Gender Flashcards
Sex
-Biological and anatomical differences between males and female
Gender
-The social, cultural and constructed roles deemed appropriate for males and females
Scientific importance
- Report sex differences to see the impact on sexes and create/reinforce stereotypes
- Past research is inconsistent, sex and gender seen as same until late 70’s
Maccoby and Jacklin (1974)
- Reviewed hundreds of studies looking at intelligence, temperament and motivations
- differences caused by biological factors, socialization and imitation of the same sex parent (identification or social learning)
- They found that girls have better verbal abilities where as boys have better visuo-spatial and mathematical ability (adolescence), males are also more verbally and physically aggressive
Hyde (2005)
- Analysed 46 meta-analyses of cognitive, verbal, nonverbal, aggression, leadership and moral reasoning traits
- The only differences were that men masturbate more, have more positive attitudes towards sex in uncommitted relationships and are more aggressive
Awareness of observation
-If ppts know they are being observed they act more consistent with their gender roles showing the impact of social context
Positivists (behaviorists and biological)
-suggest gender bias does not matter and we should focus on the dualism of masculinity and femininity
Early research
- Goal was to highlight differences between genders so were presented as opposite, complementary, reciprocal and equal
- Focus on difference obscures power inequality and legitimates continued production of difference and inequality
Connell (1987)
- unitary sexual character
- masculinity and femininity are a body of traits which includes characters, roles, abilities and temperaments embedded in men and women
- Gender identity = static, unitary and stable
Mary Whiton Calkins
-First female president of APA in 1905
Inequality
- Women were barred from universities and excluded from certain jobs, paid less and given fewer opportunities for promotion
- Early 20th century 12% of the list of psychologists in American Men of Science were women
- Women doctors were not allowed into American Medical association until 1915 and Royal Society in 1948
- In the UK, women’s position in psychology was more favorable including in the BPS in its inception in 1901
Beatrice Edgell
-First British woman to obtain PhD in psychology Cognitive psychology (measuring the mind)
Victoria Hazlitt
- Student of Edgell, first studied animal learning
- Pioneering work in understanding introverts vs extroverts
Korn, Davis and Davis (1991)
- Asked large groups of leading historians of psychology and graduate department of psychology chairpersons to list their top 10 most important psychologists of all time. Which found they were all white males (no women)
- However, in 1990s 42% of PhDs in psychology were awarded to women and in 2011 75% were women
Bettelheim (1965)
-‘As much as women want to be scientists, they foremost want to be companions of mens and mothers’