Category: PaulaJean

Casual Argument Revised – PaulaJean

The World Around Us Is Creating a Biased Version of Ourselves

From the beginning of time, women have been looked at as inferior to men in one way or another. As the stereotypes slowly diminish, people still find themselves with certain thoughts towards females, whether they are one or not.

Women are strong and independent, but this does not make them immune to expectancy bias and stereotype threat. As extremely emotional beings, women may be seen as weak. And when emotion overrides logic, they can be seen as unintelligent. Although being emotional is nowhere near a bad characteristic, some stereotypes can make society think otherwise. Some of these attributes may not be prevalent in a woman’s head all the time, but there are ways that they can be triggered into becoming entertained.

Expectancy bias is a simple yet interesting concept. Say a sibling “never does anything wrong”, so when the mother sees the broken lamp, she automatically assumes it was the other sibling and grounds them, when it was really the other sibling. The mother expects it to be the other child being that the other one usually is well behaved. An expectation can really control the way we perceive and believe things.

A step further into expectancy bias is stereotype threat. Stereotype threat is a situational predicament in which people are or feel themselves to be at risk of conforming to stereotypes about their social group.

For example, Josh Aronson, a New York University professor, has done multiple studies based around expectancy bias and stereotype threat. A study (by Aronson) was done with high school students who were taking an AP calculus test. They were split up in to two different groups. One group was asked to confirm their gender before the test and the other afterwards. “Females who received the gender inquiry before the test scored an average AP Formula Score of 12.5, while males scored an average of 16.5. In the groups that received the gender inquiry after the test, females scored an average of 15, while males scored an average of 14.” (Anderson, 2011) Aronson’s study really sheds light on the importance of what we say and how.

They immediately start to think about the stereotypes about women and begin to subconsciously conform.These subtle triggers are everywhere and are causing women to become more incompetent in school and work without them even knowing it.

This occurs due to stereotypes created in the early 20th century. Women were not usually the ones going out and getting an education and making money for their family. Nowadays, women are very likely to be the bread winner of the family. Women have just as much potential and drive as men in their career of choice. Women and men are not the same, though. Each gender differs in their own way which is the reason why there is TWO genders, not one. “When women hear men say that women are not the same, they most likely hear that they are not equal, therefore hearing that they are less valued. Men, on the other hand, hear from women that they want equal treatment; however, men filter that to mean that they are ‘the same’.” (Torres, 2016)

We are not the same, yet we are equal. To think that we are not as good at something because of our gender is a very outdated way to think. There are different physical and emotional attributes that may favor one career, but this does not mean that the other gender is not equal or not as good. They could work a little bit harder and be just as good as the other.

“How Stereotypes Can Drive Women Away From Science,” by Shankar Vedantam is another article that proves stereotype threat in women is very real in the math or science field. Toni Schmader and Matthias Mehl are two experimenters who studied women and men at work. These subjects are math professors and were wired with a recording device while at work. The main thing Mehl was trying to record was the interaction between the female and male colleagues. This study was prompted by the fact that women are not only less likely to go in the science field, but less likely to stick with it. Women drop out of this type of career at a much higher rate then the male scientists.

The recording devices recorded 30 seconds of audio every 12 minutes. This was a good size sample for analyzing random and casual conversations between colleagues.

Mehl and Schmader immediately proved one stereotype wrong. They debunked the common thought that women talk a great deal more than men. “When Mehl actually measured how many words men and women speak each day, he found there was practically no difference — both men and women speak around 17,000 words a day, give or take a few hundred.” (Vedantam, 2012)

They also found that the more self conscious or worried a women was about whether or not a man (who they were conversing with) held the stereotype about women not being as competent in this particular field, the more incompetent they sounded.

When a woman spoke to another woman, they were fully engaged no matter what the topic was. Meanwhile, when a woman spoke to a man about work or research they were greatly disengaged. Though they could speak to males about other topics and be just as engaged as they would with another woman. Women who focus on the stereotype end up falling into the stereotype threat trap. They do not realize that their fear of not living up to expectations or their fear of being a stereotype, actually makes them a part of the stereotype.

Stereotype threat is caused by old ways of thinking and we must break through and eliminate all stereotypes to completely eradicate stereotype threat. Stereotype threat is a harmful thing to anybody’s life. Making somebody feel less than or not good enough AND making them act accordingly. It is a crazy concept, but is absolutely real and present in our lives. Society must create a better outlook on women if we want women to succeed to their full potential. Stereotype threat is a very dangerous thing, but with modern views and some perseverance, getting rid of stereotype threat will be simple.

