FRHD 2100 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Paramesonephric Duct, X Chromosome, Inguinal Canal

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Family Relations and Human Development
• Course: FRHD 2100
• Professor: Tuuli Kukkonen

Document Summary

Gender: the psychological state of being male or female, as influenced by cultural concepts of gender appropriate behavior. Gender is distinct from anatomic sex , which is based on the physical differences between females and males. Gender typing: the process by which children acquire behaviors deemed appropriate for their sex. Sex differentiation: the process by which males and females develop distinct reproductive anatomy. If the sperm carries and x, the baby is a girl with xx, or if the sperm carries y, the baby is a boy with xy. At 5-6 weeks the embryonic structures of both genders develop along similar lines, resembling female structures. At about the 7th week the genetic code (xx or xy) begins to assert itself, causing changed in the gonads, genital ducts and external genitals: genetic activity on the y chromosome causes testes to differentiate. The basic blueprint of the human embryo is female.