The Essential Difference Simon Baron-Cohen
The Essential Difference: Men, Women and the Extreme Male Brain by Simon Baron-Cohen , Perseus Books, (March 4, 2004). ISBN:0738208442
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Probably the best book on male/female brain differences.
Quote from book: "The female brain is predominantly hard-wired for empathy. The male brain is predominantly hard-wired for understanding and building systems." Baron-Cohen makes the disclaimer that his conclusions refer to statistical majorities rather than "all men" and "all women". His evidence ranges from the anecdotal to the anthropological, and from the neurological to the case study (many conducted by his research team). Is the music-classifying habits of Nick Hornby's heroes confirmation of the male brain's predisposition to systems-building? Read this book to find out.
Male rats navigate their way through mazes more easily than female rats, supporting the commonly accepted idea that men are better at directions than women. He suggests the male brain co-opted traits like power and leadership, leaving the female brain with gossip and motherhood. The most refreshing section of this volume is devoted to "extreme" male brain-autism and Asperger's syndrome. He suggests autistics can feel strong emotion, but have low levels of empathy, which makes it hard for them to relate to other people. Autistics need to understand "how things work" which leads them away from the intimacy women have with others and make them likely to become "loners". They can become the butt of teasing or hostility at their "withdrawn" state. If lacking compensation in other areas, such as a vocation that allows them to apply a narrow focus to tasks, they risk ostracism from society. Baron-Cohen offers an exceptional case of a mathematician whose genius brought him high awards, but who may fail to keep a lunch date due to some distraction.
Newborns shown a photograph of a face, or an object composed of facial elements resulted in girls preferring the face while the boys tended to select the object. Girls respond to distress in other people more readily than do boys. They will make eye contact with others more readily. He is keen to have readers begin to rethink how society should deal with those suffering from autism [Asperger's Syndrome]. He calls for a greater tolerance for "coldness" or "lack of sympathy". Self assessment is a good place to start building that tolerance.
This concludes the review of:
- The Essential Difference: Men, Women and the Extreme Male Brain by Simon Baron-Cohen