References

Men and Women Are Equal, But Not The Same. (2016, March 15). Retrieved from                      http://nquotient.com/2016/03/men-and-women-are-equal-but-not-the-same/

Vedantam, S. (2012, July 12). How Stereotypes Can Drive Women To Quit Science.                       Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2012/07/12/156664337/stereotype-threat-why-women-quit-science-jobs/

Why Stereotype Threat Keeps Girls Out of Math and Science, and What to Do About It.              (2011, June 01). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from                                                                                http://theglasshammer.com/2011/06/01/why-stereotype-threat-keeps-girls-out-of-math-and-science-and-what-to-do-about-it/

Definition Argument Revised – PaulaJean

Stereotype threat is an interesting concept that not many are aware of. It is a very common phenomenon that unfortunately happens to everybody everywhere. Stereotype threat is simply defined as a situational predicament in which people are or feel themselves to be at risk of conforming to stereotypes about their social group. For example, there are a group of students, male and female, taking a standardized math/science test. Before they begin the test, the proctor asks them to fill in their gender on the sheet given to them. This immediately switches on a stereotype in the girls’ minds to which they subconsciously need to conform to.  Therefore, the girls in the room do worse than the boys.

In our society, stereotypes towards women are definitely not as prominent as they used to be. Decades ago, women were supposed to stay home to cook and clean and tend to the children. Since they were home all day, women weren’t in school and learning. Being 2018, more women have amazing educations and jobs which would not have been expected in the early twentieth century. From housewives to CEO’s, women are still affected by stereotypes from the past and the present. By confirming one’s gender prior to a math/science exam, the girls in the class mindlessly begin to conform to the stereotype that was preexisting in their head. Their performance on the test is not exactly accurate. A study done by Josh Aronson shows that women actually receive higher scores when they are not asked to confirm their gender until after the test is completed.

Stereotype threat is very dangerous thing. Society has increased its open-mindedness a great amount, but why are women (and other minorities as well) being demeaned just by mentioning a biological trait? Why are there still women in 2018 still believe that they are not smart enough to pursue a mathematical or scientific career? At this point in time it is hard to put blame on a single party for what is happening due to the passing down of certain beliefs in different cultures. Society could blame our ancestors but that would not do women any good because it is in the past.

Aforementioned, the definition of stereotype threat is a situational predicament in which people are or feel themselves to be at risk of conforming to stereotypes about their social group. To the people effected, though, it is so much more than just a predicament. It could be defined as an extremely inhibiting situation that many are not even aware of where stereotypes are brought to the surface and lead individuals to conform to them without their knowledge.

It is hard to blame somebody nor would that do women any good. Society can expose us to more powerful women. There are many powerful men in our society. Basically, our whole country is run by men. Little girls growing up in a world where all of the people in charge are men can really sway them the wrong way. Parents can tell their daughters about how powerful women can be, but it will be so hard for them to believe it when they don’t see it around them. When they don’t believe it, they will be affected by stereotype threat just as much as the older generations of women were.

In the study “Stereotype Threat and Women’s Math Performance,” done by Steve J. Spencer, Claude M. Steele, and Diane M. Quinn, different types of situations were created to see how the scores compared against both genders. “The aim of the present research has been to show that this threat can quite substantially interfere with women’s math performance, especially performance that is at the limits of their skills, and that factors that remove this threat can improve that performance.” (Spencer, Steele, & Quinn, 1999)

The study lead the experimenters to conclude when women are told prior to a test that this test was designed to have no gender differences, the women did better and the men did worse which was the opposite of what happened in the control group. That blunt reassurance that women have an equal chance to good on the test really effected their scores.

“How Stereotypes Can Drive Women Away From Science,” by Shankar Vedantam is an article about a study that was done by Toni Schmader and Matthias Mehl. They basically recorded parts of science professors days with a sound recording device. They found that women were not as engaged in a conversation with men (about work) then they were with other women (about anything). When the women would discuss things other than work and research with men they were perfectly engaged in the conversation. They only became disengaged when they were discussing work. Women became overwhelmed and actually started becoming the stereotype (in that conversation, not permanently). Being that the stereotype is women are not as competent in a math or science career, the women started sounding more incompetent than they were when conversing with their male colleagues.

