, neuroscience lacks the technical sophistication; the research fails to define the border between unconscious and subconscious acts. Brain activity cannot simply determine our choice before we are aware of making it. While it is true we are sometimes influenced unknowingly by our environment, we are still able to consciously deliberate the repercussions of our actions and make them as a result. In addition, our ability to willfully distract yourself from a temptation and our implementation intentions are crucial for our decision making. In a recent experiment at Georgia State University, neuroscientists were able to pick up on everything the participant would do before the conscious decision. Despite showing the free will doesn’t exist, most participants believed that the neuroscientists were simply able to read brain activity and as a result were able to predict the participants actions (Gantt). Until neuroscience is able to explain consciousness it is going to be impossible to tell whether free will doesn’t exist. As a result, I believe free will exists. 

https://onlyfreedommatters.com/free-will-vs-determinism/

In my own life, it would completely change my moral and ethical ideas if it was an allusion. I would believe that my actions were simply not my choice and as a result, I would just provide excuses for the way I behaved instead of changing my actions. In addition, it would completely change my opinion of morality as people’s choices would be deemed predetermined. As a result, the concept of morality would not exist. As a result, it is very difficult for me to even begin to accept the idea that free will may be an illusion. It would completely change the way I would act. How would you feel if you knew free will did not exist?

Gantt, Edwin E. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues. McGraw-Hill Education Create, 2018.

For this blog I am going to be discussing whether ADHD is a real disorder. Because mental disorders are defined by their symptoms, there is significant debate on what constitutes a legitimate disorder. ADHD has been particularly extremely difficult to diagnose and it has been difficult to discover whether the prescriptions are appropriate. 

Because the principles of ADHD become apparent in early years and many many normal children exhibit the symptoms of ADHD, including inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, it is very difficult to diagnose. In order to be considered disordered distractibility, the symptoms must be present early in life and continue for at least six months. In addition, to be considered a disorder the symptoms must create a real handicap in at least two areas of the person’s life, including the schoolroom, playground, home, or the community. A large majority of those diagnosed do not exhibit these symptoms, leading to the disorder to be delegitimized. Normal distractibility is often difficult to differentiate from disordered distractibility. Many normal children exhibit symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. While these symptoms describe ADHD, through examination by a professional is necessary for them to be diagnosed. The behaviors must be considered long-term, and pervasive; parents and teachers are often asked for their opinions in order to generate a proper diagnosis. Most substantial causes of the disorder are issues within the genetics as well as the neurobiology of the individual. In addition, mental disorders such as ADHD run in families, leading scientists to believe genetics play a large role in this disorder. 

There must be a degree of subjectivity within mental diagnoses such as ADHD because there is a high variability within the disorder itself and many of the symptoms of each are common within children. There are three patterns of behavior that reflect ADHD; they include hyperactive-impulsive type, inattentive type, and the combined type. Because ADHD is very variable and difficult to differentiate from normal attentiveness issues, a specialist is necessary to gather information and diagnose the disorder. When diagnosing the disorder, the specialist must examine the situation, talking to the patients teachers, parents, and other close individuals. The child must be evaluated for both adjustment and mental health. 

I believe ADHD is a real disorder, but because it is often difficult to diagnose, it is often over medicated and over diagnosed. UK prescriptions for stimulants have increased from 6,000 in 1994 to 345,000 in the latter half of 2003. While no medical test exists and the diagnosis relies on the subjective opinion of a diagnoser, the ADHD still has been connected to studies revolving different portions of the brain, including the frontal lobes, temporal lobes, and grey matter. Children have exhibited 3-4 percent smaller brain volumes in all of these regions. Oftentimes, trained professionals cannot agree on what constitutes ADHD, leading to more complications within the diagnosis. As a result, people without the disorder are often diagnosed which has started to hurt the legitimacy of the disorder.

Gantt, Edwin E. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues. McGraw-Hill Education Create, 2018.

https://www.verywellmind.com/adhd-overview-4157275

https://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/childhood-adhd/ss/slideshow-adhd-in-children

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Adjusted-and-Nonadjusted-Time-Trends-in-Incidence-Rates-of-Diagnosed-ADHD-by-Age-Group-at_fig2_274401149

 

For this week’s blog I am going to be discussing lucid dreaming and the reasons behind it. For those that don’t know what lucid dreaming is it occurs when we are dreaming and aware that the dream is occurring as we dream. The Greek philosopher Aristotle describes it as being aware of our mental state. Insight, disassociation, and control are key factors revolving around lucid dreaming. While insight is necessary for lucid dreams to occur, sometimes control and dissociation are not present. Control allows people to alter their dreams while disassociation allows people to differentiate their dreams from their cognitive thoughts. 

