Divide of the Sexes: Gender Roles in Childhood
60 Minutes
Why do boys underachieve? How does celebrity culture influence the self-esteem of young girls? In an atmosphere dominated by sex and consumerism, are children growing up too quickly? This program addresses those issues, reporting on a group of 25 eight-year-olds as they adjust to gender roles and expectations. Nathan's parents have gone all out to make sure he grows up without stereotypes-but real life isn't that simple. Rhianna's mother is the breadwinner and childcare provider in the family, while her father spends most of his time drinking. Meanwhile, tomboy Megan has taken an interest in the opposite sex, Helena has embraced her femininity, and Tyrese is displaying male aggression. A BBC/Open University Co-production. Original broadcast title: Divide of the Sexes. Part of the series Child of Our Time 2008. (60 minutes)

Happier Women: 25 Ways to Reduce Stress Video Clip Collection
53 Minutes
Career issues, family crises, and medical problems can create an emotional overload. This collection of 25 video clips offers guidance, reassurance, and useful facts for busy women. With an average clip length of 90 seconds, the collection incorporates mini-case studies and commentary from experts—providing visual support for instructors and counselors who want to reach overworked, overscheduled learners. Topics cover health, parenting, business, and other areas. (52 minutes)

Sexual Stereotypes in the Media
38 Minutes
Categorizing others is a part of human nature, and even as infants we divide the world into two groups-male and female-to help organize our reality. But when these stereotypes are used to make assumptions about a person's character and value, they become gender bias or outright sexism. This program illustrates some of the commercial, cultural, psychological, and sociological forces that have shaped sexual stereotypes in the media, such as demographic segmentation and the selling of gender, the myths of alluring femininity and rugged masculinity, Jungian personality archetypes, consensus reality, stereotype threat, the hegemonic forces of agenda-setting and mainstreaming, body image dysfunctions, and the theory of the male gaze. A Films for the Humanities & Sciences Production. (38 minutes)

HIV & Me: Fear, Ignorance, and Education
60 Minutes
Among new HIV cases, heterosexual patients are the majority-and high-risk behavior appears to be on the rise in many young demographic groups. What does this tell us about evolving attitudes towards AIDS? How do factors such as immigration, cultural tradition, economic disparity, and government inaction come into play? Writer and actor Stephen Fry pushes for answers, infusing this program with equal parts curiosity and outrage. Fry surveys carefree London clubbers about condom use and, traversing the U.K., examines the perception of HIV/AIDS among gays and straights alike. After meeting a British woman infected by her Ghanaian partner, Fry journeys to South Africa to confront that nation's obfuscating AIDS policies. Contains mature themes and occasional explicit language and imagery. (60 minutes)

Rocking the Cradle: Gay Parenting
38 Minutes
Prior to the 1960s, the idea of same-sex parenting had yet to reach the consciousness of most Americans. The majority of gays and lesbians did not even consider parenting, fearing the stigma their children might face. By 2000, however, the U.S. Census Bureau indicates that a full one-third of lesbian couples and roughly a quarter of gay male couples had opted to become parents. This program captures six gay/lesbian families in their day-to-day lives. Two of these families are families by adoption, two are co-parenting families, and two are lesbian families by insemination. Man-on-the-street interviews as well as emotional testimonials from the 15 adults and 11 children featured in this film provide a range of perspectives on gay parenting. A viewable/printable instructor's guide is available online. (38 minutes)

Bully Girls
20 Minutes
Traditionally, bullying has meant physical intimidation and violence-and in the past was considered a problem only among boys. But experts are finding that girls can perpetuate bullying as well, although it often takes place on more subtle or secretive levels. This program focuses on increasing awareness of bullying among girls and educating viewers about how, when, and why it occurs. Understanding the difference between teasing and bullying, identifying specific female bullying techniques and tactics, recognizing warning signals that help is needed, knowing the best ways to report incidents, and getting school officials involved to combat the problem are all subjects thoroughly explored in the video. A viewable/printable instructor's guide is available online. Correlates to all applicable state and national standards. A Meridian Production. (20 minutes)

