Scientists from the University of Pennsylvania and Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research have published a study showing new insights into how sex and gender are represented in the brains of children. The study emphasizes the difference between sex, defined as physiological characteristics present at birth, and gender, which is a spectrum of attitudes, feelings, and behaviors. The researchers used brain scans from 4,757 children aged 9 to 10 and predictive AI models to establish that patterns of brain connectivity are distinctly associated with sex and gender, but they are not identical.
The researchers used functional MRI (fMRI) to observe natural brain activity patterns while children were at rest. Machine learning algorithms were then employed to find patterns in the brain activity that could be linked to sex or gender. They used both self-reported and parent-reported gender measures, considering gender on a continuum rather than as a binary concept.
The study found that with the identified brain connectivity patterns, the researchers could accurately define a child’s sex in about 77% of cases. However, when predicting a child’s gender based on parent reports, the accuracy dropped significantly to just about 8%. This indicates that although gender has a relationship to brain function, it is far more nuanced and complex than the differences attributed to sex. Brain connectivity patterns associated with sex were found primarily in areas linked with movement, vision, decision-making, and emotions, while patterns linked with gender were more spread out across the brain.
The research reinforces the idea that looking at sex itself may not be enough, highlighting that for children, gender identity can be fluid and multifaceted. In the field of medicine, this understanding may lead to more tailored treatments for neurological and psychiatric conditions that present differently across sexes or gender identities, such as ADHD and autism. Furthermore, the findings may help to provide more nuanced mental health support for children dealing with gender or identity-related issues.
This study provides scientific evidence against oversimplified concepts of “male brains” and “female brains” by showing that sex and gender have distinct neurological correlates. It also builds on a recent similar study conducted by Stanford, which accurately distinguished male from female brains 90% of the time. The scientists caution against misinterpretation, emphasizing that their findings do not offer evidence for gender essentialism, and hence should not be used to reinforce harmful stereotypes. Instead, the study aims to underscore the complexity of gender identity and the need to study both sex and gender to fully capture individual differences.
