What is Feminism?

Feminism is theory that men and women should be equal politically, economically

and socially. (AmazonCastle, 2004)

Feminism may be defined as a move to reduce and eliminate gender inequality, or

alternatively limited to the goal of improving the position of women while still

embracing gender difference, or more ambitiously as having the aim of transforming

gender relations and existing gender standards (Rees, 1998)

Feminism (In further detail)

Feminists argued that the discipline of psychology had ignored the study of women

and gender and misrepresented women in its research and theories. This started

around the 1960s.

They posed many questions which called for research and this developed into the

research of gender and women.

The study of women and gender has become a major focus of psychological science,

rising dramatically from receiving almost no attention to a position of considerable

popularity.

We will now look at Femininism and its link to Psychology

Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behaviour. It is a multifaceted

discipline and includes many sub-fields of study such areas as human development,

sports, health, clinical, social behaviour and cognitive processes. (McLeod, 2011)
A major effect of feminism on psychology is the creation of feminist psychology,

which is a form of psychology centred on societal structures and gender. Feminist

psychology critiques the fact that historically psychological research has been done

from a male point of view, with the perspective that makes are the norm.
Naiomi Weisstein declared in her work Psychology Constructs the Female (1968)

that psychology neglected and omitted women from its corpus of knowledge. Since
 then many feminists were passionate about reshaping the discipline of psychology and

make it more relevant to the lives of women and girls.

Psychological studies before the rise of feminism were largely male biased.
-The topics studied, such as aggression and achievement, reflected male concerns;

and the results of research based on male samples were assumed to apply to women

(Crawford and Marecek 1989)

When women were studied, they were evaluated according to male standard, so that

women's personality and behaviour were seen as deviant or deficient in comparison.

For example, early research that focused on sex differences claimed that in

comparison to men women were less motivated to achieve, less assertive and less

proficient in science and mathematics.

These deficiencies were then seen as stereotypes of all women and were used to deny

women entry or advancement in male-dominated employment settings.

How did feminism impact psychology research?

Feminists challenged the American Psychology Association (APA)

a. In 1969, feminist psychologists such as Weinstein met at the annual

convention of the APA where regular symposia became angry discussions

focused on sexist practices at the convention (Tiefer, 1991). These sexist

practices included job advertisements indicating men only, lack of child

care at the convention, and overt sexual harassment. This resulted in the

formation of the Association for Women in Psychology (AWP) in 1969.

b. At the 1970 convention, members of the AWP rallied informing the APA

president, Kenneth B. Clark of their concerns. Feminist psychologists Phyllis

Chesler and Nancy Henley prepared a statement on APAs obligations to

women. They also demanded one million dollars in compensation for the

damage psychology had perpetrated against womens minds and bodies.

c. The APA established a Task Force on the Status of Women, chaired by Helen

Astin due to these challenges. The task force undertook a two-year study and
 published a detailed report of its findings and recommendations in 1973. One

of these findings was that psychological research on and knowledge about

women was deficient. Accordingly, the task force recommended that a division

devoted to the psychology of women be established to promote research in this

area. An Ad Hoc Committee on the Status of Women was formed to follow

through on the recommendations of the task force, and in 1973, Division 35,

Psychology of Women, was formed. In 1976, the first issue of the new journal,

Psychology of Women Quarterly, appeared. By 1995, Division 35 had grown

to become the fourth largest in the APA.

Feminist psychology embraces diversity
a) The AWP did not have women of colour. They were largely driven by middle

class white feminists while women of colour did not have a strong institutional

base in psychology and have not had a ready ear for their concerns.
b) Comaz Diaz 1991 recognized the need to attract the interests and energies of

feminists of colour and to make the psychology of women a field that would

reflect the richness of this diversity. Moreover, it was recognized that parallels

between racism and sexism could not be overlooked.

c) The president of Division 35, Martha Mednick, asked Saundra Rice Murray to

organize a task force on black womens concerns in 1976. The task force

compiled a bibliography of research on black women, organized convention

programs on the concerns of women of color, and worked to increase the

representation of black women in APA governance.

d) This task force developed the Black Womens Concerns committee with

Pamela Trotman Reid as its first chair and in In 1985, a bylaw change

converted the Committee to a permanent Section on the Psychology of Black

Women. Reid became the divisions first black woman president in 1991.
e) Diversity expanded more as more sections developed on the Concerns of

Hispanic/Latina Women and Lesbian and Bisexual Womens Concerns.

Adding Gender to Existing Research Areas
 a) There are three main topics that added gender to existing psychology research.

These topics are: gender stereotypes and sex role attitudes, gender and

depression, and work- family issues.

b) Gender stereotypes and sex role attitudes- In research on the cultural

stereotypes that people commonly hold about women and men in general, two

dimensions, one masculine and the other feminine, consistently emerged.

Despite decline in the amount of gender stereotyping research, recent

experiments on stereotype threat have attracted attention by revealing that

stereotypes portraying ones own sex unfavorably can lower performance on

stereotype-relevant tasks (see Nguyen & Ryan, 2008; Steele, Spencer, &

Aronson, 2002)
c) Gender and depression- Previous research relating to this topic uggested that

womens life situations, especially the homemaker role, created vulnerability

to mental illness (Gove & Tudor, 1973). However newer research found that

the higher incidence of depression in women begins in adolescence and is not

confined to homemakers (Radloff, 1975). Depression in women was also

related to negative life experiences such as sexual abuse and peer harassment,

troubled interpersonal relationships, body image dissatisfaction and

objectification, and the stresses that can follow from care giving.
d) Work-family issues- Due to the growth of women, especially mothers, in the

workforce in the 1970s and 1980s psychologists initiated research on

employed mothers and dual-earner couples. Studies monitored the division of

labour within the family along with family members perceptions of its fairness
Applied research to public advocacy- Feminism has increased awareness and

encouraged researchers to investigate topics such as sexism, sexual harassment, and

violence against women.

It asks new questions- Feminism has further affected Psychology by changing the

perspective on questions asked or even asking new questions. Eg instead of asking

 about the effects of broken homes or the loss of masculinity of fatherless boys,

feminist psychologist began to ask about the health and well being of single mothers

(Worrell 1988). The question effectively reframes the research question to address the

well being of single parents. The focus moved to those of environmental variables that

affected their lives and thief parenting opportunities, including poverty, isolation, and

lack of social support.

Name and rename problems- The new questions redirect focus from women's

internal pathology to the pathology of the system that keeps women implosions by

fear and lack of resources. Research on spouse abuse had been reframed from "why

didn't she just leave?" To those such as "why do some men beat their wives and

partners?" Or "what are the barriers that keep her from leaving?"
Challenge research priorities -They have also challenged research priorities by

challenging the notion that all research is value free and objective, stating that

personal and political values enter into all scholarly efforts. Feminism has allowed for

girls and women to be included as research participants, as well as research subjects

to be included as participants in a collaborative enterprise and also they turned to

qualitative methods that assessed women's lives experiences

Revise therapeutic practice- There has also been extensive research done on the

stress women face on a daily basis due to the inequalities in the political, economic,

legal and social structures that of society that disempowered women. To assist

therapist have developed empowerment therapies that help women better cope and

deal with distress using situations with effective interpersonal and problem solving

skills .

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