Issues And Debates Gender Bias

Question 1

gender bias is

Answer 1

treating a person in a more or less favourable way based on their gender

Question 2

Universality is

Answer 2

• where theory is thought to apply to all people in the same way
• Despite differences in gender

Question 3

Gender bias threatens

Answer 3

Gender bias threatens the universality of findings in psychology

Question 4

Gender bias: alpha bias is ..

Answer 4

• misrepresentation of behaviour bc researchers exaggerate or overestimate differences between sexes.
• These differences are
  represented as real, fixed and inevitable
• These differences are more likely to devalue women in relation to their male counterparts

Question 5

one example of alpha bias in detail

Answer 5

ao1: during the phallic stage (4/5 years) freud said boys have a oedipus complex which leads to castration anxiety, girls have a electra complex which leads to penis envy.
resolution of the complex occurs through identification with same sex parent (internalisation) this leads to the development of the superego (morality principle)
ao2: - freud says women are morally inferior to men as they don’t identify with their mothers as strongly as boys identify with their fathers
- whereby girls identify passively, boys identify actively
- this means girls thus internalise a weaker set of morals (weaker superego)
- thus freud has exagerated the difference between morality in men and women

Question 6

Beta bias

Answer 6

• misrepresentation of behaviour where researchers Ignore minimise or underestimates the differences between men and women
• This often occurs when females aren’t involved in the research process and it is assumed research findings can be applied to both sexes

Question 7

example of beta bias

Answer 7

• fight or flight (stress response), research conducted into this has been based exclusively on male animals, the reasoning behind this is that female hormone fluctuation would render the results uninterpretable
• taylor challenges this and argues that fight or flight is incomplete, attention is shifted to caring for offspring (tending) and forming defensive networks with other females (befriending) hence tend and befriend
• an example of beta bias bc f or f was based on males and assumed to be universally applicable to women failed to consider tend and befriend

Question 8

consequence of beta bias

Answer 8

Androcentrisim

Question 9

Androcentrisim

Answer 9

• male centred view, understanding of male beh comes from all male samples
• If a female deviates from this behaviour it will be deemed as abnormal
  This leads to female behaviour not being understood with potential negative implications

Question 10

example of androcentrisim

Answer 10

• thousands of autistic women going undiagnosed due to gender bias
• women thought to be more adept at masking their symptoms
• bc autism though to occur more in men
• so studies often used male only sample
  implications for women:
• bc theyre not diagnosed early they dont get the help and support they need and can suffer through other mental health problems (anxiety and depression)
• a study found that 23% of women hospitalised for anorexia met the diagnostic criteria for autisim
• shows clearly the neg impact gender bias can have on well being of women if research is biased toward men

Question 11

Implications of gender bias - stereotypes

Answer 11

Gender bias may create misleading assumptions about female behaviour
Fail to challenge negative stereotypes and validate discriminatory practices
May provide a scientific justification to deny women opportunities in the workplace or society

Question 12

Reflexivity

Answer 12

Many modern researchers are beginning to recognise the effect their own values and assumptions have on the nature of their work
Rather then seeing bias as a problem they embrace it as crucial and critical aspect of the research process in general
Reflexivity is important development in psychology and may lead to greater awareness of the role of gender bias in shaping research in the future

Question 13

Feminist psychology - have it forward criteria that should be adhered to, to avoid gender bias in research:

Answer 13

1. Women should be studied within meaningful real-life contexts
2. Should participate in research
3. Women should be examined rather than compared
4. Should be more emphasis on data which is qualitative

Question 14

what can be done about alpha bias

Answer 14

• change publication of results
• theres a bias toward publishing positive results
• results that find gender differences are more likely to get published then those that dont - this exaggerates differences

Question 15

what can be done to decrease beta bias

Answer 15

• improve sampling - ensure women are included in samples
• dont generalise findings from all male samples to females and vice versa