PSYC312 - HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY Chapter 10 Notes - A Psychology of Social Action and Social Change The Psychology of Sex Differences Helen Bradford Thompson (Woolley) - Helen Thompson (1874-1947) · Student at the University of Chicago in the late 1890s · American psychologist · Known for her contributions to the educational sector, research on sex differences and research methods. At the time, prevalent belief was in male superiority on physical and psychological traits. - · Women were denied the right to vote in the United States -> inferior intelligence, emotional instability, and hormonal cycles. . Thompson was interested in the beliefs that asserted the inferiority of women. - Studied functional psychology > fostered the study of sex differences in academic psychology (functionalism) - Evolutionary theory had basis for biological determinism supporting functional differences between men/women. · Research was directed towards understanding the nature, extent, and causes of these differences. Thompson's advisor was James Rowland Angell > encouraged her to conduct a study for her doctoral dissertation. - · Study aimed to investigate psychological similarities/differences between males and females using experimental methods. " Selected 25 males and 25 females as her subjects and administered a lengthy battery of tests. · Testing process took about 20 hours for each subject. " Measured sensory abilities like two-point thresholds, lifted weight discrimination, taste thresholds, smell discrimination, pitch thresholds, color discrimination, brightness perception, and color blindness. o Motor tests: reaction time, coordination, and rapidity of movement. o Cognitive tests: memory, learning, creativity, subjects like history, English, physics, and math. o Personality: emotion tests, and questionnaires on intellectual interests. · Found men generally performed better than women in most motor ability tests, except coordination tasks. · Women outperformed men in sensory abilities, memory, and generating more word associations. · Men demonstrated more creativity than women. - Study found emotional influence in life was not significantly different between the genders. " Found more similarities than differences in performance > differences that existed were relatively small. · Thompson's studies on sex differences and social influences did not receive agreement on her conclusions. 1904: G. Stanley Hall criticized Thompson for becoming "feministic" in attributing mental differences to early life influences on sexes - - Thorndike argued for greater variability among men -> acknowledged small differences found by Thompson and summarized them as not significant enough to disregard individual differences within one sex Assertions of male superiority were based on prejudice and assumption rather than data; hence Thompson's data may not have convinced most males to change their views. - · Science eventually forces adherents to pay attention to the data · Thompson was ahead of her time as most psychologists were not ready to accept her conclusions. Leta Stetter Hollingworth - Leta Stetter Hollingworth (1886-1939) " Graduated as valedictorian of her college class " Taught for three years in Nebraska · 1908: moved to NYC to marry her classmate, Harry Hollingworth. " Tried to find a teaching job in NYC -> was unable to become hired due to