 

Most lucid dreaming occurs during REM and can occur spontaneously. At the same time people have been able to train themselves to lucid dreams; people are able to alter their dreams. The examination of lucid dreaming is often used to address nightmares, and lucid dreaming therapy can even be used to prevent nightmares. It has been applied to help people tackle their fears as you are able to expose yourself to specific ideas or things you are afraid of. Someone in the lucid dreaming state may go on to do things that they would not be able to do in real life. Lucid dreaming allows people to explore what their conscious mind wants. In a study conducted in Brazil, it has been found that about 77% of people have experienced lucid dreaming. Within schizophrenics often times people are unable to distinguish real life events and lucid dreams. 

 

Lucid dreaming often occurs during REM sleep, and happens as the result of attenuated activation of the prefrontal cortex. As a result of this alteration, people’s ability to make sound decisions is altered. People are often able to alter these conditions and induce REM sleep. If you want to enter a lucid dream you can. You can set an alarm for five hours after falling asleep. When you wake up, think about what you hope to dream about. As a result of these instructions, people are able to be aware that they are dreaming, and  have an out of body experience in which they can alter their visions. 

 

 In addition, EEG examinations have been shown to activate the frontal lobes of the brain; alterations in these areas are common during puberty and reflect why teens going through these changes can have a high number of lucid dreams. Internally generated stimuli oftentimes leads to the activation in cerebral regions which can lead to a rise in consciousness. It also has been known to take a critical role in Cognitive Remediation Therapy. People can mnemonic induce lucid dreaming; by stating that they will know that they are dreaming  they are able to induce lucid dreaming. Lucid dreaming has been linked to narcolepsy and sleep paralysis. Because people with narcolepsy balance between consciousness and unconsciousness it is easy to obtain control of their dreaming. Even though it is uncertain why dreaming occurs, I believe it is a combination of both out of body thoughts and brain alterations during REM sleep. 

Breus, Michael. “What Is A Lucid Dream And How They Happen.” Your Guide to Better Sleep, 12 Oct. 2019, thesleepdoctor.com/2019/10/11/what-is-a-lucid-dream-and-how-they-happen/.

Voss, et al. “Insight and Dissociation in Lucid Dreaming and Psychosis.” Frontiers, Frontiers, 22 Oct. 2018, www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02164/full.

For my blog this week I will be discussing the topic of the phantom limb instead of addressing a question. For those that do not know, the phantom limb syndrome is described as the ability to feel sensations and pain in limbs that no longer exist. People perceive that they can feel temperature, itch, touch, and vibration as well as painful sensations such as burning and shooting pain. It was first described in 1552 by a french surgeon who claimed that the people he amputated complained that they continued to feel pain where their limb was previously present. Researchers found that neuroplasticity or the ability of neurons to modify their behavior results in this phenomenon. Local brain regions involved in map neuroplasticity can gain access to the unused areas of the brain. The rewiring of these neurons can open result in pain when other signals are sent to areas of the brain, creating the sensation of pain where there is no limb. In addition, the pain may also be the result of damaged nerve endings. Typically, it is a chronic issue that leads to pain as a result of brain changes.

Around ninety five percent of amputee patients experience phantom limb syndrome, and 10% of these people feel pain from an amputated limb. Oftentimes, this pain is initiated by the amputee in which they scratch, rub, or pinch their scar, disturbing the neurons. In addition, amputees of the fingers and palms often experience higher rates of this phenomenon. It has also been discovered that the corpus callosum that connects the cortical areas responsible for movement and sensation loses part of its function. There is a functional imbalance within the corpus callosum of the brain within those experiencing phantom limb phenomenon.

People without missing limbs can still experience this phenomenon. Patients had their left arm hidden and viewed a fake hand. By stroking their real hand with a paintbrush at the same time they stroked the fake hand, the patients began to believe that the fake hand was their real hand. When a stabbing motion is made towards the fake hand many people experienced serious stress as a result. Patients will transfer the sensation of their hand to wherever they believe the sensation to be coming from even if it is in empty space. The brain uses different senses including vision, touch, and signals from the arm to experience this illusion, and this same mechanism is used to experience phantom pain. In addition, people have reported that they can even experience phantom nipplies, appendix pains, and menstrual cramps. Despite not using a limb many people can still experience phantom pain. For next weeks blog I hope to discuss lucid dreaming or the phenomenon of having a photographic memory. 

