Evaluation

• Implication - affects judgements and treatments


  • E.g. women more likely to be diagnosed with depression and given treatment
  • Embedded alpha bias - assumes mental health is 'feminine' and ignores male experiences
  • Some men may not get the treatment they need, some women may recieve the stigma from mental health labels
  • E.g. schizophrenia diagnosis - ignores women, leads to undiagnosed women with schizophrenia, not allowing them to get treatment
• Implication - misleading assumptions about gendered behaviour


  • E.g. Dalton - consequences of menstrual cycle, e.g. lower IQ, higher crime and suicide rate
  • Alpha bias - validates discriminatory behaviour, particularly employment opportunities - males favoured for certain roles
  • Gynocentricism - males ignored for positions in care homes/nurseries
• Solution - alternative methods of inquiry


  • Warell - alternate methods of inquiry to explore personal lives of women e.g. informal conversations
  • Constructing studies which are mindful of the impact of gender is important and will solve the problem of gender bias
• Solution - reflexivity


  • Researchers should be self-aware of their impact on the study
  • E.g. standardised procedures may make women nervous, damaging the validity
  • E.g. Schaffer and Emerson - study in own home