Sex beyond the genitalia: The human brain mosaic

Significance Sex/gender differences in the brain are of high social interest because their presence is typically assumed to prove that humans belong to two distinct categories not only in terms of their genitalia, and thus justify differential treatment of males and females. Here we show that, although there are sex/gender differences in brain and behavior, humans and human brains are comprised of unique “mosaics” of features, some more common in females compared with males, some more common in males compared with females, and some common in both females and males. Our results demonstrate that regardless of the cause of observed sex/gender differences in brain and behavior (nature or nurture), human brains…

• NS
  National Science Foundation

  Award: P01-HD31921
• HU
  Harvard University
• WU
  Washington University in St. Louis
• UO
  University of Rochester
• IF
  Institute for Quantitative Social Science, Harvard University
• EC
  European Commission

  Award: 27731
• SN
  Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung

  Awards: 20030B-138668, 320030B-138668, 4-62341-05, 320030-120661, 27731, 138668, 120661, 320030
• GS
  Gillings School of Public Health
• UO
  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  Award: P01-HD31921
• NI
  National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

  Award: P01-HD31921
• EK
  Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

  Award: P01-HD31921