Early Cognitive Functioning: Sex and Race Differences

Abstract

Six scales of early cognitive functioning were administered at three times (eight months, four and seven years) to 3013 black and white, male and female children. Hypotheses addressed the nature and extent of longitudinal sex differences in cognitive abilities among racial groups varying in physical maturation. Controlling for selected socioeconomic influences, a slight sex by race interaction was found at four and seven years. Generally, white females scored somewhat lower on cognitive tests than white males, whereas black females scored equivalently or somewhat higher than black males. Test score differences among the four sex and race groups were more apparent in seven-year spatial abilities relative to verbal abilities. Findings are discussed in terms of possible maturational and environmental influences on cognitive abilities among different sex and race groups.

A comparison of the performance of intellectually gifted and average-ability children on four spatial tasks

“…On the whole, the literature on sex differences in spatial abilities has reported a rather consistent advantage for males, though this advantage is apparent for the most part only after puberty (Denno, 1981;Fennema, 1974Fennema, , 1981Fox, 1977;Harris, 1978;Maccoby and Jacklin, 1974;McGee, 1979). Harris (1978) claimed, in fact, that the difference in spatial ability is the most consistently found sex difference in cognitive abili ties.…”