Sophie Hodgetts

Gender is not an ideology – but conservative groups know learning about it empowers people to think for themselves From book bans and firing teachers to taking over university administrations altogether, right-wing politicians and activists worldwide have been keen on rooting out gender from schools. Why is that?

Gender ideology. What is MAGA afraid of?
theconversation.com/gender-is-no...

The Spectrum of Sex and Gender - Archives of Sexual Behavior Archives of Sexual Behavior -

🚨 New publication alert‼️🔔

Check out my new commentary "The Spectrum of Sex and Gender" answering "How many sexes are there? How many genders are there?" at doi.org/10.1007/s105...

This open access commentary delves into some critical current issues, for more info see below or read via the link :)

The rough sex defence: A new manifestation of misogyny | BPS Derek Perkins and Rachel Kelly on the law and limited research around this form of gender-based violence.

The rough sex defence: A new manifestation of misogyny.
Derek Perkins and Rachel Kelly on the law and limited research around this form of gender-based violence.
www.bps.org.uk/psychologist...

Want to do a PhD in Psychology at Durham? I'm looking to supervise candidates interested in researching #PMDD and/or #neurodivergence - drop me a message to chat or discuss ideas!

16 Oct 25: Partnership and Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD): Strategies for Support and Understanding | COSRTlearn This session will provide delegates with a better understanding of PMDD and its effect on relationships and practical suggestions for therapists supporting couples where PMDD is present.

Next week! Dr Helena Tucker and I will be delivering a 3 hour training session on PMDD for @cosrtlearn.bsky.social.
We will be discussing how PMDD affects couples, and practical suggestions for supporting clients.
Info and tickets here:
www.cosrtlearn.org.uk/product/16-o...

"With dismay we witness our university leadership making soulless choices that hollow out our institutions from within and erode the critical and self-reflective fabric of academia".

[from Guest et al., 'Against the Uncritical Adoption of "AI" Technologies in Academia']

Starting now: @drmbothapsych.bsky.social 's public lecture on autism, dehumanisation and the problems in autism research. Very excited to listen to this after the first year of being colleagues @durham-university.bsky.social

The Bisexual Manifesto: We are tired [the rest is redacted].

Happy #Bisibility Day to those who celebrate. 💙💜❤️

me to my students: LLMs are like your worst ex. They will LIE to you with the most serene, most confident face

one of my students, quietly: I hate that guy so much

Hundreds of firms warn new draft guidance on single sex spaces is ‘unworkable’ Exclusive: More than 650 organisations have urged Bridget Phillipson to ‘take immediate action to prevent these proposals from moving forward’

The EHRC guidance is unworkable for business.

Signatories include Ben & Jerry's, Lush, Lucy & Yak and hundreds of large and small businesses across the country

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

@durhampsych.bsky.social current has 5 (FIVE!!) PhD studentships being advertised!

3 to work with me on children as agents of cultural evolution

2 to work with @drboothroyd.bsky.social on examining school-based body image interventions.

Please share and apply!

www.durham.ac.uk/departments/...

Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams

Next week! Come and join us (well...me!) to chat all things sex and gender teaching in Psychology. Registration is FREE!

events.teams.microsoft.com/event/a89d52...

#HigherEd
#Psychology
#TeachingPsychology
#SexAndGender
#InclusiveTeaching
#UKAcademia
#Pedagogy

Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams

Next week! Come and join us (well...me!) to chat all things sex and gender teaching in Psychology. Registration is FREE!

events.teams.microsoft.com/event/a89d52...

#HigherEd
#Psychology
#TeachingPsychology
#SexAndGender
#InclusiveTeaching
#UKAcademia
#Pedagogy

A PhD-level expert isn’t someone who can answer any question off the top of their head. A PhD-level expert is someone who will stare at some piece of information, say, “that doesn’t seem right,” and then spend enormous amounts of time obsessively hunting down every piece of information they can…

Last push for responses to the below survey! The form will close at the end of the day.
#HigherEd
#Psychology
#TeachingPsychology
#SexAndGender
#InclusiveTeaching
#UKAcademia
#Pedagogy

🧠 Calling UK Psychology educators!
I'm developing a webinar on how we teach sex and gender in UG Psychology programmes — and I’d love your input.
The goal? To share current approaches, inclusive strategies, and tackle challenges
📋 Got 5 mins? Fill out this short survey:
forms.office.com/e/3AHkbEaNJG

There’s also a section if you’d like to hear more when the webinar goes live.