The Difference Between Men and Women
37 Minutes
Men don't listen. Women can't read maps. Men snore more. Women are less likely to have affairs. Should those statements be dismissed as stereotypes, or can we point to tangible discrepancies-behaviorally and neurologically speaking-along gender lines? This ABC News program explores sex differences and the brain circuitry behind them. Presenting an interview with Dr. Louann Brizendine, author of the controversial book The Female Brain, the program covers such provocative topics as teen brain chemistry and development, the ways that sex is discussed in "mixed company," and the powerful hormones brought on by motherhood. Renowned transgender neurobiologist Ben Barres is also featured. (37 minutes)

Is Feminism Dead?
29 Minutes
Years after the women's movement burst open doors of opportunity that had long been barred, a new generation of women seems to be questioning the meaning and the value of the battles fought by their mothers and grandmothers. Has feminism somehow gone out of style? In this program, Patricia Ireland, of NOW; Phyllis Schlafly, of the Eagle Forum; Ellen Goodman, of The Boston Globe; Dr. bell hooks, of CUNY's English department; Dr. Tessie Liu, of Northwestern University's history and gender identity departments; and Dr. Martha Wharton, of The Ohio State University's departments of African-American studies and women's studies, appraise the women's movement as it currently exists and discuss its relevance in today's cultural climate. (29 minutes)

The Sexes
53 Minutes
From childhood on, biological and social factors combine to shape an individual's sexual identity. In this program, Ruben Gur, Professor of Neuropsychology at the University of Pennsylvania; sociologist Rhoda Reddock, of the University of the West Indies; philosopher Elisabeth Badinter; historians Arlette Farge and Jennifer Stoddart; and others evaluate gender-related behavioral models from a variety of times and places, ranging from ancient Babylon to the contemporary U.S. Other topics include the shifts in female status that have accompanied society's evolution from hunter/gatherers, to farmers, to industrialists. (53 minutes)

Boy or Girl? When Doctors Choose a Child's Sex
15 Minutes
What is to be done when chromosomal abnormalities or an accident leave a baby with what is known as "ambiguous genitalia"? In this program, ABC News correspondent Dr. Nancy Snyderman investigates the once-accepted belief that surgical sex assignment would determine gender in such cases. The studies of Johns Hopkins child psychiatrist William Reiner and pioneering medical researcher Milton Diamond-plus testimony from the man known to medical literature as John/Joan-argue that gender comes from the brain, not the body, and that no operation can alter that basic fact. Some content may be objectionable. (15 minutes)

Gender Biology: Men and Women Really Are Different
22 Minutes
Apart from the reproductive system, how else are women anatomically different from men? And how do physiological differences influence how the female body reacts to diseases and medications? Enhanced by 3-D graphics, this program explores the emerging field of gender-based biology. Officers of the Society for the Advancement of Women's Health Research and the Partnership for Women's Health at Columbia discuss the possibility of gender-specific medications, new studies being done on heart disease and osteoporosis, and other topics. The Women's Health Initiative, a pathophysiological study of postmenopausal women, is also featured. (22 minutes)

Marriage
53 Minutes
An institution supported by religious and civil authorities, marriage bestows both freedoms and restraints designed to promote social stability. But as divorce rates continue to soar, is marriage getting a bad name? In this program, author Sabine Da Costa and anthropologists Helen Fisher, of Rutgers University, and Peter Lovell, of the University of New Brunswick, track the development of marriage, from ancient times to the current day. Specific topics include cohabitation; arranged marriages; betrothal; dowry; the wedding ceremony; endogamy and exogamy; monogamy, polygamy, and polyandry; same-sex marriages; divorce; and remarriage. (53 minutes)

Understanding Healthy Relationships and Sexuality
29 Minutes
This program furnishes background on the issues of sexual expression, preference, and choice and sensitively identifies the characteristics of the sexually healthy adult. Topics under discussion include different types of relationships, factors that influence the formation and maintenance of relationships, and social and psychological perspectives on people as sexual beings. (29 minutes)

