gender bias A01
Cards (9)
- - Gender bias occurs when research treats genders differently or the same when this may not be the correct thing to do
- - Universality – theories aim to be universal meaning they apply to all people and so all genders however the concept of gender bias threatens the notion of universalityit would be wrong to eradicate gender differences as a way to resolve the gender bias issues as this approach is a beta bias itself however the solution is recognising differences but not the superiority of one gender over another
- - Bias – can be defined as prejudice for or against one person or group – considered unfair especially
- Androcentrism- Psychology has predominantly been male dominates and therefore the theories produces tend to represent a male world view – and this view is described as androcentrism and may result in either an alpha or beta gender bias = problem women are misunderstood
- Alpha bias and beta bias are two main forms of gender bias
- Alpha –- When we assume there is differences between genders – when in fact there might not be – problems because it devalues one gender and raises the other gender in comparison
- Alpha –- Example of an alpha bias = Freud’s assumption there were differences between men and women suggesting that women are almost failed men with weak superegos – because they had not experiences castration anxiety – in this case the alpha bias is detrimental to women and legitimise treating women as second class citizens
- Beta bias- When we assume there are no differences between genders when there might be in actual fact – which can cause problems as behaviour is represented and the needs of one gender is ignored – usually women
- Beta bias- An example is in the case of aggression – research shows males are more aggressive and it would therefore be wrong to try and treat male and female aggression in the same way as what works for one gender may not work for both as there is a difference in levels of aggression.