PART 1 Summary - In
your own words write a clear, concise summary of the key points raised in this
article remembering to attribute sources of information and opinion. You are
advised to write a first draft and then work on that to produce a good copy.
You should write between 150-175 words. You will be penalized if you exceed
this limit by more than 10%.
Study finds women in gender-equal countries have better
cognitive skills – here’s how to understand it
Let’s try you. Read the title above
once, then cover it and write down word for word what you remember. Having
difficulties? How well you do may be down to which country you live in.That’s
according to a new study, published in Psychological Science, involving 200,000 women and men from 27 countries
across five continents. It revealed that women from more conservative countries
performed worse on memory tests than those from more egalitarian countries.
Demographics expert Eric Bonsang and his colleagues
analysed national survey data from individuals above the age of 50. They
used data on cognitive performance tests
measuring episodic memory (memory of autobiographical
events). These involved recalling as many of ten words read out by a researcher
as possible in one minute immediately or after a short delay. The team rated
each country’s level of gender equality by looking at the proportion of people
agreeing with the statement: “When jobs are scarce, men should have more right
to a job than women.”
Women outperformed men on memory in
gender-egalitarian countries such as Sweden, Denmark, The Netherlands, the US
and most European countries. However, in Ghana, India, China, South Africa and
some more gender-traditional European countries (such as Russia, Portugal,
Greece and Spain) the pattern reversed. Women in these countries performed
worse than men – which was exactly what the researchers had predicted.
Interestingly, men in egalitarian countries also scored better than men in
conservative countries (but not by as much).The findings did not depend on
world region or the countries’ economic development (gross domestic product per
capita in 2010). A factor that may be at play, however, is that modern
countries (such as many of the gender-equal ones above) have better health
benefits. Older adults may simply be healthier. But that doesn’t necessary explain
the observed gender differences – the study after all found that the effect was
stronger for women than for men.
The authors instead argue that a
society’s attitudes to gender roles determine which behaviours and characteristics are deemed
appropriate for men and women. In turn, these social expectations influence
women’s (and men’s) life goals, occupational choices and experiences. As a
result, women in more gender-traditional countries may have less exposure to
cognitively stimulating activities such as those involved in education and
work. Participation in education and work indeed explained 30% of the findings.
While the study provides some evidence that attitudes based on stereotypes do
shape our abilities, a full test of this theory would require a study of
aptitudes which are stereotypically considered feminine – such as social
sensitivity or linguistic ability. For example, would men in gender-traditional
nations underperform on tests measuring social sensitivity, compared to women?
A study conducted on American students showed just that. It may indeed be that
this effect is even larger in more conservative countries.
The results of this study were
explained in terms of “stereotype threat”, a fear of doing something that
would confirm or reinforce the negative traits typically associated with
members of stigmatised groups. Say you are a woman sitting a maths test. The
common perception that women are not good at maths may play on your mind and
your score may suffer as you struggle to concentrate. The fear takes away our
cognitive resources and leads to underperformance on tasks deemed challenging
for the stereotyped group. This effect is very powerful and has been shown in a
wealth of studies. When reminded of negative stereotypes, women have been shown
to underperform on maths tests, or African
Americans on tests measuring intellectual
ability. Indeed, the new study could be interpreted in terms of stereotype
threat theory.
We’ve even seen the neurological
underpinnings of this effect. Our new study, published in Frontiers’ Aging
Neuroscience, asked a group of older participants to read an article
about memory fading with age (age stereotype). We showed that, as a result,
their reaction times in a cognitive task were delayed. What’s more, brain wave
activity in these individuals indicated that their thoughts about themselves
were more negative. This was seen in data from electroencephalography (EEG),
which uses electrodes to track and record brainwave patterns.
Our study shows that short-term
exposure to negative stereotypes has detrimental effects on cognitive
functioning. Similar processes may have taken place in women continually
exposed to negative gender and age stereotypes in gender-conservative countries
– explaining their underperformance on the memory test. Another consideration
which future studies should take into account is the countries’ wider political
system – not just the gender attitudes themselves. One theory suggests
modernisation leads progressively to democratisation
and liberalisation – including that of attitudes to gender roles. The society’s
heritage, whether political or religious, influences the society’s values.
Indeed, our studies on cross-cultural
attitudes to women and men show that they are
more liberal in longstanding democracies such as the UK than in countries
transitioning to democracy (such as Poland and South Africa). We found that
gender attitudes were also affected by the preceding political systems: they
were more conservative in the post-apartheid South Africa and less conservative
in a post-communist Poland. So national histories of institutionalised
inequality (apartheid) vs forced emancipation (communism) have left a long-lasting
impact on national levels of sexism. Perhaps not coincidentally, some of the
longest standing democracies in the new study happen to be the ones which are
more gender-egalitarian. As my research suggests, both democratisation and
the reduction of stereotype threat – especially through
the mass media, such as advertising involving non-traditional
gender roles – are important. These efforts should be our focus in
bringing greater equality across a range of skills for women and men across the
globe.
Adapted © The Conversation, 2017
Quell’incontro privato glielo aveva chiesto la giovane signora Rimon
avvicinandosi per un attimo all’uscita del Tempio. «Vorrei portare da lei mio
figlio» aveva sussurrato rapida, e il rabbino Bonfiglioli si era un poco
stupito. Gli sembrava di ricordare che il figlio doveva essere ancora piccolo,
di sicuro non in età di Bar Mitzvà. E poi quei Rimon, una famiglia come molte
altre, brava gente, però quanto a osservanza ebraica davvero tiepidina. Rosh
Hashanà e Kippur, le feste obbligatorie, dove arrivavano in massa circondati da
una variegata parentela, e poi basta.
In sinagoga si vedeva di tanto in tanto solo la madre, ma sembrava più
un’educata spettatrice che una donna di fede. Il libro di preghiere che
stringeva in mano, quello sì, il rabbino l’aveva notato. Pareva di antica
stampa e aveva una copertina di stoffa a grandi disegni floreali. Avrebbe
pagato qualsiasi cosa per poter dare un’occhiata a quel testo, ma non era abbastanza
in confidenza con la signora. «Chissà se lo porterà quando verrà
all’appuntamento». Ma era un pensiero leggero, di quelli che si concedeva solo
nella gioia del sabato. Il figlio era più o meno come se
lo ricordava, un bimbetto che pareva sveglio e per niente intimidito dai mobili
pesanti che riempivano lo studio. E pensare che lui, il rabbino, certe volte
aveva bisogno di abbandonarla quella stanza, tuffandosi anche solo nel
corridoio. Il bambino, senza aspettare un invito, si era accomodato su una seggiola
accanto alla madre. Era come se già fosse consapevole che ovunque, nel mondo,
ci sarebbe stato uno spazio per lui.
Adapted© Questa
sera è già domani, Lia Levi
