CHAPTER ONE: TOPIC AND RESEARCH QUESTION
1.0 Introduction to the research question
Implicit bias refers to human beings’ unconscious actions while preferring to different perspectives or towards other people. For instance, implicit bias is a lack of showing neutral preference but judging others without knowing. Different people have different attitudes about others, even without knowing them, due to their physical appearance, gender, and even race (Welpinghus, 2020). In the research proposal, we will consider the associate stereotypes men have towards women from different perspectives, such as wisdom and decision-making. The research will consider various aspects of life and how man is deemed superior to women in the natural world. Men’s consideration to be ideal to women worldwide is too much emphasized, which may be due to tradition. However, there is some truth about is it is seen in different issues through the interaction of both genders.
The research will focus on finding the percentage of males with implicit gender bias in different situations. This will be helpful as it will help females to grow their curiosity about becoming better and competing for more complex positions held by males (Badcock, Friston, & Ramstead, 2019). The study will consider issues of discrimination of males to females at home, workplaces, and education. Also, in politics, males have dominated the positions, and the research will improve females’ curiosity to seek such places. Consideration of how the male child is viewed in society by the parents is also considered, thus encouraging the guardians to show equity to both genders’ children, thus minimizing implicit bias among them when they grow up (Morag, 2020). The study will aim at discovering through studying different situations which will be covered in the literature. According to the literature reviewed, the number of males who practice implicit bias towards males is more than those who do not practice.
1.1 Background to the study
The implicit gender bias that males have towards females is uncountable, starting from top careers in science to leadership positions. Considering the existence of the implicit bias may have championed the more discrimination men have towards women. Even now, science is more associated with men than women, and the promotion opportunities go to men than women. Human minds have it that men are more superior to men, and women are associated with negative traits such as being aggressive and lazy (Su, 2020). However, this is the general perspective towards women; it does not mean that women have such characteristics. Due to such associations, they are perceived as responsible for doing light chores while men are perceived as those who can handle turf chores.
The implicit biasness started from the beginning and has become a norm in the minds of human beings. For example, it is prevalent in an organization to find the secretarial positions being held by women, while technical engineers are men. In this perspective, women only hold lower offices while men deal with the most complicated work in organizations. In such a situation, women seem to have accepted that men are more superior to women in wisdom (Morag, 2020). This is observed through the posts they held in most organizations; thus, we can consider the situation natural. Most companies have recognized the implicit bias in their organizations and tried to set up training to minimize bias. However, their efforts have bared no fruits as there has been no positive change, and the situation has remained the same.
The challenge of measuring the implicit bias is a significant problem as many do not admit to being biased while in the real sense. Stereotyping has become a challenge to the researchers, especially in the direct methods. The world has generalized that man is more superior to women, and women seem to have accepted the fact (Badcock, Friston, & Ramstead, 2019). Most people have biases that are not intentional but due to the background, societal and cultural context. This means that they are biased without their knowledge, and they perceive this as usual to them. The quick assessments and judgments which come to our minds about others are unconscious and biased most of the time. Such implicit bias of men towards women controls the actions of most people in society today. It has been realized that the decisions we make are due to our attitude, attention, behaviors, and perceptions.
The implicit bias has held women back in many activities in the real world, and even young children have shown implicit bias even at the age of five. Many learners at a young age believe that girls are weak in math compared to boys, which is bias. In reality, some girls perform better in math than boys and depend on the efforts in academics of individual learners. Mental shortcuts, which we refer to as implicit bias, lead to such perceptions in learning that males perform better than women in math and science. This might be why most female learners are not putting too much effort into such subjects since they are believed to be males. In a real sense, women seem to be disadvantaged by the world’s perception of what they can do and what they cannot do in life situations (Welpinghus, 2020). Such judgment has led to fewer women pursuing science-related courses compared to their male counterparts. Men are more encouraged to follow science-related practices, while women tend to be discouraged due to women’s implicit bias.
Gender inequality starts from homes where children are raised with different values, stereotypes, and gender norms. The treatment of children based on their gender while at home is the main reason for the implicit bias in the future as they grow up with such per. Studies on children showed that children’s different gender is associated with other interests and show differences in many aspects. Even the roles given to each child is based on gender, which is accepted by society. Women are brought up to be submissive to men and more emotional, while men are brought up to be healthy and independent. Due to such reasons, different genders are expected to conform to some norms and get limited to some ideas. The perspective in society considering some activities as only for men and not women might be the beginning of men’s implicit bias towards women.
Parenting plays an essential role in bringing up children of different genders and should grow up their children to take up all kinds of roles in society. Our beliefs towards gender were propagated while we were still young, and this gives a reason while training on removing implicit bias of men towards women is a bit difficult. In the whole society we live in, most parents invest more in their male children than their female children due to the roles they are expected to take in their future (Lamparello, 2020). Implicit gender bias of men towards women is pervasive and has been accepted as part of life. However, different organizations have risen to defend women and seek equity for both genders regarding promotions. The environment plays a vital role in how other children finally consider gender on their own. Peers, media, and teachers also contribute to how one views his or her gender. The percentage of implicit bias of men towards women depends on the cultural and environmental conditions for someone.
1.2 Research question
The research is so specific in answering the question of implicit gender bias that males have towards females. The problem is formulated as: ‘What percentage of men show implicit gender bias towards women?’
The research question is: WHAT PERCENTAGE OF ADULT MALES SHOW IMPLICIT GENDER BIAS TOWARDS WOMEN?
1.3 Hypothesis
A large number of males show implicit gender bias towards females.
1.4 Evidence
- Through research, it is common to find more complex jobs occupied by men in organizations while women occupy simple posts.
- Many countries are led by men as compared to women and are elected through a democratic process.
- It is common to meet more men in a panel compared to women.
- Most promotions in science platforms go compared to women.
- Men are more active in sports, especially football, than women.
1.5 Objective of the research
The research objective is to determine the percentage of men who have an implicit bias towards females.
Aims of the research
The research aims to determine the percentage at which males show implicit gender bias towards females.
The research also aims to bring to the attention of male discrimination towards females in workplaces, homes, and learning.
The research will also improve female curiosity to fight for equity among their male counterparts in promotions and academics.
References for the topic question
Lamparello, A. (2020). The Flaws of Implicit Bias–and the Need for Empirical Research in Legal Scholarship and in Legal Education. Available at SSRN.
Welpinghus, A. (2020). The imagination model of implicit bias. Philosophical Studies, 177(6), 1611-1633.
Badcock, P. B., Friston, K. J., & Ramstead, M. J. (2019). The hierarchically mechanistic mind: A free-energy formulation of the human psyche. Physics of life Reviews, 31, 104-121.
Su, A. (2020). A Proposal to Properly Address Implicit Bias in the Jury. Hastings Women’s LJ, 31, 79.
Morag, T. (2020). Implicit bias, stereotype threat, and seeing‐as: An alternative to “alief” as an explanation of reason‐recalcitrant behaviors. Mind & Language.