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Gender and Science

Scientific Study of Gender

Basis of psychological research

Logical positivism (value-free, objective) Empiricism (observable evidence) Western bias toward objectivity vs. subjectivity Overreliance on biological explanations Neglect of sociohistorical context Neglect of intersections (e.g., ethnicity, class) Failure to consider values (e.g., essentialism)

Feminist critiques

Characteristics of Feminist Psychological Research

Critiques of traditional research Formulation of research guidelines Gender as focus of study Striving toward gender-fair methodologies Examples

Feminist empiricism (typically quantitative) Feminist standpoint epistemology (often qualitative)

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Quantitative Research Methodologies

Descriptive Methodologies

Correlational studies

At least two variables that are not manipulated by the researcher Assesses the strength of relationship or association Correlation coefficient

Magnitude of relationship Direction of relationship

Interpreting Correlational Relationships

Anxiety

Genetics Stressful Events

Depression

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Problems in Interpreting Correlation

Directionality Bidirectionality Third variable problem Example (Bryant, 2008) study of rap music videos and male/female stereotypes

Positive correlation between number of videos watched and stereotyped attitudes, adversarial attitudes toward gender relations Other factors

Survey Research

Importance of random sampling Representativeness of sample a related issue Possibilities and pitfalls inherent in Internet surveys Natures of questionnaires

Reliability Validity Framing Social desirability

Naturalistic Observation

Behavior recorded in natural setting Concerns

Influencing participants behavior Inter-observer reliability Observational definitions

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Archival Studies

Content analysis of cultural artifacts Coding

Themes Gender of characters Activities

Inter-rater reliability also an issue Internet databases

Experimental Methodology

Establishment of causal relationships due to logic of experimental design Characteristics

Independent variable Dependent variable Experimental control

Experimental Design
Exp. Group Treatment DV Measured

Random Assignment

Control Group

No Treatment

DV Measured

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Comparison of Quantitative Designs

Research Methodology Characteristics Advantages Disadvantages

Correlational studies

Measure naturally occurring variables

Assess extent to which variables are associated with each other

Cannot assess direction of causality, bidirectionality problem, third variable problem

Surveys

Assess self-reports of large numbers of participants

Representative samples ensure generalizability to larger population

Subject to self-report biases due to framing and social desirability

Naturalistic observation

Observation of behavior in a natural setting

Rich description of behavior in natural setting

Subject to observer bias, may not generalize to different settings

Comparison of Quantitative Designs (contd)

Research Methodology Archival studies Characteristics Content analysis of cultural artifacts or statistical analysis of data from public databases Manipulation of one or more independent variables in a controlled environment Advantages Rich description of cultural variables, analysis of cultural trends Disadvantages Subject to sampling bias and observer bias, may not generalize to other cultures or other sociohistorical periods Artificiality of experimental setting, unless focus of study, behavior stripped from social context, possibility of demand characteristics, inability to manipulate some variables

Experimental Methodology

Experimental control and use of random assignment allows assessment of cause-and-effect relationships

Qualitative Research Methodologies

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Common Qualitative Methodologies

Case study

Single case, individual, group Rich description Poor generalizability Semi-structured and open-ended Participant contributes to interpretation

Interviews

Common Interview Analytic Techniques

Discourse analysis: dialogue w/participants embedded in social context Narrative analysis

Embedded in participants life course May be developmental in nature

Focus Groups

Small group discussion

Research question Prepared activity Video Media collection

Participants are experts Researcher conducts analysis Often helpful to study naturally occurring groups

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Ethnography

Intensive field work Involves cultural immersion Considers structure and organization of social environment

Participatory Action Research

Researcher-participant collaboration throughout project Focus: social and/or individual change

Comparison of Qualitative Research Methodologies

Research Methodology Case study Characteristics An in-depth history of one or a small number of participants Semi-structured or openended questions usually administered face to face A small group of participants who discuss a topic or activity provided by the researcher Field work in which researchers immerse themselves in a culture Collaborative research that focuses on individual and social change. Advantages Provides in-depth analysis of rare cases Participants provide meaning and interpret their experiences, multiple perspectives, rich amount of data Captures interaction in social context, participants become experts Rich description of culture, social structure, and organization Completes the research cycle by giving back to participants Disadvantages Generally not generalizable

Interviews

Reflexivity may be difficult to negotiate, authenticity may be a concern, large amount of data to be summarized, May be inappropriately used, especially to increase sample size Time-consuming, reflexivity might be able to negotiate, potential for harassment No true sample selection due to community decision making, reflexivity may be difficult to negotiate

Focus group

Ethnography

Participatory action research

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Other Research Strategies

Developmental Research

Cross-sectional studies assess age differences

Two or more groups, one time of measurement Age-cohort confound One group, many times of measurement Participant mortality May not be able to generalize to other cohorts

Longitudinal studies assess age change

Cross-Cultural Research

Importance of matching ethnicity of interviewers/raters Cultural universals and differences (RehmanHoltzworth-Monroe, 2006)

Marital dissatisfaction related to withdrawal from conversation (universal) European-American wives, Pakistani husbands made demands

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Cultural Psychology

Describing cultural phenomena White (2004) beliefs about childbirth among Cambodian women Less concerned with comparisons across cultures

Methodological Considerations

Identification of components underlying cultural differences Ideally 10 or more cross-cultural comparisons Cultural equivalence of materials

Meta-Analysis

Quantitative literature review Importance of considering gender differences and similarities Nature of gender difference

Difference between group means statistically significant On average women and men differ on dependent variable

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Importance of Considering Variability and Overlap

Variability = spread of scores Individual differences often larger than group differences d = Mmale-Mfemale s

Steps in Meta-Analysis
1 2 3
Conduct literature search PsycINFO and other databases Collect all published papers Collect all unpublished papers Compute Cohens d Average ds across studies

Summary of Meta-Analyses
Variable Mathematics anxiety (Hyde, Fennema, Ryan, Frost, & Hopp, 1990) Vocabulary (Hedges & Nowell (1995) Talkativeness (Leaper & Smith, 2004) Self-disclosure (Dindia & Allen, 1992) Helping (Eatly & Crowley (1986) Evaluation of male or female leaders (Eagly, Makhijani, & Klonsky, 1992) Attitudes about casual sex (Oliver & Hyde (1993) Life satisfaction and happiness (Wood, Rhodes, & Whelan, 1989) Anxiety (Feingold, 1994) Throwing distance (Thomas & French, 1985) Computer self-efficacy (Whitley, 1997) Number of Studies 53 4 73 205 99 114 26 22 13 47 29 Size of Gender Difference Small Negligible Small Small Small Negligible Large Negligible Small Large Moderate

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Use of Meta-Analysis

Identification of effect size

d =.20 - small d =. 50 - moderate d =. 80 large

Identification of moderator variables Limitations

Quality of study should be variable in analysis No cause-and-effect relationships can be implied

Biases in Research

Research Topic/Question Research Design Data Analysis Interpretation of Results

Heterosexism Anthropomorphism Ethnocentrism

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