All in all, women need to be depicted differently in society. Big changes are being made, but bigger changes are needed to eliminate this stereotype threat. Gender does not deem whether somebody will be sufficient in any given career. Both genders can work hard to become whatever they want in whatever field they want.

Stereotype threat will hopefully be eliminated completely in our society in the near future. Men and women will, hopefully, coexist as equals with no negative connotations to any one gender.

References

Spencer, S. J., Steele, C. M., & Quinn, D. M. (1999). Stereotype Threat and Women’s Math Performance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 35(1), 4-28. doi:10.1006/jesp.1998.1373

Vedantam, S. (2012, July 12). How Stereotypes Can Drive Women To Quit Science. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2012/07/12/156664337/stereotype-threat-why-women-quit-science -jobs

Why Stereotype Threat Keeps Girls Out of Math and Science, and What to Do About It. (2011, June 01). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from http://theglasshammer.com/2011/06/01/why-stereotype-threat-keeps-girls-out-of-math-and-science-and-what-to-do-about-it/

Bibliography – PaulaJean

1. Bartlett, T. (2013, January 30). Power of Suggestion. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from https://www.chronicle.com/article/Power-of-Suggestion/136907

Background: This article discusses power of suggestion and how it relates to the way people act after hearing certain things. It focuses on a certain study demonstrated to have people actually walk at a different pace due to words that they unscrambled.

How I Used It: I used this article for background information to form my own opinion and to use it as evidence within my research position paper. It really helped me prove my point on unconscious forces and how things that are said around you can effect your performance and actions. I learned that after hearing or seeing a word, somebody’s actions can literally changed without them knowing based on the subconscious focus on what was heard.

2. Expectancy Bias. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from https://psychlopedia.wikispaces.com/Expectancy Bias

Background: This article explains what expectancy bias is and certain examples of it. There is a research study and other facts about the concept.

How I Used It: Although brief, this source gave me a lot of background information to shape my thesis and research around. I learned that expectancy bias is a form of reactivity in which a researcher’s cognitive bias causes them to subconsciously influence the participants of an experiment.

3. Spencer, S. J., Steele, C. M., & Quinn, D. M. (1999). Stereotype Threat and Women’s Math Performance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 35(1), 4-28. doi:10.1006/jesp.1998.1373

Background: This article was about study where the experimenters tried to see if prior studies where women underperform on difficult tests but do fine on others occurred with the “highly selected” students that were chosen for this study. They conducted two experiments and concluded that stereotype threats really do effect the way women perform on difficult math tests.

How I Used It: I incorporated evidence from this article into my final research paper. I described the study and the results to further prove my point about stereotype threats. This study was really carefully designed to show that women are just as smart, but they are overwhelmed by the stereotype threat that surrounds them in math and science tests. The fact that it was so meticulously created shows a great amount of validity in the source.

4. Why Stereotype Threat Keeps Girls Out of Math and Science, and What to Do About It. (2011, June 01). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from http://theglasshammer.com/2011/06/01/why-stereotype-threat-keeps-girls-out-of-math-and-science-and-what-to-do-about-it/

Background: This article delves in deeper into stereotype threat and Josh Aronson’s study. Usually before taking an AP test, a proctor will ask the students to confirm their gender. (Presumably on the answer sheet with all of the other information.) Aronson wanted to see what would happen if they had the students do this after the test instead of before. When asked before, females had a lower average than the males. When asked after the test, the females actually had a higher average.

How I Used It: I used to article to provide more evidence about stereotype threats. I described the study and results. I also used this article to increase my knowledge on the concept before writing my paper.

5. Vedantam, S. (2012, July 12). How Stereotypes Can Drive Women To Quit Science. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2012/07/12/156664337/stereotype-threat-why-women-quit-science -jobs

Background: This article speaks to stereotype threat and women in science professions. Two experimenters, Toni Schmader and Matthias Mehl, put recording devices on male and female science professors. They figured this could show why and how women feel compelled to leave the field. They found that when women talked to women about work/life/etc., they were very engaged. When women talked to men about work, they were very disengaged. They were engaged, though, when talking to men about things that do not have to do with work or research. Mehl believes that the way to fix this is have more women in the field.

