Gender bias

• Key Ideas and concepts

  AO1:

  ~ Universality.

  ~ Alpha Bias- e.g. Wilson.

  ~Beta Bias- e.g. Taylor et al.

  ~Androcentrism- e.g. Brescoli and Uhlman.

  
  

  AO3:

  - Gender Bias in psychological research- Brescoli & Uhlman.

  - Promotes sexism.

  + leads to reflexivity- Dambrin & Lambert.

  - Essentialist arguments common in Gender Bias research- Walkerdine.

  + Feminist Psychologists propose how it can be avoided- Worrell.
• Psychologists seek universality but bias may be inevitable


  Psychologists possess beliefs an values influenced by the social and historical context within which they live.

  
  

  This may undermine psychologists' claims to discover facts about human behaviour that are objective, value-free and consistent across time and culture (universality).

  
  

  One form of bias is Gender Bias: Psychological theory and research may not accurately represent the experience and behaviour of men and women.
• Alpha Bias- exaggerates differences


  Differences between the sexes are usually presented as real, enduring, fixed and inevitable.

  
  

  These differences occasionally heighten the value of women but are more likely to devalue females in relation to males.
• An example of Alpha Bias is the sociobiological theory of relationship formation


  WILSON- explained human sexual attraction through 'survival efficiency' - it is in a male's interest to try and impregnate as many females as possible to increase the chances of his genes being passed on to the next generation.

  
  

  The females best chance to preserve her genes is to ensure the survival of the relatively few offspring she may produce.

  
  

  Sexual promiscuity in males is naturally selected and genetically determined but females who engage in the same behaviour are seen as going against their 'nature' - an exaggeration of the difference between the sexes (Alpha Bias).
• Beta Bias - minimises differences


  Ignoring or underestimating differences between men and women often occurs when female participants are not included in the research process and it is assumed that research findings apply equally to both sexes.
• An example of Beta Bias is the 'fight or flight' response


  Early research into 'fight or flight' was based exclusively on male animals (preferred for research because female hormones fluctuate).

  
  

  The 'fight or flight' response was assumed to be a universal response to a threatening situation.

  
  

  TAYLOR ET AL.- suggest female biology has evolved to inhibit the 'fight or flight' response, shifting attention towards caring for offspring (tending) and forming defensive networks with other females (befriending).

  
  

  Females exhibit a 'tend and befriend' response governed by the hormone oxytocin.
• One consequence of Beta Bias is Androcentrism

  If our understanding of 'normal' behaviour comes from research involving all-male samples, then any behaviour that deviates from this standard is judges as 'abnormal' or 'inferior'.

  
  

  This leads to female behaviour being misunderstood and even pathologised (taken as a sign of illness).

  
  

  For example:

  Many feminists object to the category of 'pre-menstrual syndrome' (PMS) because it medicalises female emotions (e.g. anger) by explaining these in hormonal terms.

  
  

  But male anger is often seen as rational responses to external pressures ( BRESCOLI and UHLMAN).
• Evaluation (AO3)- Limitation- Problems of Gender Bias in psychological research

  -

  Gender-Biased research may create misleading assumptions about female behaviour and validate discriminatory practices

  --

  It may provide a scientific justification to deny women opportunities within the workplace or in wider society (e.g. because of PMS)

  --

  Gender Bias in research is not just a methodological problem but may have damaging consequences which affect the lives and prospects of real women.
• Evaluation (AO3)- Limitation- Gender Bias promotes sexism in the research process

  -

  A lack of women at senior research level means female concerns may not be reflected in research questions asked. Male researchers are more likely to have work published.

  --

  Also, female participants in lab studies are in an inequitable relationship with a (usually male) researcher who has the power to label them irrational and unable to complete complex tasks.

  --

  This means psychology may be guilty of supporting a form of institutional sexism that creates bias in theory and research.
• Evaluation (AO3)- Strength- An understanding of Gender Bias leads to reflexivity

  +

  Researchers recognise their effects of their values on their work (reflexivity). They embrace bias as an important aspect of the research process rather than see it as a problem threatening the objective status of their work.

  --

  In DAMBRIN and LAMBERT's study of the lack of women in executive positions in accountancy firms, they include reflection on how their gender-related experiences influence their understanding of events.

  --

  Such reflexivity is an important development in psychology and may lead to greater awareness of the role of personal bias in shaping future research.
• Evaluation (AO3)- Limitation- Essentialist arguments are common in Gender-Biased research

  -

  Many gender differences reported by psychologists are based on an essentialist perspective- that gender difference is inevitable (essential) and fixed in nature.

  --

  WALKERDINE reports how 'scientific' research in the 1930's showed that intellectual activity (e.g. attending university) shrivelled a woman's ovaries and harmed her chances of giving birth!

  --

  Essentialist accounts are often politically motivated arguments disguised as biological 'facts'. This can create a 'double standard' in how the same behaviour is viewed from a male and female perspective.
• Evaluation (AO3)- Strength- Feminist Psychologists propose how Gender Bias can be avoided

  +

  WORRELL suggests criteria researchers can follow to avoid Gender Bias. Women should be studied within meaningful real-life contexts, and genuinely participate in research instead of being objects of study.

  --

  Also, diversity in groups of women should be studied, rather than comparisons made between women and men. Finally, there should be a greater emphasis on collaborative research methods that collect qualitative data.

