Gender Flashcards
What is gender?
Gender is more than our biological sex (XY or XX chromosome) - also expressed through social and culturallv learnt norms
What is the essay plan for gender?
- Biased study samples
Andro: Sherif et al
Gyno: Scott Van Zeeland - Alpha and beta bias
Alpha: Bandura (1961)
Beta: Becker (2002) and Fearlessness Theory - Universal or Unique
Idiographic: Case studies
How does Sherif et al support biased study samples being the most important gender issue? (4 points)
Androcentric research - centred on
a male demographic of participants or perspective
Sherif’s study investigated if prejudice is caused by the ‘in-group’ and ‘out-group’ competition for resources with 22 11-year-old boys
He found during the friction phase, there was an average of only 6.4% out-group
friendships, compared to 36.4$ once cooperation activities were introduced
Results are not representative of females as gender-specific behaviours, such as increased aggression, may lead to different outcomes
How does Scott Van Zeland support biased study samples being the most important gender issue? (3 points)
Most of the research conducted in clinical psychology on anorexia is gynocentric - centred on a female demographic of participants or perspective
Scott Van Zealand:
+ Investigated gene variants which might play a role in anorexia
+ Found that the two gene variants which showed the strongest association with anorexia were the Estrogen Receptor Beta gene (ESR2) and the EPHX2
Involved over 3000 DNA samples but all were taken from female participants - not representative of anorexia in men
How are biased study samples sometimes justified? (3 points)
Whilst androcentric/gynocentric research limits representativeness, it is justified as gender-specific behaviours are prevalent and require gender-specific focus
E.g. Van Zeeland
Gynocentrism may be a justified error because more women suffer from anorexia compared to men (ratio of 10:1)
Also: males and conflict (Sherif et al)
What is alpha bias? (2 points)
Alpha bias - when the differences between men and women are exaggerated, resulting in gender stereotypes being over-emphasised
Research that finds gender differences is more likely to get published than that which doesn’t (publishing bias towards positive results)
How does Bandura (1961) support alpha bias being an important gender issue? (5 points)
Social learning research like Bandura’s (1961) Bobo Doll study has led to
potential discriminatory views of males
Male role model: 25.8M, 7.2F
Female role model: 12.4M, 5.5F
These results reinforce gender stereotypes that males are more aggressive
Alpha bias research may create assumptions about behaviours such as aggression being universal and inevitable
Initiates a Pygmalion effect:
1. An opinion about males being aggressive influences how others act towards them
2. Influences how the males perceive themselves
3. Eventually gets internalised and behaviours in line with the self-concept are exhibited
What is the issue with alpha bias? (4 points)
Alpa bias research allows for psychological research to show idiosyncrasies between genders because gender is a product of the combination of different socialisation and biology
Ideally, differences are celebrated but discrimination can occur
Focusing on differences between genders leads to the implication of similarity within genders
Thus, this ignores the many ways women differ from each other
How does Becker (2002) support beta bias being an important gender issue? (4 points)
Beta-bias research - where gender differences are minimised e.g. male
behaviour is applied to females
Becker (2002) conducted a study to investigate the impacts of prolonged exposure to TV on eating disorders attitudes and behaviour among
indigenous Fijian adolescent girls
The results showed that EAT-26 scores over 20 increased from 12.7% in 1995 to 29.2% in 1998
Beta-bias research makes people see men and women as the same, which may lead to inequity in treatment
How does the Fearlessness Theory support beta bias being an important gender issue? (4 points)
The theory states that stress, caused by cortisol may inhibit aggression through
fear - individuals with lower levels of cortisol are less inhibited and instead more inclined to take risks and act impulsively
This theory is not exclusive to one gender and thus is defined as being beta-bias with minimised gender differences
This beta-bias logic is reductionist because, although the forces of natural selection have created universal features
in both males and females, the genders have also evolved differently determined by maternity
Shelly et al:
+ Fighting and aggression increased the status of the male against other competing males
+ Women adopt an empathetic ‘tend and befriend’ response due to it being adaptable to the survival of their offspring
Why is it important whether a behaviour is universal or unique? (2 points)
If a characteristic or behaviour is found in all genders, it can be called universal and there may be some genetics underpinning the generalisation
(nomothetic)
When characteristics vary within genders, then it can be deemed as unique and
from a personal participant level (idiographic)
How does the idiographic approach support Universal or Unique being an important gender issue? (4 points)
Idiographic case studies like KF and KC validate the memory models models
They should be treated with caution due to the lack of representation of excluded demographic features such as gender
E.g. differences in schemas
Memory functioning may differ between genders due to gender stereotypes and differential exposure to media
Schemas confabulate memory (as shown by Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study), resulting in males and females having different memories based on the schemas they possess
What is the conclusion of your gender essay? (2 points)
Whilst androcentric/gynocentric research limits representativeness, gender research is justified as gender-specific behaviours are prevalent and should be celebrated instead of discriminated against
Ultimately, you cannot disregard gender during psychological research, due to underlying, predetermined differences such as hormones, genetics, evolution and socialisation