📨 Questions? sophie.hodgetts@durham.ac.uk

#Psychology #HigherEd #Teaching #SexAndGender #InclusiveEducation #UKAcademia

🧠 Calling UK Psychology educators!
I'm developing a webinar on how we teach sex and gender in UG Psychology programmes — and I’d love your input.
The goal? To share current approaches, inclusive strategies, and tackle challenges
📋 Got 5 mins? Fill out this short survey:
forms.office.com/e/3AHkbEaNJG

Harming children: the effects of the UK puberty blocker ban This paper presents an analysis of data from trans children and young people and their parents following the imposition of a UK-wide ban on puberty blockers for this group. The consequences of this...

TW: harm to children.

My research into the effects of the UK government puberty-blocker ban has finally been published after peer-review.

It details the severe harm being caused to young trans people & children by the Starmer government's puberty-blocker ban.

Unlike Cass it is peer reviewed...

Sex and Gender This open access book provides an interdisciplinary perspective on the study of sex and gender and suggests directions for future research in this field.

DuBois, Trujillo, & McCarthy released ed. vol on sex/gender entanglement across fields including developmental biology, neuroscience, health equity, transgender health, cancer research, & more. Looks to be some rigorous interdisciplinary work on sex/gender to date. Fully downloadable.

A common claim in #EvoPsych is that the persistence of psychological sex differences in gender-egalitarian* countries shows that the differences are innate. I've argued that ignores the highly-gender-unequal media environment. Now @larawood.bsky.social has proved me right!

#EHBEA
#HBES

Mr Predator and Mrs Prey: Gender Stereotypes in Children's Films Correlate With Explicit and Implicit Gender Stereotyping Children acquire gender stereotypes at a young age and these subsequently influence cognition and behavior. Stereotypes may be learned through a child's direct observation of gender differences as we....

🚨New publication... Children's films contain innacurate gender stereotypes and these corresespond to children's (and adult's) implicit and explicit gendered associations.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Read thread for more details...

A blue background with white text that reads: Diversity data eats itself. Under the text is an image of a mouth with red lips and a rainbow coloured tongue.

Unsure how to collect gender, sex and sexuality data following the UK Supreme Court ruling?

📝 New writing on how a biology-first approach to diversity data WILL NOT WORK and how we can defend inclusive approaches.

kevinguyan.com/2025/05/27/d...

Court ruling on legal definition of a woman ‘misinterpreted’, Lady Hale says Speaking at book festival in east Sussex, former supreme court president says reaction to judgment ‘very binary’

Lady Hale gets it: "There's nothing in that judgment that says that you can’t have gender neutral loos"

www.theguardian.com/law/2025/may...

Sex and Gender This open access book provides an interdisciplinary perspective on the study of sex and gender and suggests directions for future research in this field.

🚨New open access book!

To promote informed applications in research, policy, medicine, and public health, the Ernst Strüngmann Forum convened scholars from diverse fields to examine a widely held assumption that sex and gender are conceptually separate.

link.springer.com/book/10.1007...

UK plummets down rankings for LGBTQ+ rights Last month’s Supreme Court ruling has seen the UK fall six places to 22nd. It’s time to fight back

“Only ten years ago we were the best in the world in the annual LGBTI Rights Ranking. We’re now 22nd... This is not just an embarrassment abroad – it’s also a tragedy at home for tens of thousands of people struggling to live lives of quiet dignity.” goodlaw.social/5mgp

Not In Our Name - Feminist Academics and Educators Speak Out - with signatures To co-sign the statement, fill in this form: https://forms.gle/oDYgnobrMiScaMEt5 (Please do not ‘request share’, rather, fill in the form ^ ^.) Not In Our Name: Feminist Academics and Educators Sp...

There are now over 2000 UK academic signatories to our open letter in support of trans rights & inclusion, along with hundreds of other UK educators & international supporters. It's heartening to see such support from colleagues for our trans siblings. #NotInOurName docs.google.com/document/d/1...

Professor Lynda Boothroyd addressing the crowd beside the Bill Bryson Library.

The President of the Durham University Trans Association addresses the crowd.

People begin to gather in support of trans rights.

Some photos from today's rally in support of trans rights here in Durham #UnionswiththeT