Livingston, Kenneth E. “The Phantom Limb Syndrome. A Discussion of the Role of Major Peripheral Nerve Neuromas in: Journal of Neurosurgery Volume 2 Issue 3 (1945).” Journal of Neurosurgery, Journal of Neurosurgery Publishing Group, 24 Oct. 2018, thejns.org/view/journals/j-neurosurg/2/3/article-p251.xml.

 

“Phantom Pain.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 30 Oct. 2018, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/phantom-pain/symptoms-causes/syc- 20376272?page=0&citems=10.

 

“Even Non-Amputees Can Feel a Phantom Limb.” LiveScience, Purch, www.livescience.com /28694-non-amputees-feel-phantom-limb.html.

Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease characterized by compulsive drug seeking and drug use. Addiction is considered a disease as the drugs change the brain structure and how it works. When drug abuse initiates, a person’s ability to be in self-control becomes impaired and brain studies reflect serious changes in the decision making areas of the brain. When the reward area of the brain is activated, our brains associate specific activities with this feeling and teaches us to do the activity repeatedly. When these drugs are ingested, they release 2 to 10 times the amount of dopamine as natural activities and can motivate people to continue to take these drugs. As a result of these drugs, dopamines impact on the pleasure area of the brain can be reduced, leading to the abuser to feel lifeless and depressed. As a result of the lowered dopamine levels, drug users feel the need to continue to use to bring their dopamine levels back up, leading to them taking larger amounts of the drug. In addition, changes within neurons and brain circuits are prevalent. For example, when the optimal concentration of glutamate is altered by drug abuse, the brain compensates for this change resulting in impairment in cognitive function. Long-term drug abuse can even lead to conditioning in which environmental cues can lead to cravings for the drug. Because these changes are outside of the control of the individual, they are considered a disease of the brain (Gantt). 

The National Institute on Drug Abuse argues that they are tied to neurobiology through the reference of the brain areas affected by drug abuse, the brain’s communication, and the neurotransmitters involved with drug abuse. The National Institute on Drug Abuse claims that drugs impact the brain’s communication system through the release of either natural or synthetic neurotransmitters. As a result, it states that the release of these neurotransmitters prevents the normal recycling of these brain chemicals and works to overstimulate the regions of the brain involved in pleasure. In addition, it references the impact of these drugs on the brain stem, limbic system, and the cerebral cortex. It also directly impacts the development of the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in making sound decisions. Hitchens would respond by claiming that these references impede the free will of the people. He would say by imploring that addiction is present would lead the abusers to believe that they are completely powerless which is not necessarily true. He would cite the fact that despite some people being “addicted” to certain drugs, they have still been able to overcome this addiction (Gantt). 

Brain areas affected by drug abuse include the brain stem, the limbic system, prefrontal cortex and the cerebral cortex. Changes in the brain stem inhibit the ability to perform basic functions such as controlling the heart rate, breathing, and sleeping. Changes in the limbic system affect the the brain’s reward circuit, leading to irrational behaviors to continue to activate this area of the brain as it relates to pleasure. Because the limbic system impacts the reward circuit, it brings people to motivate people to continually complete. In addition, drugs alter the cerebral cortex, changing the way we sense and process information. The front part of this cortex impacts our ability to think and problem solve. By negatively impacting this part of the brain, drugs prevent the ability to process and make decisions. Finally, changes within the prefrontal cortex impact the ability to assess situations and keep emotions/desires under control (Gantt). 

While scientific evidence claims that addiction is uncontrollable, labeling addiction as an uncontrollable force, leads to people thinking that free will does not exist and human behavior is determined. By doing so, it is inferred that we use the words because we are too lazy to think about what we mean and that the belief was implanted in the modern mind built into our daily lives. While addiction is extremely prevalent, it is important to not label it as impossible to recover from. 

Gantt, Edwin E. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues. McGraw-Hill Education Create, 2018.

