gender bias

Question 1

define beta bias

Answer 1

minimises the differences between men and women

Question 2

why is beta bias an issue

Answer 2

leads to theories misrepresenting a gender

Question 3

define alpha bias

Answer 3

exaggerates differences between men and women

Question 4

why is alpha bias an issue

Answer 4

• theories devalue one gender

- can cause stereotypes and prejudices

Question 5

define androcentrism

Answer 5

taking male behaviour as the accepted norm and applying it to women

Question 6

why is androcentrism an issue

Answer 6

theories devalue and misrepresent women

Question 7

outline one example of alpha bias in psychological research

Answer 7

• freud’s psychosexual sexual stages
• androcentric
• believed there were genuine psychological differences between men and women
• at the time of development, men were regarded as dominant
• viewed femininity as ‘failed masculinity’

Question 8

outline an example of beta bias in psychological research

Answer 8

• fight-or-flight response
• early research only conducted on male animals
• findings generalised to both genders

Question 9

define the term universality

Answer 9

underlying characteristics of humans that can be applied to all individuals, despite differences of upbringing and experience

Question 10

explain why psychological research which is gender biased will be misleading

Answer 10

• research produces misleading assumptions of female behaviour
• this validates discriminatory behaviour

Question 11

explain how gender bias promotes sexism in the workplace

Answer 11

• lack of females in senior research level: women’s concerns are not expressed
• male researches are more likely to be published

Question 12

explain the issue of gender biased research often going unchallenged

Answer 12

• Darwin’s theory of sexual selection suggests women are very selective in terms of mate selection
• these views are only recently changed by DNA evidence suggesting women are as equally competitive as men

Question 13

explain the feminist approach as a way of reducing gender bias

Answer 13

• attempts to restore imbalance
• accepts there are biological differences between genders
• Eagly claims females are less effective leaders
• purpose of this claim is to help researchers develop training programmes aimed at reducing lack of female leaders

Question 14

explain how contemporary psychologists have looked for ways to reduce gender bias

Answer 14

• develop theories that emphasise the importance of women
• Comwel et al. noted females better at learning as they are more organised etc.
• help to reduce/challenge gender stereotypes

Question 15

outline an example of androcentrism in psychological research

Answer 15

• Asch’s conformity study
• used only male participants
• assumed females would behave in the same way