Delusions of gender
by Cordelia Fine · first published 2005
72% recommend22% neutral6% critical
Why HN recommends it
Critical review of research claiming innate brain differences between the sexes, picking apart flawed methods, statistics and media reporting. Suits readers who want a counter to gender essentialism.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Subtitle: How our minds, society, and neurosexism create difference Drawing on the latest research in neuroscience and psychology, the author criticizes claims about innate biological differences between men and women's minds as being faulty and exaggerated and considers how cultural and societal beliefs contribute to sex differences. Cornelia Fine is an academic psychologist.
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Whomever wants a critical look at this kind of "psychology result", I really recommend checking out Cordelia Fine (Oxford, Cambridge, UCL educated) and "Delusions of Gender". She is a fun listen/read and explains really well the flaws in the science/reporting/interpretation of "gender science", from the statistical to the neurological. http://blip.tv/slowtv/delusions-of-gender-p1-cordelia-fine-4...…
on “How Can There Still Be a Sex Difference, Even When There Is No Sex Difference?” ↗…similar conclusion to James Damore: http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/13/opinions/williams-ceci-women-i... Let's at least present the field studies/research, which can throw existing clinical views into doubt. eg Delusions of Gender: The Real Science Behind Sex Differences by Cordelia Fine is at least a rigorous critique of possible flaws. It's a little saddening, to have this dialog represent the views of an average engineer.
on “Ask a Female Engineer: Thoughts on the Google Memo” ↗…the people who promote these socially conservative ideas like to wrap them in a veneer of pseudoscience, they claim that Tinder reinforces “ancient” behavior. (Great source on the pseudoscience part: “Delusions of Gender” by Dr. Cordelia Fine. Plenty of others exist. And while I know the pseudoscience part might be controversial to some on here, I hope at least the idea that user interfaces guide user behavior is not.)
on “Study: Tinder is making us behave like cave people” ↗Please read Cordelia Fine's Delusions of Gender, because it goes into exactly why things like this are bogus science.
on “Male and female brains wired differently, scans reveal” ↗See my other comment -- also, see the book Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine, and The Gender Trap by Emily Kane
on “To the Girls of HackerNews: I am a Female Founder who Codes” ↗…wellspring of new thought, theory, and research in the past 20 years on gender, including: Doing Gender - Candace West; Don H. Zimmerman - http://blog.lib.umn.edu/clar0514/academic/west%20and%20zimme... Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine - http://www.cordeliafine.com/delusions_of_gender.html The Gender Trap by Emily Kane - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0095VEM5O/ref=cm_cr_thx_vi...
on “To the Girls of HackerNews: I am a Female Founder who Codes” ↗…recipe for allowing the experimenter's bias to influence their recording of the results. This is just one of several basic flaws in the study; see the analysis starting on page 113 of Cordelia Fine's "Delusions of Gender." "Delusions of Gender" has lots of similar analyses of the research "proving" innate gender differences. The takedown of Louann Brizendine's references starting on page 158 and the one about the frozen…
on “Julie Ann Horvath Describes Sexism and Intimidation Behind Her GitHub Exit” ↗Another great read is Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine. http://www.amazon.com/Delusions-Gender-Society-Neurosexism-D...
on “How Can There Still Be a Sex Difference, Even When There Is No Sex Difference?” ↗The "actual facts" of what he said are not uncontroversial. They aren't even facts. Cordelia Fine's "Delusions of Gender" has an extensive bibliography of studies disputing the statements he claims are facts.
on “Google Fires Employee Behind Controversial Diversity Memo” ↗A lot of people have said that our brains are wired differently. I highly recommend Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine, it's looking into exactly those claims: http://www.cordeliafine.com/delusions_of_gender.html
on “The Myth of Female Software Developers” ↗Anyone interested in gender studies and the current understanding of gender ought to read "Delusions of Gender" by Cordelia Fine. It is a fantastically interesting book. http://www.amazon.com/Delusions-Gender-Society-Neurosexism-D...
on “Monkey research suggests a biological explanation for toy preferences (2012)” ↗Cordelia Fine's _Delusions of Gender_, evopsych is largely for bullying [1], etc etc. [1] http://francoistremblay.wordpress.com/2014/08/29/evolutionar...
on “How evolutionary psychology went viral” ↗…hard work in places though. The Quark and the Jaguar by Murray Gell-Mann is a wonderfully readable and accessible intro to complexity, which again is a topic that seems to crop up all over the place. Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine cites a shedload of research to dispel gender-related myths. It should be taught in schools, in my opinion.
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite non-fiction books of all time?” ↗…things we buy our kids because our generation cherished them too... (By the way, if you ever want a conclusive argument that girls being raised to love pink and hate math is societal, not genetic, read "Delusions of Gender: How Our Minds, Society, and Neurosexism Create Difference". It's pretty eye-opening, and has plenty of proof to back up its assertions.)
on “I'm starting to think LEGO is evil” ↗…ability to think logically and are therefore more suited to programming". You forget that women basically made up most of the early programmers (see Ada Lovelace etc). I would recommend reading the book "Delusions of Gender" to get an overview over the "science" behind claiming that men and women are inherently different and to learn how all of those studies have proven flawed/heavily biased towards a premeditated conclusion.
on “Women Outnumber Men For The First Time In Berkeley’s Intro To Computer Science” ↗