Chapter 1 Psychology of Women Introduction
The first thing that strikes the careless observer is that women are unlike men. They are “the opposite
sex”—(though why “opposite” I do not know; what is the “neighboring sex”?). But the fundamental thing
is that women are more like men than anything else in the world.
Dorothy Sayers (1946)
Why Study the
Psychology of Women?
It’s interesting!
To understand women better
To correct sex biases found in many traditional psychological theories
Show qualitative differences between male/female experience
Foster improved communication among women
Sex, Gender, Sexism, & Feminism
Sex or Gender?
Sex: male/ female or sexual intercourse?
Term is ambiguous
Gender: the state of being male or female
Sexism
Sexism: discrimination or bias against people based on their gender; sex bias.
Old-fashioned vs. modern sexism (Swim et al., 1995)
Old-fashioned sexism: open or over prejudice against women
Modern sexism or Neosexism: covert or subtle prejudiced beliefs about women
Sexism (cont’d.)
Hostile vs. benevolent sexism (Glick & Fiske, 2001)
Hostile sexism: negative, hostile attitudes toward women and adversarial beliefs about gender
relations in which women are thought to spend most of their time trying to control men, through
sexuality or feminism
Benevolent sexism: beliefs about women that seem to the perpetrator to be kind or benevolent—in
which women are honored and put on the proverbial pedestal
Feminism
Feminist: a person who favors political, economic, and social equality of women and men, and therefore
favors the legal and social changes necessary to achieve that equality.
Are you a feminist?
Is There a Psychology of Women?
Depends on inflection…
Psychological approach to understanding women vs. political one - valuable?
Valid and respectable subdiscipline?
Do women have a special psychology different from that of men?
This course will examine the tension between gender differences and gender similarities
Sources of Sex Bias in Psychological Research
Gain the skills to become a sophisticated consumer of psychological research
Know how psychologists go about doing research
Be aware of ways in which sex bias may affect research
Be aware of problems that may exist in research on gender roles or the psychology of women
How Psychologists do Research
Theoretical model
Formulate a question
Design the research
Choose a behavior & how to measure it
Choose a design and participants
Collect the data
Analyze the data
Interpret the results
Publish the results
Biased Theoretical Model
The theoretical model has a profound effect on the outcome of the research
Example of biased model:
What Questions are Asked
Bias may enter when only certain questions are asked and others ignored
Stereotypes about women and men have thus influenced the kinds of questions that have been investigated
scientifically
Feminist scholars advocate going into the community of people being studied and asking them about their
lives and what the important questions are
Sex Bias in Psychological Tests
Psychological measurement: the process of assigning numbers to characteristics of people, such as
aggressiveness or intelligence
Example of biased test:
SAT-Math: in 2004, men’s average score=537, but women’s average score=501
Sex Bias in Choice of Sample
Males are used more frequently as participants than females, leading to the error of overgeneralization
Overgeneralization: a research error in which the results are said to apply to a broader group than
the one sample
Conducting research on men and overgeneralizing it to all people creates a psychology of men
results from research with men to women’s health care can have serious health consequences
The Women’s Health Equity Act of 1990 mandated that women must be included in clinical
research trials
Having a representative sample is important to good research
Most research designs are one of the following:
Laboratory experiments: participants’ behavior is manipulated in some way, typically in a
laboratory setting
Naturalistic observations: participants’ behavior is observed in naturalistic settings, with no
manipulation
Quasi-experiments: design uses 2 or more groups, but participants are not randomly assigned or
manipulated
Example: Gender differences in math performance
Experimenter Effects
Experimenter effects: when some characteristics of the experimenter affect the way participants behave,
thus affecting the research outcome
Examples of experimenter effects:
Danso & Esses (2001): White college students performed better on intellectual tests with Black
(versus White) experimenters
Bryant et al. (2001): Beliefs about rape myth acceptance differ significantly, depending on
experimenter’s clothing (conservative vs. provocative)
Solution: have several experimenters, half male and half female (or other characteristics)
Observer Effects
Observer effects: when the researcher’s expectations affect his or her observations and recording of the data
Stereotyped expectations can shape our observations of behavior
Example of observer effects:
Condry & Condry (1976): participants rated the same child’s behavior differently depending on the
perceived gender of child
Bias in Interpretations
The same finding can be interpreted in different ways—one which is favorable to men, the other favorable
to women
Female deficit model: a theory or interpretation of research in which women’s behavior is seen as
deficient
Example of biased interpretation:
Males estimate they will get higher scores than females estimate they will get.
