Gender Bias

Gender bias

View that a study theory doesn’t represent the experience of a man/woman

Alpha Bias

• exaggerates/overestimates the differences between males and females

• studies devalue men compared to women

• women then become abnormal as male behaviour is the norm 

Alpha bias

• Wilson (1975)

• Sexual attraction and behaviour as a means of survival

• Men must impregnate as many women as possible to increase chance of his genes being passed on whereas women have a finite num of eggs

Examples of Alpha bias in studies

• role of father (Grossman 03)

• freud’s psychosexual stages - oedipus/electra complex

• mother-infant attachment: Bowlby, Ainsworth, S+E

Beta bias

• Ignores or underestimates the differences between men and women

• Women not included in research but it is assumed that result apply to women as well

Beta bias

• Taylor (2013)

• Suggested that female biology has adapted to inhibit and fight/flight responses and as a defence they form networks with other females instead

Androcentrism

• Consequence of beta bias

Androcentrism

• Brescoll + Ulhmann (2008)

• male anger + angression is categorised through research as a rational response to external pressure

• wheras PMS medicalises female emotions

Androcentrism

• Worrell (1992)

• to avoid gender bias in research women should actively participate in close-to real life studies

AO3

• Essentialism

• gender differences are fixed and inevitable which create a double standard for how behaviour is viewed from a male and female perspective

• Walkerdie (‘90): research reported how intellectual activity would shrink woman’s overalls and inhibit chances of giving birth

AO3

• Social implications

• Gender bias research creates misleading assumptions about female behaviour.

• Plays into neg stereotypes and validates discrimination and basis of scientific research

• Tavris (‘93): in domains where men set the standard, women were made to feel abnormal

AO3

• Sexism within the process

• lack of senior female researches = men more likely to have studies published

• Nicolson (‘95): states that male researchers have the power to label women ppts as unreasonable and irrational

• Denmark et al (‘88): psychology supports institutional sexism