Findings could help guide more nuanced approaches in medical contexts for equal access to optimal treatment outcomes based on sex and gender.
Neuroscientists Elvisha Dhamala and her team discovered distinct brain network patterns associated with sex and gender in young people based on functional brain imaging data.
Sex seemed to overlap with visual processing, motor control and sensory processing regions, as well as some executive function. Gender appeared to relate more broadly to executive function and possibly impact networks that support attention and social cognition.
In a groundbreaking study published in the journal Science Advances, neuroscientists Elvisha Dhamala and her team from the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research and Zucker Hillside Hospital discovered distinct brain network patterns associated with sex and gender in young people based on functional brain imaging data from 4,757 children in the United States.
The researchers used predictive modeling to determine whether patterns of brain network connectivity could identify each participant's sex assigned at birth with high accuracy. They found that sex seemed to overlap with visual processing, motor control and sensory processing regions, as well as some executive function. Gender appeared to relate more broadly to executive function and possibly impact networks that support attention and social cognition.
Dhamala plans to build upon this work and study these relationships throughout the life span. The team's findings could help guide more nuanced approaches in medical contexts, ensuring equal access to optimal treatment outcomes for individuals based on their sex and gender.
It is important to note that while this study provides valuable insights into the relationship between sex, gender, and brain networks in young people, it has limitations. The researchers relied on a single snapshot of one stage of life and involved participants from only one country. Future work is needed to investigate how these effects may vary in different sociocultural environments.
Sources:
Science Advances: Study Associates Sex and Gender with Distinct Brain Network Patterns
Newsweek: Neuroscientists Reveal Key Brain Differences Between Sex and Gender
A new study of nearly 5000 9- and 10-year-olds found that sex and gender map onto largely distinct parts of the brain.
The researchers defined sex as what was assigned to the child at birth based on genitalia, while gender was defined as an individual’s attitude, feelings and behaviors, as well as socially constructed roles.
Sex seemed to influence different regions of the brain involved in visual processing, sensory processing, motor control, and some regions involved in executive function.
Gender seemed to have a broader influence on different brain networks involved in attention, social cognition, emotional processing.
Accuracy
]A new study of nearly 5000 9- and 10-year-olds found that sex and gender map onto largely distinct parts of the brain.[
Deception
(50%)
The author makes editorializing statements and uses emotional manipulation by implying that there is a need to 'consider both sexes and genders separately' due to the belief that most people equate sex and gender. The author also uses selective reporting by only mentioning the findings of the study without providing context about any potential limitations or implications beyond their own interpretation.
The fact that we’re able to capture how gender maps onto the brain basically just tells us that gender is influencing our brain.
The research gives a first insight into how sex and gender may have ‘measurable and unique influences’ on the brain, study authors said, just as other experiences have been shown to shape the brain.
Moving forward, we really need to consider both sexes and genders separately if we better want to understand the brain.
Fallacies
(95%)
There are no explicit logical fallacies in the article. The author presents research findings without injecting their own opinions or making appeals to authority. There is a clear distinction between the author's assertions and those of the study authors. However, since it is a report on research, there are some inherent dichotomous depictions (e.g., sex vs gender). The score is reduced by 5% due to this necessary dichotomy.
Sex and gender are often conflated or equated in everyday conversations...
The researchers defined sex as what was assigned to the child at birth...
Gender seems to influence some of the more sensory-specific networks that are associated with sex, but it also seems to have a broader influence and can be detected on different brain networks involved in executive function...
Researchers used artificial intelligence to analyze data from MRI scans of thousands of children and found that they could predict a study participant’s sex or gender by looking at how brain regions interacted with one another.
The patterns of connections that predicted sex were more likely to involve regions of the brain involved in vision, sensory processing, regulating movement, and planning and decision-making.
The authors found that brain networks associated with sex were not the same as those associated with gender.
Accuracy
Sex seemed to influence different regions of the brain involved in visual processing, sensory processing, motor control, and some regions involved in executive function.
