In a sociological aspect, men are perceived as the provider and women as part of the domestic world. Through the decades, however, we see the evolution of men and women's function in the society. There is a bridge closing the gap between women and men's role in different fields. Women are seen sharing seats in the government, excelling in corporate world and succeeding in different areas.
Aside from freedom of choice, we are also restrained by inherent factors of being a man or a woman, thus limiting us with physiological and psychological capacity.
Physically, men are generally taller, has more body hair, with thicker and oilier skin than women. On the other hand, women have smaller waist than their hips and on average their skin is 3-4% lighter than men. Scientists believe this is an adaptation required for increased production of Vitamin D during pregnancy. Vitamin D is necessary to help the body absorb calcium and deposit it in the bones of fast growing embryos. By having lighter skin more of the sun's UV radiation can penetrate the skin to and increase their ability to produce vitamin D
Health wise, girls begin puberty approximately two years before boys. Women have lower blood pressure than men and their heart beats faster even when they are asleep. On the average, men possess 50% more power or brute strength than women because 40% of men's body weight is muscle while only 23% is for women.
In addition, female fertility declines after mid thirties and ends with menopause while men are capable of fathering children into old age. Men typically produce billions of sperm each month, many of which are capable of fertilization while women typically produce one egg a month that can be fertilized into an embryo. Thus during a lifetime men are able to father a significantly greater number of children than women can give birth to.
Emotionally speaking, men and women deal with it in different ways. Men are generally aggressive while women are more naturally nurturing...
It is a common belief that men are less emotional than women and more inclined in logic and reason when dealing with decisions and every day life. Women, on the other hand, are more in tuned with their emotions like happiness, sadness and fear. They also express anxiety and depression feeling than men. Men appear adept at maximizing their hostility and anger, and at minimizing emotions to do with vulnerability, guilt, fear and hurt. These emotional dealings are because men and women are controlled by different areas of the brain. The DNA of the male and female form a different base upon which experience falls. Our genetic makeup causes information to be stored in a slightly different manner, integrated in a slightly different way, interacting internally in a different way... all sufficient to produce the observed psychological differences.
The theories on gender differences may have strong inclination on one aspect from the other.
Each has a basis to strengthen their model premise in the field of gender differences. However, there are always exceptions and nothing is absolute. Aspect in physiology, psychology as well as influence in the society contributes on the honing and development of an individual and free will is what makes a person unique from each other.
Bibliography
Kay Bussy & Albert Bandura. (1999). Social Cognitive Theory of Gender Development and Differentiation. Retrieved April 28, 2007 from http://www.des.emory.edu/mfp/Bandura1999PR.pdf
Theory of Cognitive Development. (2007). Retrieved April 28, 2007 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piaget's_theory
Theories of Gender II - Social/Environmental Theoies. Retrieved April 27, 2007 from http://psych.fullerton.edu/rlippa/gender/Gend_outline4.htm
Huitt, W., & Hummel, J. (2003). Piaget's theory of cognitive development. Educational Psychology Interactive. Retrieved April 28, 2007 from http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/cogsys/piaget.html