Rather than love, compatibility or preparation, I believe dedication is an important aspect of marriage and can lead to a healthier marriage as well as better mental health. On the other hand, it is argued that the health and happiness statistics regarding marriage are often misleading and do not account for important variables. In a study done with 1,300 people, marital quality was examined as well as other prior factors within the marriage. Specific factors that lead to people believing they have a healthier marriage is having a higher educational quality as well as living with their parents at the age of 14. Factors such as income were not correlated with marriage quality. While many of these factors appear to be exclusive, the study was done at the beginning of the marriage and altering circumstances exist in a population of solely 1,300 people. In addition, almost 10% of the study reported knowing that their spouse had cheated on them, once again leading to lower marital quality. One factor I found surprising was that those that lived with their spouse before marriage reported a lower marital quality. On the other hand, if they had committed to marriage before moving in, they reported higher marital quality (Gantt). Oftentimes, dedication is a result of a higher marital quality; if a couple is more willing to get married the are oftentimes more committed to their relationship. In addition, those that reported having a wedding showed a higher marital quality later in life.

In addition, shocking research has shown that the more people who attend your wedding leads to higher marital quality. Due to the marriage being more public, people are more likely to follow through and stay committed as well as provide a greater social network for support. I believe commitment in a relationship is extremely important but does not necessarily have to be shown through marriage. In addition, many of the “happiness” statistics have shown to be misleading. For example, much of the research compares unmarried and married individuals and doesn’t take into account whether it is a cohabiting partnership. While marriage is a large commitment, it has been reflected that unions with children are just as important to indicate the stability in a relationship (Gantt). 

Regarding prior relationships, people who entered a first marriage reported a higher marital quality than those who reported a second or third. Similarly, couples with children from prior relationships had lower marital quality later on. In addition, almost 40 percent have lived with a prior partner before which led to lower marital quality later in life. In regards to marriages, more experience often leads to issues within later relationships. Oftentimes, more experiences with breaking up as well as having children before marriage, leading to a higher divorce rate (Gantt). As a result, these findings have shown that these experiences have resulted in fragile relationships that are detrimental.

Gantt, Edwin E. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues. McGraw-Hill Education Create, 2018.

Gender identity refers to the personal sense of one’s gender. While it can be argued that gender identity is biological, it can also be asserted that gender is the result of social constructs and learned roles.

It has been shown that people raised as the gender opposite their sex identify as the gender that matches their chromosomes not the gender they are raised. One study done reflects the claim that gender identity may be the result of the hormone milieu during intrauterine development. Another study cited shows the examinations of post mortem brain studies, which reflect the hypothesis that differing cerebral networks results in a differing neuroanatomical basis. They link the sexual differentiation of the brain and the differences in grey matter studies to transgender individuals, claiming that the number of neurons in BSTc transgender individuals was more similar to genetic XX females. These studies have shown a biological basis for gender (Gantt). 

On the other hand, it is argued that gender is the result of social and gender roles taught and supported by family and society. Sociological explanations generally rejects the biological one and that the self is composed of multiple identities each determining how a person behaves. This theory helps to explain why gender and certain behaviors surrounding them have perpetuated; males tend to learn dominance and aggression while females are promoted to be collectivistic and expressive. In addition, the family is defined by role identities each based off the individual’s gender, leading to differing treatment and responsibilities depending on gender. Gender is based on the roles developed and perpetuated by society (Gantt). As a result, people may believe it is the result of their biology or a social etiology.  

I agree with the perspective that we are acting out gender roles; role identities are learned early on by differentiated expectations for behavior. The role identity of the mother is nurturing and caring while the father’s identity is control and dominance. Oftentimes when people attempt to change their role, they are often criticized as they are different from the societal norm. Feminine traits are often condemned by males and the opposite is true for females. My personal and role identity have been impacted by my father, leading me to adapt his masculine characteristics, such as being aggressive and independent. My father always made sure that I understood my role in the family and the role I would have in the future (helping my mother and being in control of myself and my actions). In regards to a social identity, my friends and being involved in Scouts definitely helped to shape me. Actions that are more masculine are often endorsed while being feminine is often rejected. 

Despite the ideas surrounding the biological basis of gender appearing more credible, four male individuals had sexual reassignment surgery and afterwards felt more like females than males. While they continued to have XY chromosomes, these individuals still felt like females, alluding to how gender identity might not be biologically based. While ample evidence is provided on why gender is purely based on biology, many of these studies are non-conclusive (Gantt). As a result, I believe that a combination of both biological and social aspects contributes to gender identity.

Gantt, Edwin E. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues. McGraw-Hill Education Create, 2018.