What is it about?

This open access thus freely available monograph explains why worldwide, and since the origins of testing in the US around 1910 girls exceed boys in reading test means and boys exceed girls on math test means for those math tests with a reasoning component. The theory provides the only coherent framework for why the sexes differ in means and why the boys have larger variance for both tasks. It falsifies location shift frameworks for viewing sex differences, such as effect size d. A convolution model is proposed with corresponding R code estimation procedure is provided.

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Why is it important?

There exists no corresponding theory which accounts for the empirical sample quantities; the theory likely generalizes to other setting where observed sex differences are observed. The monograph may be viewed as resurrecting and providing an explicit theory underpinning Maccoby and Jacklin's 1974 book on sex differences which argues that biology and likely sex linkage are keys to sex differences understanding.

Perspectives

One can identify three general frameworks on how differences between groups can be viewed. One is location shift, another is frequency differences such as e.g., Bernoulli differences, and the third is the theory underlying Wilcoxon ideas. It seems to be generally believed that all group differences can and should be viewed through location shift frameworks, e.g., two sample t, and effect size d. Nature constructs group differences in various ways, and a researcher's task is to try to understand Nature, then model the process appropriately. This step in the research process, recognized by R. F. Fisher, is generally ignored or forgotten.

Hoben Thomas
Pennsylvania State University

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Sex Differences in Reading and Math Test Scores of Children, January 2024, Springer Science + Business Media,
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-41272-1.
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