Gender Bias

Question 1

Define bias

Answer 1

Tendency to treat individual or group differently to others

Question 2

Define universality (gender bias)

Answer 2

Conclusions can be applied to all, despite differences in experience, upbringing, time, place or culture

Question 3

Define gender bias (sexism)

Answer 3

Research or theory offers view which doesn’t justifiably represent the experience & behaviour of men or women (usually women)

Question 4

Define alpha bias

Answer 4

Overestimate or exaggerate gender differences, differences are presented as real & enduring; fixed & inevitable

Question 5

Define beta bias

Answer 5

Ignore, underestimate or minimise gender differences

Question 6

Define androcentrism

Answer 6

Male-centred; consequence of beta bias when ‘normal’ behaviour is judged according to M standard meaning F behaviour is judged to be ‘abnormal’, ‘inferior’ or ‘deficient’ by comparison

Question 7

Who argued there are 2 types of bias

Answer 7

Hare-Mustin & Marecek (1988)

Question 8

Examples of alpha bias (2)

Answer 8

• Sociobiological theory of relationship formation (Wilson 1975)
• Freud’s psychoanalytic theory / Horney (1926)

Question 9

Examples of beta bias (2)

Answer 9

• Kohlberg’s stage theory of moral development (1973) / Gilligan (1982)
• Fight or flight response / Taylor et al. (2000)

Question 10

Examples of androcentrism (2)

Answer 10

• PMS & M anger seen as a rational response to external pressures (Brescoll & Uhlmann 2008)
• Biased DSM (Broverman et al. 1970)

Question 11

Kohlberg’s stage theory of moral development (1973)

Answer 11

• longitudinal study of sample of American M
• Interviewed boys aged 10-16, re-interviewed at intervals of 3-4yrs over 20yr period
• Answered Qs based on moral dilemmas eg Heinz dilemma

Question 12

AO3: Implications of gender bias (3)

Answer 12

• ‘It becomes normal for women to feel abnormal’ (Tavris 1993)
• Viewed women as more relational & caring (Chodorow 1978)
• Equality can draw attention away from women’s special needs (Hare-Mustin & Marecek)

Question 13

AO3: Sexism within research process (3)

Answer 13

• M experimenters more pleasant, friendly & encouraging to F ppts. ‘Male & female subjects may, psychologically, simply not be in the same experiment at all’ Rosenthal (1966)
• Meta-analysis noted studies in real-world settings found women & men were judged more similar in styles of leadership than in lab settings (Eagly & Johnson 1990)
• Psych may be guilty of supporting a form of institutional sexism that creates bias in theory & research (Denmark et al. 1988)

Question 14

AO3: Reflexivity (1)

Answer 14

• Dambrin & Lambert (2008) included reflection on how their gender-related experiences influence their reading of events in their study on lack of women in executive positions in accountancy firms

Question 15

AO3: Essentialism (1)

Answer 15

• Walkerdine (1990) reports how, in 1930s, ‘scientific’ research revealed how intellectual activity would shrivel a woman’s ovaries & harm her chances of giving birth

Question 16

AO3: Reducing gender bias (5)

Answer 16

• Me too movement
• Acknowledged women may be less effective leaders but this knowledge should be used to develop training programmes (Eagly 1978)
• Criteria to avoid gender bias within research Worrell & Remer (1992)
• Women better at learning because they’re more attentive, flexible & organised Cornwall et al. (2013)
• Darwin’s theory of sexual selection challenged, DNA evidence supports idea that it’s a good adaptive strategy for F to mate w more than one M, this puts F in competition w each other Vernimmen (2015)

Question 17

Worrell & Remer (1992) (3)

Answer 17

• Studied within meaningful real-life contexts, & participate in research, not just objects of study
• Diversity within groups of women should be studied
• Emphasis on collaborative research methods which collect qualitative data