Gender Bias

Question 1

What does universality mean?

Answer 1

• Underlying characteristics can be applied to all, despite differences in experience
• Time/culture/gender bias threaten universality of findings

Question 2

What is bias?

Answer 2

• Psychologists possess beliefs that are influenced by social/historical context they live in
• These impact research design and interpretation of results

Question 3

What is beta bias?

Answer 3

• Minimising differences between men and women
• Theories misinterpret one of the genders

Question 4

What is alpha bias?

Answer 4

• Exaggerating differences between men and women
• Theories devalue one gender in comparison to the other

Question 5

What is androcentrism?

Answer 5

• Taking male behaviour as the norm due to male domination of psychology through history
• Devalues/misinterprets women

Question 6

What is gynocentrism?

Answer 6

Taking female behaviour as the accepted norm

Question 7

e.g androcentrism (alpha bias) in research (evaluation)

Answer 7

• Freud’s psychodynamic approach (1800s/1900s)
• Men regarded as dominant, femininity is ‘failed masculinity’
• Exaggerated differences, phallic psychosexual stage: men develop male identification/moral development, which women suffer ‘penis envy’ only

Question 8

e.g beta bias (evaluation)

Answer 8

• Fight/flight response: early research only on male animals, findings assumed to be universal response
• Taylor suggested that female biology has evolved to inhibit the f/f response and produce a tend/befriend response instead

Question 9

Implications of gender bias (evaluation)

Answer 9

• Creates misleading assumptions about female behaviour, fails to challenge negative stereotypes
• May provide ‘scientific justification’ to deny women opportunities within the workplace

Question 10

Promoting sexism in the research process (evaluation)

Answer 10

• Lack of females appointed at a research level means female concerns may not be reflected
• Male researchers/studies finding differences more likely to be published
• Leads to lack of valid research

Question 11

Reflexivity (evaluation)

Answer 11

• A solution: researchers recognise bias
• Rather than seeing it as a problem, embrace is as a crucial aspect of the process
• May lead to greater awareness of the roles of personal biases