Introduction to Social Philosophy, Lecture 21
John Dupré
Gender biases in science
The scientific study of sex and gender is almost certainly the area of science that has received the most
sustained criticism for bias. This is interesting in its own right but also an essential resource for
thinking about the general issue of values in science, and perhaps the inevitability of biases.
Feminist Empiricism
The above term is often used to refer to the movement in feminist science studies that argued simply
that scientists studying gender were frequently guilty of bad science. Powerful criticisms of this kind
have been made in a number of social and biological sciences. Good examples are:
Marilyn Waring, If Women Counted, talking about macroeconomics, especially in relation to
development;
Ann Fausto-Sterling, Myths of Gender, addressing various parts of biology.
H.Longino and E. Fox Keller, Feminism and Science, is an excellent anthology covering various areas.
The paper by Weisstein looks at theories in psychology. Quotes from Bettelheim and Rheingold at the
beginning give a good sense of the sort of thing that was widely said in the 1960s, less often now.
Freud: very little evidence gathered for theories within the Freudian tradition. 'Years of clinical
experience'. Problem that this can be reinforcing of assumed theories and prejudices. (Cf. Popper on
Freud.) Example of double orgasm. (Masters and Johnson: proper empiricism.)
Double blind investigations of influential personality tests show them to be often useless. Similarly,
proper investigation suggests that psychoanalysis in ineffective.
General failure according to Weisstein is attributable to biologism. Science has assumed fixed, inner
traits. 'Biology is destiny.' Empirical research shows however that social context is a far more
important determinant of behaviour than fixed dispositions.
Questions:
 Weisstein assumes something very like what sociobiologists call the Standard Social Science
Model, or blank slate theory. Is this objectionable?
 To what extent does a properly interactionist view of human development support either this or the
biological view?
 What is biological determinism?
 Is the kind of approach Weisstein objects to still a problem?
Beyond Empiricism
More recent feminist work has not generally been content to insist on applying scientific standards
properly, but has argued that the standards themselves are often inherently biased. (Compare Root.)
Wylie discusses the view that there is a distinctively feminist style of research. (Not necessarily
equally relevant to all areas of research.) One aspect of this is to give much more authority to subjects.
It is committed to taking their experience seriously, vs. imposing the views of the investigator.
Subjects should be involved in research rather than deceived by researchers.
Various difficulties: especially false consciousness; sexist consciousness; relativism (all accounts are
equally meaningful). More modest view: experience should be taken as an essential point of departure
only. Must be supplemented by self-criticism and recognition of the importance of objective
viewpoints.
Feminist Standpoint Theory and Postmodernism
A number of critics have moved theoretically beyond empiricism in at least these two directions.
According to standpoint theories, those in socially subordinate positions have a privileged viewpoint on
social reality. Postmodernism is a more amorphous set of ideas, but generally includes scepticism about
objective scientific truth. A good source for these is Sandra Harding, The Science Question in
Feminism. Another influential position is that of Helen Longino (Science as Social Knowledge) who
holds that biases are unavoidable, but can be cancelled out by a sufficiently socially inclusive science.