Ch. 4- 6 Glossary Terms

Front 1

androgen insensitivity syndrome

Back 1

a disorder in which body cells are unable to respond to androgens, resulting in the feminization of chromosomal males.

Front 2

androgens

Back 2

a class of hormones that includes testosterone and other steroid hormones. Men typically produce a greater proportion of androgens than estrogens.

Front 3

androgyny

Back 3

a blending of masculinity and femininity, in which the desirable characteristics associated with both men and women are combined within individuals.

Front 4

congenital adrenal hyperplasia (AKA adrenogenital syndrome)

Back 4

a disorder that results in masculinization, producing premature puberty in boys and masculinization of the external genitalia in girls.

Front 5

endocrine glands

Back 5

glands that secrete hormones into the circulatory system.

Front 6

estradiol

Back 6

the most common of the estrogen hormones.

Front 7

estrogens

Back 7

a class of hormones that includes estradiol and other steroid hormones. Women typically produce a greater proportion of estrogens than androgens.

Front 8

external genitalia

Back 8

the reproductive structures that can be seen without internal examination: clitoris, labia, and vaginal opening in women and penis and scrotum in men.

Front 9

follicle–stimulating hormone (FSH)

Back 9

the gonadotropic hormone that stimulates development of gonads during puberty and development of ova during the years of women's fertility.

Front 10

gonads

Back 10

reproductive organs.

Front 11

hermaphroditism

Back 11

a disorder in which individuals have characteristics of both sexes.

Front 12

hormones

Back 12

chemical substances released from endocrine glands that circulate throughout the body and affect target organs that have receptors sensitive to the specific hormones.

Front 13

internal genitalia

Back 13

the internal reproductive organs, consisting of the ovaries, Fallopian tubes, uterus, and upper vagina in women; and testes, seminal vesicles, vas deferens, and prostate gland in men.

Front 14

intersexuality

Back 14

a more modern term for hermaphroditism.

Front 15

Klinefelter syndrome

Back 15

the disorder that occurs when a chromosomal male has an extra X chromosome, resulting in the XXY pattern of chromosome pair 23. These individuals have the appearance of males, including external genitalia, but they may also develop breasts and a feminized body shape. Their testes are not capable of producing sperm, so they are sterile.

Front 16

lateralization

Back 16

the concept that the two cerebral hemispheres are not functionally equal but rather that each hemisphere has different purposes.

Front 17

luteininzing lormone (LH)

Back 17

the gonadotropic hormone that prompts secual development during puberty and causes a maturing oum to be released.

Front 18

menarche

Back 18

the first menstruation.

Front 19

Müllerian system

Back 19

a system of ducts occurring in both male and female embryos that forms the basis for the development of the female internal reproductive system—ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, and upper vagina.

Front 20

pituitary gland

Back 20

an endocrine gland within the brain that produces tropic hormones that stimulate other glands to produce yet other hormones.

Front 21

progestins

Back 21

a group of steroid hormones that prepares the female body for pregnancy; their function for the male body is unknown.

Front 22

releasing hormones

Back 22

hormones produced by the hypothalamus that act on the pituitary to release tropic hormones.

Front 23

Sexual dimorphism

Back 23

the existence of two sexes— male and female— including differences in genetics, gonads, hormones, internal genitalia, and external genitalia.

Front 24

sexually dimorphic nucleus (SDN)

Back 24

a brain structure in the hypothalamus, near the optic chiasm, that is larger in male rats than in female rats and larger in men than in women.

Front 25

spinal nucleus of the bulbocavemosus

Back 25

a collection of neurons in the lower spinal cord that control muscles at the base of the penis.

Front 26

steroid hormones

Back 26

hormones related to sexual dimorphism and sexual reproduction that are derived from cholesterol and consist of a structure that includes four carbon rings.

Front 27

testosterone

Back 27

the most common of the androgen hormones.

Front 28

tropic hormones

Back 28

hormones produced by the pituitary gland that influence the release of other hormones by other glands, such as the gonads.

Front 29

Turner syndrome

Back 29

the disorder that occurs when an individual has only one chromosome of pair 23, one X chromosome. These individuals appear to be female (have the external genitalia of females) but do not have fully developed internal genitalia. They do not produce estrogens, do not undergo puberty, and are not fertile.

Front 30

Wolffian system

Back 30

a system of ducts occurring in both male and female embryos that forms the basis for the development of the male internal reproductive system—testes, seminal vesicles, and vas deferens.

Front 31

X chromosomes

Back 31

one of the possible alternatives for chromosome pair 23. Two X chromosomes make a genetic female, whereas genetic males have only one X chromosome in pair 23.

Front 32

Y chromosome

Back 32

one of the possible alternatives for chromosome pair 23. One X and one Y chromosome make a genetic male, whereas genetic females have two X chromosomes in pair 23.

Front 33

Castration Complex

Back 33

in Freudian theory, the unconscious fear that the father will castrate his son as a punishment for the son's sexual longings for his mother.

Front 34

Gender Constancy

Back 34

the knowledge that gender is a permanent characteristic and will not change with superficial alterations.

Front 35

Gender Identity

Back 35

individual identification of self as male or female.

Front 36

Gender Labeling

Back 36

the ability to label self and others as male or female

Front 37

Gender Role

Back 37

a set of socially significant activities associated with being male or female.

Front 38

Instincts

Back 38

In Freudian theory, the drives or impulses that underlie action, thought or other aspects of personality functioning, which include the life, or sexual, instinct, or the death, or aggressive, instinct.

Front 39

Masochism

Back 39

Feelings of pleasure as a result of painful or humiliating experiences

Front 40

Oedipus Complex

Back 40

in Freudian theory, the situation that exists during the phallic stage in which the child feels the unconscious sexual hostility towards the same–sex parent and unconscious sexual feelings for the opposite sex parent. Freud used this to explain the family dynamics that occur during the phallic stage of personality development.

Front 41

Operant Conditioning

Back 41

A type of learning based on the administration of reinforcement or punishment. Receiving reinforcement links the reinforcement with the behaviour that preceded it, making the behaviour more likely to be repeated.

Front 42

Pre–Oedipal Period

Back 42

Time during early childhood, before the phallic stage and the Oedipus complex. Some psychoanalytic theorists, including Chodorow, have emphasized the importance of this period for personality development.

Front 43

Psycho–sexual Stages

Back 43

In Freudian theory, the series of stages ranging from birth to maturity through which the individuals personality develops.

Front 44

Punishment

Back 44

any stimulus that decreases the probability that a beheavior will be repeated.

Front 45

Reinforcement

Back 45

any stimulus that increases the probability that a beheavior will be repeated

Front 46

Schema

Back 46

an internal cognitive structure that organizes information and guides perception.

Front 47

Unconscious

Back 47

in Freudian theory, a region of the mind functioning beyond a person's conscious awareness.

Front 48

5 Psycho–Sexual Stages

Back 48

Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency,and Genital

Front 49

Gender Constancy

Back 49

the knowledge that gender is a permanent characteristic and will not change with superficial alterations.

Front 50

Gender Identity

Back 50

individual identification of self as male or female.

Front 51

Gender Identity Disorder

Back 51

a disorder that occurs when a child rejects the gender role that corresponds to biological sex and adopts cross-gender behaviors and possibly a cross-gender identity.

Front 52

Synthesized Realism

Back 52

a mixture of actual information with phony details into a realistic portrayal that is really fiction

Front 53

Transsexual

Back 53

an individual who receives hormonal and surgical treatment to be changed to the other sex.