Are females insecure, underestimating their ability?
Are males overconfident, overestimating their ability?
Publishing Significant
Results Only
There is a strong tendency in psychological research to publish statistically significant results only
Thus, findings of gender differences are more likely to be published than findings of gender similarities
Feminist Alternatives
Gender-fair research: research that is free of gender bias
Single-gender research should almost never be done
Theoretical models, underlying assumptions, and the kinds of questions asked should be examined
for gender fairness
Both male and female researchers should collect data to avoid experimenter effects
Interpretations of data should always be examined carefully for gender fairness, and possibly
several interpretations should be offered
Feminist research: research growing out of feminist theory, which seeks radical reform of traditional
research methods
Key areas of concern in feminist research:
Manipulativeness
Objectification
Context stripping
Feminist Research Methods
Don’t manipulate people; observe them in natural environment
Say “participants” instead of “subjects”
Think in terms of complex, interactive relationships
Devote specific research attention to concerns of women
Conduct research to empower women and eliminate inequities
Don’t assume that scientific research and political activism are contradictory activities
Consider innovative methods for studying human behavior
Are We Making Progress?
In 1970, 42% of articles in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology were based on all-male samples
By 1990, that number had declined to 20%
In 1970, 27% of articles in Developmental Psychology had a female first author
By 1990, that number had risen to 53%
In 1970, 29% of the articles in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology used nonsexist language
By 1990, that number had risen to 99%
Looking Ahead
Recurring Themes
Rooted in History
Male as normative: model in which the male is seen as the norm for all humans; the female is seen as a
deviation from the norm
This theme is seen in:
The biblical creation story of Adam and Eve
Language: masculine pronouns are default
Androcentrism: male centered; the belief that the male is the norm
Feminine evil: the belief that women are the source of evil or immorality in the world
The feminine evil theme is seen in
The Judeo-Christian story of Adam and Eve: Eve is responsible for original sin
Ancient Greek mythology: Pandora is responsible for releasing evil into the world
Chinese mythology: yin is female force, seen as the dark or evil side of nature
Witch burnings in Puritan America & the Inquisition
Recurring Themes Rooted
in Modern Science
Gender similarities—women and men are more similar than different (Hyde, 2005)
Theory versus empirical evidence
Traits (enduring characteristics of individual people) versus situational determinants of behavior
Pervasiveness of female deficit models
Importance of values in a scientific understanding of women
Psychology’s Foremothers
Mamie Phipps Clark (with Kenneth Clark) did the research on Black children that was critical in the U.S.
Supreme Court decision to desegregate the nation’s schools (Brown v. Board of Education)
Central Concepts in the Psychology of Women
Sex and Gender
sex
gender
“doing gender”-express gender and perceive gender in interaction
Is a dynamic process
Social Biases
Sexism-bias based on gender
Racism-racial groups
Classism-social class (income, occupation, education)
Heterosexism-sexual orientation
Ableism--disability
Ageism-chronological age
Feminist Approaches
Psychological Approaches to Gender Similarity and Difference
The Similarities Perspective: men/women similar—social forces create differences.
Similarities—alike in intellectual and social behaviors.
Socialization produces differences, not biology
Social constructionism—invent or construct own reality based on prior
experiences, social interactions, and beliefs.
