Public policy implications of sex differences in cognitive abilities

Well-publicized reports that females and males obtain different average scores on some tests of cognitive abilities have created a wide array of public policy issues. Recent advances in understanding the way one's sexual organs and brain are formed allow the possibility of altering the sex of a developing fetus, a specter that raises profound ethical questions. Social-psychological research shows that negative stereotypes about academically stigmatized groups can depress the performance of members of these groups on cognitive tests, without their conscious awareness. The detrimental effect of negative stereotypes suggests that renewed efforts to alter negative stereotypes would reduce the performance differential between groups, but effective efforts to alter stereotypes could require a social revolution because they are so deeply ingrained in our society. Sex differences in cognitive abilities is a volatile topic that seems to be increasingly explosive because of the high stakes that are attached to the way these issues are resolved.