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Sex differences in attention are present at birth, study finds

cam.ac.uk · 3h · first reportShare

Sex differences in attention are present at birth, study finds Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 09/21/2026 - 10:00 The findings suggest that some psychological differences between males and females (such the development of social skills) may be influenced by both prenatal biology as well as later experience. The study, published today in Biology of Sex Differences , involved testing 130 newborn infants only hours after birth. It builds on previous research by the same lab and uses robust methods to demonstrate the differences. For years, research has shown that girls, on average, learn to talk earlier and develop social skills faster than boys. Scientists have long debated whether these differences are due to culture or biology. One way to answer this question is to test if sex differences are present soon after birth, before society and culture have influenced a child’s development. A study from the University of Cambridge published in 2000 found girls at birth on average looked longer a