Sexual Characteristics, Gender, Role, and Sex

Sexual Characteristics and Society

• The shapes of how a person should be are governed by behaviors and or expectations.

Sexuality

• Physical characteristics define gender.

Physical Characteristics of Women

• Consists of a reproductive system including the ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, vagina, and vulva.
• The pelvis tends to be wider, has larger hips, and larger breasts than in adult males.

Physical Characteristics of Men

• Consists of a male reproductive system.
• Characteristics include facial hair which includes growing a beard or mustache, developing a wide chest, a narrow pelvis known as a triangular torso shape.
• Males tend to have great body mass/volume.

Gender, Role, and Sex

• Gender, role, and sex are all categorized under the umbrella of human sexuality.

Sex

• The combination of sex chromosomes which are XX chromosomes for females and XY chromosomes for males determines a series of features.
• Physical, anatomical, and physiological characteristics distinguish an individual as masculine or feminine.
• These characteristics are influenced by sex hormones produced in the ovaries and testicles.

Hormonal Changes

• In most males, facial and pubic hair appears, and the voice deepens, and individuals have mood swings and acne.
• In most females, public hair appears, their breasts grow, they get their menstruation cycle, and experience mood swings as well as acne.

Gender

• Gender refers to the set of differentiated characteristics that each individual exhibits.
• Gender also encompasses identity-related aspects resulting from human relationships.

Role

• Also known as "gender roles".
• Gender roles can be considered the historically established activities, behaviors, practices, and customs traditionally expected of women or men.

Male Stereotypes

• Mass media associates the role of men with being providers.
• Men are expected to be strong, competitive, rational, brave, inexpressive, dominant, and independent with a tendency towards violent behavior.

Female Stereotypes

• Mass media associates the role of women with motherhood.
• Women are associated with domestic work, and expected to care for others, be affectionate, sensitive, sentimental, intuitives, and good.

Communication and Setting Limits

• Communication and setting limits are important in human dynamics.

Communication.

• It serves as an act of relationship between two subjects, by which a common meaning is evoked.
• Communication requires a signifier which represents it mentally.
• Communication requires a signifier: a word, a gesture, an smell, or a texture of meaning.

Affective Communication

• Affective Communication allows the transmission of feelings to others generating empathy and positive emotions.

Setting limits

• Limits are a group of expectations and needs that help individuals feel safe and comfortable in their interpersonal relationships.
• There are physical, time, emotional, and communication limits.

Inability to set limits

• Creates stress, anxiety, abuse and manipulation
• Can cause conflicts, misunderstandings, and loss of identity.

Benefits of setting limits

• Communication improves, respect increases, stress is reduced.
• Autonomy improves.

Assertiveness

• It is defined as the appropriate expression of emotions in relationships, without anxiety or aggressions.
• Assertiveness merges what you want with what others want.

Relationships.

• Affective relationships consist of emotional connections that are developed with other people.
• This includes family ties, friendships, and romantic relationships

Family versus Friendships

• Family is chosen, whereas friendships are not.

Couple Relationships.

• A couple relationship is a romantic sentimental bond that unites two people.
• The relationship may be courtship, cohabitation or marriage.

What is consent?

• It is an agreement between a woman and a man to share new experiences in an affective relationship.
• Consent is fundamental to establishing healthy and respectful bonds, and must adhere certain standards.
• Consent must be free, informed, concrete, reversible, and enthusiastic.

Affective Responsibility

• Be able to express the needs and emotions respecting those of the other.
• Awareness that what say and do has an impact on others.
• Bonds that are established imply mutual care.

Statistics

• 35% of Mexican adolescents don't understand the concept of sexual consent.
• 7 out of 10 women 15 years of age or older, have suffered some physical or sexual violations by their partner.
• 13.6% attended an institution or authority to seek help.

Autonomy of The Body

• Consists of having the power and the capacity to decide about of future bodies as well as the ability to make a family.
• Allows an individual to have freedom without violence or coercion to decide about their bodies.