Gender Differences
in Brain Wiring—
Connectomes
Arlene R. Taylor PhD
Brain References
www.arlenetaylor.org
www.LLM.life
8-20-16
Conflict
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Conflict happens everywhere and it
Is expensive —
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Home: contributes to illness, disease, stress,
violence, addictions, divorce, murder . . .
Schools and churches: burns out personnel
and triggers misunderstandings . . .
Workplace: managers spend 18% of
their time managing employee conflicts . . .
—US State News; August 19, 2006
‘Conflict Between Gentlemen’ cartoon
Punch Magazine 1853
Contributors
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Two main contributors to conflict involve:
• Low levels of Emotional Intelligence or EQ
Successful managers tend to have high levels
of EQ, while less successful managers often
have high IQ but low EQ
• Misunderstanding of gender brain differences
Learning about gender brain differences and
practically applying what you learn can
minimize cross-gender conflict
Gender Differences
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Are represented by the
foundational layer on
the ‘Who I Am Pyramid’
Gender differences
are here to stay—
You can collaborate
and have fun with
them or be
frustrated/miserable
‘Who I Am Pyramid’
Typical Gender Differences
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Psychological and behavioral testing have
consistently indicated differences between male
and female abilities to perform specific tasks
Males typically outperform females in some tasks
and females generally outperform males in
others—although some females outperform some
males and some males outperform some females
These studies have resulted in a number of
generalizations
Bell-Curve of Distribution
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Researched conclusions are often
presented as bell-curve generalizations that
typically apply to about 2/3 of the population
•
Of the remaining 1/3, some people resemble the
data even more closely and some less closely
•
Exceptions reflect individual uniqueness and do
not invalidate the research
•
Sometimes there are more differences within a
gender than between them
Diffusion Tensor Imaging
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Diffusion Tensor Imaging or DTI is
a new brain-scanning technique
that measures the flow of water
along a nerve-axon pathway

Axon
This outlines the path of myelinated
axons that facilitate the long-range
conduction of electro-chemical signals—
part of the brain's white matter, higher amounts
may be found in the right cerebral hemisphere and
in the corpus callosum
DTI Results Create a Connectome
www.ArleneTaylor.org
A connectome is a neural map that
shows whether and how one region
of the brain is physically
connected to another region
DTI studies have established the level of
connectivity between nearly 100 regions of the
brain—no surprise, they have shown significant
differences in connectivity patterns between male
and female brains
—Ragini Verma and Rubin Gur
Pennsylvania University
Male Brain Connectome
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Most of the connections in a typical male brain
run between the front and the back of the same
side of the brain
The only part of the
brain where left-right
connectivity was greater
in males (than in females)
was in the cerebellum that
is linked with motor control
Male Brain Connectome
This could account for better:
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Spatial skills
Motor (muscle) control
Map reading
Direction finding
Vehicle driving
Translating perception to
motor skills as in some sports
Female Brain Connectome
www.ArleneTaylor.org
More of the connections in a typical female brain
run from side to side between the left and right
hemispheres of the brain
Female brains showed
many more
Interconnections than
In the male brain—
especially between
the left and right
frontal lobes of
the brain
Female Brain Connectome
www.ArleneTaylor.org
This could account for better:
 Verbal skills
 Intuitive abilities
 Memory test results
(recalling words and
remembering faces)
 Social cognition test results
(attempting to measure
empathy and EQ skills)
Connectome Comparison
—Ragini Verma PhD
Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences
Energy Expenditures
www.ArleneTaylor.org
If any part of the brain
is ‘on’ it’s all ‘on’ so
takes more energy to
run second for second
Metaphorically, spends
more time on the
‘highway’ due to
corpus callosum size
and brain style
Two hemispheres are
somewhat independent –
one idles while the other
works – so it takes less
energy to run overall
Metaphorically, spends
less time on the
‘highway’
Emotions
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Joy is aligned with
the L. Hemisphere
Usually language
is loaded in the
L. Hemisphere
regardless of
handedness
Tend to talk-out
and express emotions
Three protective
emotions
(anger, fear,
sadness) are
aligned with the
R. Hemisphere
Tend to act-out
their emotions
Driving
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Fewer accidents
per miles driven
14% more accidents
per miles driven
Less skillful drivers
overall…
More skillful drivers
overall...
More tentative/cautious
in driving style –
tend to see better at
night
Tend to act out emotions
in exhibition of speed –
tend to see better in
daylight
Gender and Language
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Tend to start a discussion
by asking a question
Speak a language
of connection and
suggestion
Female speech
contains an
underlying
metamessage
More likely to just
answer a question
than ask one
Speak a concrete
and directive
language
Male speech has
no underlying
metamessage
Coming To a Conclusion
www.ArleneTaylor.org
When faced with a decision, it takes about the same
amount of time for male and female brains to come
to a conclusion – they get there very differently
Process verbally and
aloud—unless they
have been shamed
for what their brain
does most
efficiently—the first
think they say is not
their conclusion
Process silently
and internally and
only want to speak
aloud when they
have arrived at
their conclusion—
unless prodded to
do so too early
Here to Stay!
www.ArleneTaylor.org
Gender brain differences are not good or bad,
desirable or undesirable, right or wrong; they are
what they are and you can make your life easier or
more difficult by your response to the differences
Increased knowledge can trigger
positive communication and
collaboration—and it can
be so much fun!
The End