Psychology B3 - cognitive approach to explaining gender Flashcards
role of biases
-we think about ourselves and others is affected by our unconscious
-psychologists have identified two extreme biases that can both lead to inequality, prejudice and discrimination
role of biases: alpha bias
-very binary perspective which encourages women and men to identify more closely with one gender
-usually devalues women in relation to men (and non-binary people in relation to binary, etc.)
-also creates a sense of abnormality - people who do not conform to traditional gender categories are seen as ‘disordered’ and needing treatment
role of biases: beta bias
-misrepresents women’s and men’s behaviour because it suggests there are no differences even though research shows there are some real differences
-also applies to transgender women, who are not men but women, and this difference is denied by beta bias
-beta bias is potentially discriminatory and prejudicial because it fails to acknowledge the different needs of men and women (and of non-binary and gender-fluid people)
-prevents change, because it assumes that, as everyone is the same, so everyone should be able to fit into society as it exists (e.g. male-oriented)
role of biases: confirmation bias
-a person holds stereotyped views of men, women, androgynous and genderfluid people that are negative then they only notice information that confirms these views
-if we ignore contrary information that challenges our stereotypes, then it is much easier to accept the existing inequalities that penalise women and trans people
role of schema (gender schema theory)
-gender schema contains our knowledge related to gender (e.g. how men and women are expected to behave)
-Martin and Halverson 1983, suggested that the gender schema has an important effect on memory - information consistent with gender schema is more likely to be stored and recalled than inconsistent information
-for instance, a girl who believes that engineering is ‘for men’ and nursing is ‘for women’ will seek out information about nursing, adding it to her gender schema
-will ignore information about engineering and recall more about nursing
-Her recall of gender-inconsistent information may be distorted to fit her gender schema
-misremembering confirms her existing schema
role of cognitive priming: how sex-role stereotypes prime gender behaviour
-sex-role stereotypes refers to the fixed views people have of men’s and women’s roles
-such stereotypes are often based on ‘traditional’ views of gender behaviour (e.g. women are caring and men are aggressive)
-stereotypes make you more ready to see the world in a way that fits your preconceived views, an example of cognitive priming
-gender stereotypes that you believe in prime you to expect particular gender-related behaviours
-example, if you are asked to draw a picture of a nurse, you might be more likely to draw a woman than a man because your stereotype of a nurse is a woman
-even names on a job application form can prime a sex-role stereotype
-example, that an applicant with a ‘man’s name will be better at maths
role of cognitive priming: how gender roles prime gender behaviour
-roles that women and men are seen performing also prime gender-typical behaviour
-can include roles in both the real world and in the media
-example, if a girl sees women/girls portrayed in TV adverts as passive when interacting with adults, this may lead them to take on a similar role when interacting with adults themselves
evaluation: practical applications (+)
-there are practical uses of the cognitive approach
-example, in our everyday interactions, we should be neither alpha- nor beta-biased as both are inaccurate ways of understanding gender, which is too complex to be fully explained by focusing on just similarities or differences
-we should acknowledge both forms of bias and accept that there are some important similarities and differences between gender identities of all kinds
-both forms of bias are equally misleading and we should avoid favouring one over the other
evaluation: research support (+)
-evidence to support the role of the cognitive approach in understanding gender
-Fowler et al. (2011) primed gender-related schema in their participants by asking them to write about times when they behaved in stereotypically masculine, feminine or gender-neutral ways
-all experienced the cold pressor test, in which the person plunges an arm into freezing water for as long as they can bear it
-men who were primed by writing about feminine-typical behaviours reported less pain and anxiety from the test than other groups
-finding shows that priming gender roles can have some effect on even involuntary behaviours such as the experience of pain
evaluation: neglects key non-cognitive factors
-it exaggerates the role of cognitive factors and underplays the importance of social context
-very likely that social factors are crucial in the early years during which gender develops
-for instance, the gender-related behaviour of parents and the rewards and punishments they hand out to children are key influences that are perhaps more important than schema and much better explained by social learning theory
-cognitive approach is an incomplete explanation.
