ISSUES + DEBATES
GENDER BIAS
Gender bias occurs in psychology whenever differences between
males + females are either exaggerated or ignored
Psychology has mainly been very much male-dominated – almost all
psychologists were men, so theories produced tended to represent a
male world-view
Tendency of psychological research + theory to focus on men, often
to neglect + exclusion of women, is called androcentrism
Forms of gender bias
Alpha bias –
Tendency to exaggerate differences between men + women
May serve to enhance or undervalue members of either sex,
typically undervalues women
Example: Freud’s theory of psychosexual development – he argues
that during phallic stage, boys experience Oedipus complex which
helps drive moral development (superego)
However, women seen as inferior to males as they are jealous of
men’s penises (penis envy) – they cannot experience castration
anxiety, so women cannot undergo same Oedipus complex +
therefore morally inferior to men
Beta bias –
Tendency to ignore or minimise differences between men + women
Theories tend to either ignore questions about the lives of women,
or assume what is true for men must be true for women –
minimising gender differences
Example: fight or flight response – based on early research with
male animals (because female hormones fluctuate) + was assumed
to be a universal response to threats
Taylor 2000 – showed females would respond differently with ‘tend
and befriend’ response – fight or flight inhibited so attention can be
shifted to caring for offspring + forming defensive networks with
other females
Evaluation
LIMITATION
Gender differences often presented as fixed
Maccoby + Jacklin – girls have better verbal abilities + boys have
better spatial abilities due to biological differences
However brain scans don’t show this
Suggests not all research that claims biological gender differences is
true and could demonstrate social stereotypes
LIMITATION
Gender bias leads to sexism in the way research is conducted
, Women underrepresented in university departments so most
research carried out by men
Methods used e.g. lab experiments + way female behaviour is
interpreted may not properly represent female experience
Research methods + nature of research institutions are contributing
to findings that are gender-biased
LIMITATION
Research that challenges gender bias may not be published
1000 articles on gender bias analysed
Found that this sort of research is funded less often + published by
less prestigious journals
Suggests gender bias in psychological research may not be taken as
seriously as other forms of bias
STRENGTH
Feminist psychologists have proposed ways of reducing gender bias
Worrell – women should be studied within meaningful real-life
contexts, and genuinely participate in research rather than being
‘objects of study’
Diversity within groups of women should be examined rather than
differences between men + women. Should be greater emphasis on
qualitative data
Suggests research in this area can help address androcentrism in
science + society
COUNTERPOINT: there is a danger that too much feminist research
runs risk of gender bias too – encouraging exaggerated differences
between men + women (alpha bias)
CULTURAL BIAS
Cultural bias – the tendency to judge all people in terms of your
own cultural assumptions
Leads to cultural differences being distorted or ignored
Mainstream psychology has ignored role of culture in human
behaviour – majority research conducted in America
Psychologists claim to have discovered ‘universal’ findings on
behaviour when they only apply to a particular group
Ethnocentrism – the use of our own cultural group as a basis for
judgments about other groups
Tendency to view beliefs, customs + behaviours of our own group
as ‘normal’ + even superior, whereas other groups are abnormal or
underdeveloped
Ainsworth’s strange situation
Criticised for reflecting only norms + values of American culture
GENDER BIAS
Gender bias occurs in psychology whenever differences between
males + females are either exaggerated or ignored
Psychology has mainly been very much male-dominated – almost all
psychologists were men, so theories produced tended to represent a
male world-view
Tendency of psychological research + theory to focus on men, often
to neglect + exclusion of women, is called androcentrism
Forms of gender bias
Alpha bias –
Tendency to exaggerate differences between men + women
May serve to enhance or undervalue members of either sex,
typically undervalues women
Example: Freud’s theory of psychosexual development – he argues
that during phallic stage, boys experience Oedipus complex which
helps drive moral development (superego)
However, women seen as inferior to males as they are jealous of
men’s penises (penis envy) – they cannot experience castration
anxiety, so women cannot undergo same Oedipus complex +
therefore morally inferior to men
Beta bias –
Tendency to ignore or minimise differences between men + women
Theories tend to either ignore questions about the lives of women,
or assume what is true for men must be true for women –
minimising gender differences
Example: fight or flight response – based on early research with
male animals (because female hormones fluctuate) + was assumed
to be a universal response to threats
Taylor 2000 – showed females would respond differently with ‘tend
and befriend’ response – fight or flight inhibited so attention can be
shifted to caring for offspring + forming defensive networks with
other females
Evaluation
LIMITATION
Gender differences often presented as fixed
Maccoby + Jacklin – girls have better verbal abilities + boys have
better spatial abilities due to biological differences
However brain scans don’t show this
Suggests not all research that claims biological gender differences is
true and could demonstrate social stereotypes
LIMITATION
Gender bias leads to sexism in the way research is conducted
, Women underrepresented in university departments so most
research carried out by men
Methods used e.g. lab experiments + way female behaviour is
interpreted may not properly represent female experience
Research methods + nature of research institutions are contributing
to findings that are gender-biased
LIMITATION
Research that challenges gender bias may not be published
1000 articles on gender bias analysed
Found that this sort of research is funded less often + published by
less prestigious journals
Suggests gender bias in psychological research may not be taken as
seriously as other forms of bias
STRENGTH
Feminist psychologists have proposed ways of reducing gender bias
Worrell – women should be studied within meaningful real-life
contexts, and genuinely participate in research rather than being
‘objects of study’
Diversity within groups of women should be examined rather than
differences between men + women. Should be greater emphasis on
qualitative data
Suggests research in this area can help address androcentrism in
science + society
COUNTERPOINT: there is a danger that too much feminist research
runs risk of gender bias too – encouraging exaggerated differences
between men + women (alpha bias)
CULTURAL BIAS
Cultural bias – the tendency to judge all people in terms of your
own cultural assumptions
Leads to cultural differences being distorted or ignored
Mainstream psychology has ignored role of culture in human
behaviour – majority research conducted in America
Psychologists claim to have discovered ‘universal’ findings on
behaviour when they only apply to a particular group
Ethnocentrism – the use of our own cultural group as a basis for
judgments about other groups
Tendency to view beliefs, customs + behaviours of our own group
as ‘normal’ + even superior, whereas other groups are abnormal or
underdeveloped
Ainsworth’s strange situation
Criticised for reflecting only norms + values of American culture
