| Gender is the most common and pervasive method of categorizing people. Although lay conceptions of gender place people into distinctly separate types, it is unlikely that men and women are qualitatively different in most psychological variables. To examine this further, sex differences in a wide range of variables were examined with taxometric analyses to determine whether gender is a taxonic or dimensional construct. Constructs examined included interpersonal relationship characteristics (sexual attitudes and behaviors, mate selectivity, Sociosexual Orientation, intimacy, attachment, relationship concerns), personality (empathy, masculinity, femininity, unmitigated communion, care orientation, fear of success, Big 5), and academic cognitions (usefulness of, importance of doing well in, enjoyment of, and ability in math, science, English, and foreign language; success and failure attributions in math and English). Physiological characteristics (physical strength and anthropometric measurements) were included for comparison purposes. Taxometric methods used were MAXCOV, MAXEIG, MAMBAC, and L-Mode. The physiological constructs, mate selectivity, and empathy were taxonic. Physiology was divided by sex, a subset of women were high in empathy, and a small subset of both men and women were low in mate selectivity. Therefore, gender should largely be considered a dimensional construct. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. |