Observations influenced by beliefs—no real objective reality
The Differences Perspective: men/women generally different—
differences between men/women stressed—due to essential qualities (biology)
within individual
Men---linked with reason and civilization.
Women---linked with emotion and nature
Men the standard—women deviations
May emphasize positive characteristics that have been undervalued in women.
(similar to Cultural feminism). Critics: stereotypes stronger with difference
emphasis
Essentialism—basic, stable characteristic residing within individual. Internal
characteristics create nurturing behavior
All women share same psychological characteristics—different from men. Not
consistent with cross-cultural research.
A Brief History of the Psychology of Women
Early Studies of Gender Comparisons
G. Stanley Hall—movement against coeducation
Biased research about gender
Mostly men researchers—gender comparison.
structures
Difference in size of brain
Helen Thompson Woolley—similar intellectual abilities men/women, higher for women
in memory and thinking
Leta Stetter Hollinworth—menstrual cycle no effect on intellectual abilities
Early years:
“early years of psychology womanless”
Few women psychologists, and experiences of females not thought to be
important
Works of women may be overlooked
Authors referred to by first initial (not first name)
No gender-identifying info—so assume author is man
The Emergence of the Psychology of Women as a Discipline
1/3 members APA women—applied and social areas
few faculty at research universities
1969—Association for Women in Psychology, 1973---Society for Psych of
Women—largest division within APA
1970s—more women in psychology. Women’s movement and feminism gained
attention. Beginning women’s studies
Recent years:
1960’s beginning of feminist movement
Feminine Mystique,
Equal Pay Act,
and NOW formed.
Problems with the 1970s Framework
Extremely complicated issue—gender, not quickly “fixed”
Women sometimes blamed for fate---not assertive enough,
(situation to blame)
Gender discrimination and sexism
afraid of success.
The Current Status of the Psychology of Women—more research, 3 journals.
Women and Ethnicity
The White-as-Normative Concept—hidden assumptions
Peggy McIntosh—privileges of being white—take for granted.
History in schools—white children learn white history
Don’t belong to ethnic group—others do
Women of Color-Demographics—Latinas/latinos 2nd largest ethnic group in US
Much diversity in within every ethnic group
Chicano/Chicana--terms of reference
Black women—3rd largest ethnic group in US
Asian American women—origins from many different countries
Often stereotyped as “ideal minority”
Native American women
U.S.-Centered Nationalism—US considered normative—other countries “less than”.
In a position of privilege
Critical Thinking and the Psychology of Women
Ask good questions about what you see or hear
Determine whether conclusions are supported by the evidence that has
been presented
Suggest alternative interpretations of the evidence
Themes of the Textbook
Psychological Gender Differences Are Typically Small and Inconsistent
gender as a subject variable—within ind.
People React Differently to Men and Women
gender as a stimulus variable—others react to characteristic
Women Are Less Visible Than Men in Many Important Areas
Androcentric—male experience treated as the norm
Women Vary Widely From One Another
“I am a woman, hear me roar / In numbers too big to ignore, / And I know too
much / To go back and pretend.” Helen Reddy
I am woman! I am invincible! I am pooped! ~Author Unknown
Women in Psychology
Anne Anastasi
Sandra Bem
Mary Calkins
Mamie Phipps Clark
Nancy Datan
Helene Deutsch
June Etta Downey
Anna Freud
Eleanor Gibson
Florence Goodenough
Margaret Harlow
Leta Stetter Hollingworth
Matina Horner
Karen Horney
Ethel Puffer Howes
Dorothea Jameson
Melanie Klein
Barbel Inhelder
Mary Cover Jones
Teresa LaFromboise
Christine Ladd-Franklin
Brenda Milner
Inez Prosser
Maria Root
Eleanor Maccoby
Christiana Morgan
Pamela Trotman Reid
Carolyn Sherif
Janet Taylor Spence
Barbara Wallston
Millicent Shinn
Leona Tyler
Margaret Floy Washburn
Helen Thompson Woolley