Truth About Girls and Boys:

¶ … Truth about Girls and Boys: Challenging Toxic Stereotypes about Our

Children. Caryl Rivers

Press, 2011).

Major Conceptual Framework

The major conceptual framework of the authors is that all of the so-called "scientific" research purporting to support a biological basis for the observed behavioral differences in males and females is fatally flawed. According to the authors, the empirical research represents a mix of biased assumptions, biased formats, and biased data interpretation to support the a-priori beliefs of researchers that a biological basis exists for observed differences in the comparative behavior of the genders. They present various peer-reviewed empirical studies and examine the manner in which different types of biases, error, and deliberate obfuscation of data are responsible for the conclusions that males and females are inherently predisposed to different perceptions, reactions, relative abilities, talents, and interests.

More specifically, the authors provide undeniable evidence that studies purporting to support the theory of gender essentialism reflect flawed sampling and methodological designs, "cherry-picked" data, inaccurate generalizations, unsupported conclusions, conclusions clearly contradictory to the data, and even deliberately fudged data, citations, and supposed citations for conclusions that, on examination of the primary sources, actually have no genuine relevance to the argument.

Arguments

The principal argument of the authors is simply that the observed differences in the perceptions, reactions, relative abilities, talents, and interests of males and females (particularly in childhood) are almost entirely functions of social learning, environmental conditioning, and the satisfaction of expectations and external influences. When the authors reviewed brain imaging scans and related data from the realm of neurobiology, they determined that there are no characteristic differences in brain anatomy as between male and female infants and that any differences that are observable later in life are the product of external influence, such as encouragement to engage in certain types of play and social interactions.

The authors, (one of whom is a neurologist) demonstrate that instead of physiology determining behavior in relation to apparent gender differences, the precise opposite is true: namely, external social influence shapes behavior and those differences in behavior contribute to any observed differences in neuro-anatomy and neuro-physiology. In principle, it is the exact same phenomenon that accounts for the way learning particular types of skills and emphasizing particular kinds of social interactions have been empirically demonstrated to stimulate characteristic changes in human brains.