  --

  This way of doing research may be preferable, and less Gender-Biased, than laboratory-based research.
• Universality – any underlying characteristic of human beings that is capable of being applied to all, despite differences of experience and upbringing. Gender bias and culture bias threaten the universality of findings in psychology.
• Gender bias – when considering human behaviour, bias is a tendency to treat one individual or group in a different way from others. In the context of gender bias, psychological research or theory may offer a view that does not justifiably represent the experience and behaviour of men or women (usually women)
• Androcentrism – male-centred, when ‘normal’ behaviour is judged according to a male standard (meaning that female behaviour is often judged to be ‘abnormal’ or ‘deficient’ by comparison)
• Alpha bias – research that focuses on differences between men and women and therefore tends to present a view that exaggerates these differences.
• Alpha bias – research that focuses on differences between men and women and therefore tends to present a view that exaggerates these differences.
• Psychologists seek universality but bias may be inevitable.

  Psychologists possess beliefs and values influenced by the social and historical context within which they live. These beliefs may be biased, that lean towards a subjective view that does not necessarily reflect objective reality. This may undermine psychologists claims to discover facts about human behaviour that are objective, value free and consistent across time and culture (universality).

  One form of gender bias: psychological theory and research may not accurately represent the experience and behaviour of men and women.
• Alpha bias

  Alpha bias exaggerates differences

  Differences between the sexes are usually presented as real, enduring, fixed and inevitable.

  These differences occasionally heighten the value of women but are more likely to devalue females in relation to males.
• Example of alpha bias if Freud’s 1905 theory of psychosexual development. During the phallic stage of development both boys & girls develop a desire for their opposite gender parent. In a boy this creates a very strong castration anxiety (fear his father with cut his penis off) --> this anxiety is resolved when the boy identifies with his father. But a girls eventual identification with her same gender parent is weaker, which means her superego is weaker (because it develops as a result of taking the same gender parents moral perspective). Therefore girls/women are morally inferior to men.
• Alpha bias can sometimes favour women in the psychodynamic approach. Nancy Chodorow 1968 suggested that daughters and mothers have a greater connectedness than sons and mothers because of biological similarities. As a result of the child's closeness, women develop better abilities to bond with others and empathise.
• Alpha bias - Wilson 1975 explained human sexual attraction through ‘survival efficiency’ – it is in a male’s interest to try and impregnate as many females as possible to increase the chances of his genes being passed on to the next generation.

  The females best chance to preserve her genes is to ensure the survival of the relatively few offspring she may produce

  Sexual promiscuity in males is naturally selected and genetically determined but females who engage in the same behaviour are seen as going against their ‘nature’ – an exaggeration of the difference between the sexes.
• Beta bias

  Beta bias minimises differences

  Psychological research that ignores or undermines differences between men and women often happens when we assume that research findings apply equally to both men and women even when women have been excluded from the research process.
• An example of beta bias is the fight or flight response. Early research into fight or flight was based exclusively on male animals (preferred for research because females hormones fluctuate). The fight or flight response was assumed to be a universal response to a threat. Taylor et al 2000, suggest female biology has evolved to inhibit the fight or flight response, shifting attention towards caring for offspring (tending) and forming defensive networks with other females (befriending). Females exhibit a tend and befriend response governed by the hormone oxytocin.
• Androcentrism

  Alpha bias and beta bias are consequences of androcentrism.

  Over the years psychology has presented a male dominated version of the world. E.g., the American Psychological Association published a list of the 100 most influential psychologists of the 20th century which only included 6 women. This suggests that psychology has traditionally been a subject produced by men, for men and about men – an androcentric perspective
• If our understanding of ‘normal’ behaviour comes from research involving all male samples, then any behaviour that deviates from this standard is judged as abnormal or inferior.

  This leads to female behaviour being misunderstood and even pathologized (taken as a sign of illness)

  For example, many feminists object to the category of Pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS) because it medicalises female emotions (e.g., anger) by explaining these in hormonal terms. But male anger is often seen as a rational response to external pressures (Brescoll and Uhlman 2008 )
• +ve = understanding on gender bias --> reflexivity.

  Researchers recognise the effect of their values on work (reflexivity). They embrace bias as important aspect of research process rather than see it as a problem threatening objective status of work. In study of the lack of women in executive positions in accountancy firms, Dambrin + Lambert (2008) include reflection on how their gender-related experiences influence their understanding of events. Reflexivity is an important development in psychology and may lead to a greater awareness of the role of personal bias in shaping future research.
• One limitation is problems of gender bias in psychological research.

  Gender biased research may create misleading assumptions about female behaviour and validate discriminatory practices. It may provide scientific justification to deny women opportunities within the workplace or in wider society (e.g., because of PMS). Gender bias in research is not just a methodological problem but may have damaging consequences which affect the lives and prospects of real women.
• Another limitation is that gender bias promotes sexism in the research process.

  A lack of women at senior research level means female concerns may not be reflected in research questions asked. Male researchers are more likely to have work published. Also female participants in lab studies are in a inequitable relationship with a (usually a male) researcher who has the power to label them irrational and unable to complete complex tasks. This means psychology may be guilty of sexism that creates bias in theory and research.
• -ve

  Many gender differences reported by psychologists are based on an essentialist perspective – gender difference is inevitable (essential) + fixed in nature. Walkerdine 1990 reports how ‘scientific’ research in the 1930s showed that intellectual activity (e.g., attending university) shrivelled a womans ovaries + harmed her chances on giving birth! Essentialist accounts often politically motivated arguments disguised as biological ‘facts’. Creates a ‘double-standard’ in how the same behaviour is viewed from a male + female perspective.
• A +ve is feminist psychologists propose how gender bias can be avoided.

  Worell + Remer 1992 suggest criteria researchers can follow to avoid gender bias. Women should be studied within meaningful real-life contexts, + genuinely participate in research instead of being objects of study. Diversity in groups of women should be studied rather than comparisons made between women + men. There should be a greater emphasis on collaborative research methods that collect qualitative data - may be preferable, + less gender-biased, than laboratory based research.