Gender & culture: gender bias

Question 1

What claim in psychology does bias undermine?

Answer 1

• universality

Question 2

What is universality?

Answer 2

• An underlying characteristic of human beings that is able to be applied to all despite differences of experience or upbringing
• gender & cultural bias threaten the universality of findings in psych

Question 3

What is gender bias?

Answer 3

• When psychological research or theory may offer a view that does not represent the experience of men or women (usually women)

Question 4

What are the two forms of gender bias?

Answer 4

Alpha and beta bias

Question 5

What is Alpha bias?

Answer 5

• Psychological research or theory that exaggerates differences between men and women
• differences typically presented as fixed or inevitable
• often devalue women in relation to men

Question 6

What research example is there of Alpha bias?

Answer 6

• Sociobiological theory
• Wilson (1975) Relationship formation
• Explains human sexual attraction & behaviour through the principle of ‘survival efficiency’
• Males interest to impregnate as many women as possible > increases chance of passing genes to offspring
• females best interest to preserve her genes by ensuring the healthy survival of her offspring

Question 7

What is an example of Alpha bias in psych in approaches?

Answer 7

• Freuds theory of the psychosexual development
• phallic stage both boys & girls develop a desire for the opposite gender parent
  -boy has strong castration anxiety but eventually resolves when he identifies with father
• girls identification with mum weaker so superego is weaker

Question 8

What is beta bias?

Answer 8

• Psychological research/theories that ignores or minimises the differences between men and women

Question 9

What research example is there of beta bias?

Answer 9

• research on the flight or fight response
• biological research favours using male animals > female behaviour affected by hormonal changes due to ovulation
• ignores real differences
• early research assumed that both M & F respond to threatening situations with fight or flight

Question 10

What research was found against the claim that both men and females respond the same way to threatening situations?

Answer 10

• Taylor et al (2000) described a tend & befriend response
• The ‘love’ hormone oxytocin is more plentiful in women (small in men)
• women respond to stress = increase in production of oxytocin

Question 11

Example of beta bias against men?

Answer 11

• research into attachment assumed that emotional care was provided solely by mothers
• research on the role of the father shows that fathers can supply emotional care

Question 12

What are Alpha & Beta biases consequences of?

Answer 12

Androcentrism

Question 13

What is androcentrism?

Answer 13

• Male- centred, when ‘normal’ behaviour is judged according to the male standard
• female behaviour thus judged abnormal/deficient in comparison

Question 14

What does the sociobiological theory suggest?

Answer 14

• sexual promiscuity in males is genetically determined while sexual promiscuity goes against female ‘nature’

Question 15

What is the sociobiological theory an example of?

Answer 15

Alpha bias and essentialism

Question 16

What is essentialism?

Answer 16

The idea that the gender difference in question is inevitable (essential) and fixed in nature

Question 17

What research example is there of Androcentrism?

Answer 17

• Brescoll & Uhlam 2008 (feminists) object to the diagnostic category of PMS > stereotypes & trivializes female experiences
• PMS is a social construction which medicalises female emotions e.g. anger explaining in hormonal terms
• male anger seen as rational response to external pressures

Question 18

What is a limitation of gender differences? biological vs social explanations

Answer 18

• often presented as fixed & enduring
  -Maccoby & Jacklin (1974) presented findings of several gender studies that concluded > girls have a superior verbal ability whereas boys have better spatial ability
• suggested these differences are ‘hardwired’ into the brain before birth -findings widely reported as facts

Question 19

What did Joel et al (2015) find? same eval

Answer 19

-used brain scanning & found no such gender differences in brain structure or processing
- Possible data from Maccoby & Jacklin study popularised because it fitted existing stereotypes of girls as ‘speakers & boys as ‘doers’
-suggest we should be wary of accepting research findings as bio facts

Question 20

What is a counterpoint to the limitation that there are no gender differences in the brain?

Answer 20

• does not mean psychologists should avoid studying possible gender differences
• Research by Ingalhalikar et al suggest that popular social stereotypes that females are better at multitasking - biological truth to it
• women’s brains may benefit from better connections between the RH & LH than in a mans brain
• may be gender differences but should be wary of exaggerating the effect they have on behaviour

Question 21

What is the limitation that gender bias promotes sexism in research process?

Answer 21

• women remain underrepresented in university department (science)
• Murphy et al- psychology undergraduate intake mainly female- lecturers likely to be male
  -research likely to be conducted by males > disadvantage female p’s
  e.g. male researcher may expect females to be irrational & unable to complete complex tasks (Nicolson) - female p’s underperform in research studies
  -institutional structures produced gender biases

Question 22

What is a limitation about research challenging gender biases?

Answer 22

• may not be published
  Formanowicz et al - analysed more than 1000 articles relating to gender bias published over 8 years
• found research on gender bias is funded less often & published by less prestigious journals
  -consequence= fewer scholars aware or apply it to work
  -Still true when compared with other forms of bias (ethnic)
  -gender bias not taken as seriously