Male and Female Differences in Paired Associate Learning - Term Paper Example

? Topic: Male and Female Differences in Paired Associate Learning Psychology [School Affiliation Male and Female Differences in Paired Associate Learning Abstract: A study has been carried out to test and evaluate the paired associate learning capacities in male and female subjects. The focus of the study is to observe the differences in the memory skills and the estimated time taken to memorize the given words. Research shows that females are slightly better than males in this aspect (Youngjohn, Larrabee & Crook III, 1991). While at the other hand many case studies and experiments have consistently shown that there is no sex difference involved in this type of learning behavior (Maccoby & Jacklin, 1978). The subjects involved in this experiment are all 50 years old; they are divided into two categories on the basis of their gender as the main aim of the study being carried is to differentiate the pattern of paired association learning between male and female subjects. The female subjects are placed in Group A and the male subjects are placed in Group B respectively. This study is carried out by the help of index cards. The subjects have to memorize the word pairs so their ability of recalling the word pairs can be evaluated. Afterwards they are shown one part of the word pair and asked to reproduce the other pair of word from their memory and write it down. This procedure is repeated until they get all the words right. The time taken to recall all the words correctly and the number of turns the subjects take to write the correct pair of words is recorded. The results of the differences of male and female subjects are calculated, which conclude that males are better in paired associated learning as compared to female subjects. An Analysis of Male and Female Differences in Paired Associate Learning The Paired Associate method is a widely used method for studying learning in human beings. It is often abbreviated with PA or PAL. It is a method of learning which involves the memorization of a pair of words. The presentation of one item or word results in the recalling of the other item and word associated with it. It is an example of associative type of learning (Maccoby & Jacklin, 1978). At times the subject is given certain symbols present in the form of pairs along with the words to better enhance their paired associative memory. The first word or symbol is given to the subject so that s/he can associate it with its paired word and give out or write down its pairing word. Studying of foreign languages can be made easy by using this technique as one syllable or word can evoke the recalling of the other syllable or word directly associated with it. The matching of names and faces with each other is a live example of paired associate learning as the presentation of one immediately recalls the other. This behavior can be honed by practice so repeated learning is a very important task in paired associate learning. As this type of learning is an example of associative learning, according to Broverman Hypothesis it falls under the category of Female skills. This means that female subjects are better at PAL as they can recall the paired words more easily and in a less amount of time as compared to male subjects of the same age. This can be explained in the terms that female subjects used elaborative strategies in order to recall the paired words; thus this made them better at PAL than the males. But after a while the male subjects started using those elaborative strategies as well, so the overall results of PAL tests show no sex difference and it is rendered oblivious to gender differences (Youngjohn, Larrabee & Crook III, 1991). On the other hand, in this study, all results show that male subjects have performed better than female subjects. This proposes that the male subjects involved in this study perhaps used more elaborated strategies as compared to the female subjects. Their elaborate strategies helped them recall elaborated and high frequency words better than the females. This could also be a result of the age of the subjects Women above the age of 40 are more likely to develop health problems than men of the same age. Female subjects are more prone to diseases like Arthritis, Alzheimer, and Amnesia. This is because of the reason that the process of degeneration starts earlier in the female body as compared to men. The degeneration of brain cells is also faster in older women, so when candidates who are aged 50 or above are taken as subjects, it is more likely for the male subjects to perform better, even if this opposes the previous research carried out in this area as those involve younger subjects. Method: Subjects: The subjects in this study are males and females aged 50; they are 8 in number. They are placed in 2 separate groups in order to study the gender difference. Procedure: The procedure for any study requires materials and instructions. Materials: A set of index cards is used for carrying out this experiment. There are 20 words altogether so the index cards are numbered 1-20. Instructions: The subjects were presented with all 20 words in sets of 2. The pairs of words were not placed in the same order in every trial, so that the subjects would not memorize the order from the last trial. They were shown each word afterwards, and they were supposed to write down its pair word, recalling it from their memory. They were timed during this activity, and it was repeated until the subjects could evoke all word pairs correctly. The time taken to memorize the word pairs and the number of turns involved were also recorded. Results: The results show that male subjects performed significantly better than the female subjects. The individual and mean results of male subjects are higher than those of females’; this concludes that males of age 50 have better paired associate learning skills than females of the same age. Group A (Females) Group B (Males) 1 After 4 times got all words –1 min, 20 sec After 3 times got all words -50.2 sec. 2 After 6 times got all words- 2 min 10 sec After 3 times got all words- 25.4 sec. 3 After 4 times got all words- 58 sec After 2 times got all words- 27 sec. 4 After 8 times got all words- 1 min 26 sec After 3 times got all words- 42 sec 5 After 9 times got all words – 3 min 21 sec After 4 times got all words- 30 sec 6 After 5 times got all words -2 min 36 sec After 3 times got all words- 36 sec. 7 After 8 times got all words – 4 min 46 sec After 4 times got all words- 27 sec. 8 After 9 times got all words- 3 min 21 sec After 2 times got all words- 32.2 sec Discussion: 1. Sources of error: Possible deviation from the previous research conducted in the same area could have been because of the variation in the ages of the subjects. The subjects of previous research were mainly children, teenagers or adults about the age of mid-twenties to thirties. This study has been conducted with subjects aged 50; this major age difference could have been the reason for the difference in the results. 2. Agreement with Hypothesis and predictions: The hypothesis given by Boverman includes PAL as a female skill while this study shows opposite results. But the hypothesis which is proposed in the analysis suggests that 50 year old men are more mentally capable of learning through paired associate method than females of the same age which supports the results. 3. Carrying the study again: Carrying out the study again with male and female subjects of different age groups will test and prove the above mentioned hypothesis, so doing it again will be helpful in the better understanding of gender differences in PAL, but there will be no need of increasing the number of subjects involved. References: Maccoby, E. E., & Jacklin, C. N. (1978). The psychology of sex differences. (Vol. 1, p.44) Stanford University Press Youngjohn, J. R., Larrabee, G. J., & Crook III, T. H. (1991). First-last names and the grocery list selective reminding test: Two computerized measures of everyday verbal learning. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 6, 287-300. Read More