Violence Against Women
46 Minutes
The secrecy surrounding domestic violence is the focus of this program. Hosted by a policewoman and a television news anchor, it contains stories of hope for women who are currently in violent relationships, and provides valuable information on how to leave an abusive partner. Specific information is included on speaking out, having a plan, when to leave, where to go, the legal aspects, getting help for abusers, and how to protect and counsel children who live in violent homes. (46 minutes)

Sugar and Spice: The Facts Behind Sex Differences
51 Minutes
Even during the first moments of life, baby girls and boys already behave differently. Combining case histories and scientific analysis, this program argues that the mixture of hormones in the womb "hardwires" the brain with a sex-aligned signature before birth, causing it to become distinctly female or male-or a mixture of both. (51 minutes)

Sexual Stereotypes
19 Minutes
More than ever before, Americans are being bombarded-and acculturated-by the media, and only discerning individuals will recognize the sexual biases that all too often are a part of each day's worth of information and entertainment. This program focuses on identifying and looking beyond categorical stereotypes of women, men, gays, and lesbians. A Cambridge Educational Production. (25 minutes)

All about Boys
22 Minutes
This video analyzes the links between biological and cultural development in boys, and addresses problems-such as Attention Deficit Disorder and behavioral difficulties in schools-that tend to involve boys. (22 minutes)

Differences Between Boys and Girls


Online Resources for Parenting Boys

All about Girls
22 Minutes
This video explores conflicting definitions of femininity and what it means to be a girl, and discusses how parents can help their daughters grow into healthy and well-adjusted adults. (22 minutes)...

Body Image for Boys
19 Minutes
As the idealized male physique continues to be hyped in movies, on TV, in magazines, and on billboards, a rapidly growing number of men are becoming obsessed with appearance. Each year alone, they spend billions on gym memberships and home exercise equipment-and women are no longer alone in battling anorexia and body dysmorphic disorder. This topical program explores some of the issues facing young men today as they struggle to define themselves amidst the flood of media-generated images of male physical perfection. Experts including Divya Kakaiya, the visionary founder and clinical director of the Healthy Within treatment center; Leigh Cohn, co-author of the seminal Making Weight: Men's Conflicts with Food, Weight, Shape, and Appearance; and UCLA Healthcare sports medicine physician Gary Green as well as a number of young patients grapple with problems such as steroid abuse, eating disorders, exercise addiction, and phony food supplements. A viewable/printable instructor's guide is available online. A Cambridge Educational Production. (18 minutes)

Deepest Desires
49 Minutes
What conditions of physical attraction tend to subtly speak out to members of the opposite sex? Why is there typically a fundamental difference in attitudes between men and women toward sexual relations? What physiological factors can influence men and women to stray from their partners? This program seeks to answer those and other questions as it sheds light on the mystery of sexual attraction. The relationships between pheromones and an attractive immune system, status symbols and marital appeal, and ovulation and facial feature preference are also explored. Contains clinically explicit language. A BBCW Production. (49 minutes)

War of the Sexes: Emotion
46 Minutes
When asked to describe birth from a baby's perspective, a group of women talk about fear, elation, and other feelings-while their male counterparts summon only physical sensations. What causes such a contrast? This program explores the divergent emotional tendencies of men and women, throwing gender differences into bold relief through spontaneous theatrical exercises and expert commentary. While confirming that expression of and reaction to emotion varies according to sex, the program also demonstrates that the male psyche values emotion no less than the female-as suggested by a collaborative storytelling session in which men craft the more evocative tale. (45 minutes)

Love
51 Minutes
Science tells us a lot about sex, but what can it tell us about love? This program highlights research on the neurochemistry and psychology of love, suggesting ways to improve-and even salvage-long-term relationships. Four couples undergoing various types of relationship stress are put through a battery of experiments, while a team of research scientists try to determine the physiological and neurological factors that make love last. In the most daunting stress test that many couples will ever face, the scientists discover unique biochemical reactions to conflict and create a communication-building plan designed to turn troubled relationships around. A BBCW Production. (51 minutes)