The networks associated with gender differences were largely different from those associated with sex differences.
Sex is shaped by chromosomes, genes, hormones and other biological systems.
Gender is shaped by cultural ideas about what it means to be a man, woman or nonbinary person.
Accuracy
Sex is largely determined by chromosomes, genes, hormones and other biological systems.
The findings demonstrate the importance of considering the social impact of gender in neuroscience research.
Sex seemed to influence different regions of the brain involved in visual processing, sensory processing, motor control, and some regions involved in executive function.
Gender seemed to have a broader influence on different brain networks involved in attention, social cognition, emotional processing.
Deception
(50%)
The article makes several statements that imply facts without providing peer-reviewed studies to back them up. For example, the author states 'This means that differences between the brains of people who are assigned male or female at birth are often taken as reflections of biological differences when they could very well be the result of how each group is treated based on cultural expectations.' and 'The influence of being treated as a woman or as a man in our society is ignored in neuroscience research.' These statements imply that there is scientific evidence to support them, but no studies are cited. Additionally, the author uses emotional manipulation by stating 'It's important to understand because gender-related differences in the brain could impact how psychiatric disorders manifest across the gender spectrum.' This statement creates a sense of urgency and importance without providing any concrete evidence.
The influence of being treated as a woman or as a man in our society is ignored in neuroscience research.
It's important to understand because gender-related differences in the brain could impact how psychiatric disorders manifest across the gender spectrum.
This means that differences between the brains of people who are assigned male or female at birth are often taken as reflections of biological differences when they could very well be the result of how each group is treated based on cultural expectations.
Fallacies
(95%)
The article contains a few instances of inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to authority but no formal or informal fallacies. The author discusses the importance of considering the social impact of gender in neuroscience research rather than conflating it with physiological sex, which is a valid point. There are also references to scientific studies and experts in the field, which provide credibility to the article's claims.
The influence of being treated as a woman or as a man in our society is ignored in neuroscience research... But we also know that the brain is very plastic, very open to experiences
This is really the first time that it’s shown in such a large dataset that not only sex but also gender is related to the way the brain is wired.
Lara M. Wierenga, a neuroscientist who studies gender differences in brain development at Leiden University in the Netherlands and was not involved in the new research, supports the findings
, Elvisha Dhamala found that sex was more strongly associated with networks involved in motor control, vision, emotions and behavior. Gender was largely distributed through brain regions involved in learning, memory, reasoning and consciousness.
, In a new study published in Science Advances, Dhamala and colleagues explored how sex and gender influence different brain networks using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study with 4,757 participants.
, The team found that sex was more strongly associated with networks involved in motor control, vision, emotions and behavior. Gender was largely distributed through brain regions involved in learning, memory, reasoning and consciousness.
, Dhamala plans to build upon this work and study these relationships throughout the life span.
Accuracy
]Neuroscientists have found distinct neural networks associated with sex and gender.[
Sex is a biological construct based on physical attributes like anatomy and chromosomes.
Gender refers to identity and social and cultural expectations.
A new study published in Science Advances found distinct brain network patterns associated with sex and gender in young people based on functional brain imaging data from 4,757 children in the US.
Elvisha Dhamala, first and corresponding author of the study, stated that sex and gender are different in terms of lived experiences and influence our brain biology.
The researchers used predictive modeling to determine whether patterns of brain network connectivity could identify each participant’s sex assigned at birth with high accuracy.
Sex seems to overlap with visual processing, motor control and sensory processing regions, as well as some executive function. Gender appears to relate more broadly to executive function and possibly impact networks that support attention and social cognition.
The authors noted limitations in their study, including relying on a single snapshot of one stage of life and involving participants from only one country. They called for future work to investigate how sex and gender’s effects may vary in different sociocultural environments.
Accuracy
The patterns of connections that predicted sex were more likely to involve regions of the brain involved in vision, sensory processing, regulating movement, and planning and decision-making.
