Explain how the predominance of early Caucasian male psychologists inadvertently introduced a narrowness into psychological theory and research, and briefly describe the role of women and ethnic minorities in the study of psychology from its early days to the present

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer will include that most of the earliest psychologists were men of European descent. Biases concerning the race, ethnicity, age, and sexual orientation of researchers and participants in psychological research definitely limited psychology because far too many conclusions were created by and/or based on small groups of people who did not represent this diversity. However, this has changed over the past two centuries. By 1906 in America, about 1 psychologist in 10 was a woman. Since 2000, over 70 percent of all undergraduate and graduate degrees in psychology have been awarded to women. Similarly, one quarter of all undergraduate degrees and 16 percent of doctorates in psychology were awarded to persons of color. Some of the women and ethnic minorities who were early pioneers in psychology include the first woman to be awarded a Ph.D. in psychology in 1894, Margaret Washburn. In 1908 Margaret Washburn published an influential textbook on animal behavior, titled The Animal Mind. In 1920, Francis Cecil Sumner became the first African American to earn a doctoral degree in psychology. Inez Beverly Prosser, the first African-American female psychologist, was awarded her Ph.D. in 1933.