Final answer:
Sociologists use the term 'gender identity' to describe a person's internal sense of their gender, which is influenced by societal and cultural factors and can differ from traditionally defined gender roles.
Step-by-step explanation:
The term sociologists use to refer to a person's deeply held internal perception of their gender, based on social and cultural differences, is gender identity. This concept acknowledges that individuals may identify with a gender that aligns or does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth. Gender roles, which are society's expectations of how men and women should look and behave, can sometimes be flexible in U.S. societies, allowing for some crossover between traditionally masculine and feminine behaviors without influencing one's gender identity. Studies in this field explore how different societies interpret and manifest attitudes toward gender, sexuality, and the roles assigned to individuals. Sociologists often use the term "gender identity" to refer to a person's deeply held internal perception of their attitudes of masculine and feminine. Gender identity is shaped by social and cultural differences and encompasses an individual's sense of their own gender, which may or may not align with the sex assigned to them at birth. It is distinct from biological sex and is a key concept in understanding the social construction of gender.