How I Used It: I used this article within my essay to show something other than math. Women are also “attacked” at work with these threats by the men around them. Using it really shows just how much women are in danger of the stereotype threat.

6. Reducing Stereotype Threat. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://teachingcenter.wustl.edu/resources/inclusive-teaching-learning/reducing-stereotype-threat/

Background: This article presents ideas on how to stop stereotype threat in the classroom. The author discusses different things to establish with students for teachers. Implementing a growth mindset, motivating feedback, and a sense of belonging will help reduce the threats from different stereotypes.

How I Used It: I believe that stereotype threat is a huge issue so including ways to prevent it is very important to me. This article gave me specific ways to stop the threats to include in my research paper and get the word out.

7. Rydell, R. J., Shiffrin, R. M., Boucher, K. L., Loo, K. V., & Rydell, M. T. (2010, August 10). Stereotype threat prevents perceptual learning. Retrieved from http://www.pnas.org/content/107/32/14042

Background: This article includes a study on how stereotype threat does not only effect performance, but the ability to learn in general.

Reflective Statement – PaulaJean

Core Value 1. My work demonstrates that I used a variety of social and interactive practices that involve recursive stages of exploration, discovery, conceptualization, and development.

My White Paper and my final research paper show how much my ideas and research have changed. I started with a very different topic then I ended up with. Throughout the semester, I have researched a lot about the placebo effect, confirmation bias, and stereotype threat which led me to my final thesis. I have had multiple drafts and forms of peer review from my classmates and professor. Feedback from my professor was a very important part of my success in my research position paper. I learned how to take the feedback and apply it to my next assignment and revisions. During the semester, my research has taught me a lot and prompted me to think differently than before this course.

Core Value 2. My work demonstrates that I read critically, and that I placed texts into conversation with one another to create meaning by synthesizing ideas from various discourse communities. 

A lot of my research included studies and experiments pertaining to my, at first, very broad topic. Majority of what I was doing “behind the scenes” was analyzing, comparing, and contrasting articles or journals to further strengthen my position in my final paper. I carefully selected journals that proved my point and provided different aspects of it to the reader. In my final research paper, a lot of my points are made by different studies. I used them and analyzed them to create a better final product. I did my best to read them and analyzing what the authors said rather than what I interpret it as. Synthesizing was something introduced to me in Comp I and further mastered in Comp II.

Core Value 3. My work demonstrates that I rhetorically analyzed the purpose, audience, and contexts of my own writing and other texts and visual arguments.

In my definition argument, I created one or two scenarios that could help my audience really grasp my topic and position. I figured out who my target audience is and carefully picked out certain sources and examples to demonstrate my side. As the course comes to an end, I really see a difference with my mechanics and grammar due to my professor’s time and effort into making sure we understood each concept. Not only did we review, but he would go over it multiple times throughout the semester as a reminder which was a very helpful tool. I learned how to use grammar, mechanics, and other elements to target my audience. Creating arguments using rhetorical strategies was something definitely  demonstrated throughout my work and especially my definition argument.

Core Value 4: My work demonstrates that I have met the expectations of academic writing by locating, evaluating, and incorporating illustrations and evidence to support my own ideas and interpretations.

Research is something I have been working on for a long time, and with each course I take, I improve. During my Comp II course, I really had to dig for some sources which challenged my research abilities. Although my causal argument contains one source, it was the best source to prove my point. This source was on my mind the whole time I was writing. I feel as if have improved my use of finding and citing sources in every course I take. (Comp I & Comp II, especially) Within one school year, I have been introduced to a completely new citing and formatting style. This was very difficult for me to transition to as my whole life I have used MLA formatting. With the help of multiple professors, though, I feel as if I have gotten pretty well acquainted with APA.

Core Value 5. My work demonstrates that I respect my ethical responsibility to represent complex ideas fairly and to the sources of my information with appropriate citation. 

Although I spoke to my success to academic honesty (or integrity) in CV4, there is much more to it than just citing your sources. I have learned to use close reading while evaluating other authors’ work. I focus on what they are saying rather than what your mind is telling you to interpret it as. I learned how to say what I think and feel and what other people think and feel (due to their work) while using differing voices to differentiate who is talking and whose claim it is. Other than this, I have gotten better at APA formatting. I have learned how to properly cite in-text and in a reference page. Academic integrity is a very important thing and I feel as if I really made good use of my sources in my final research paper.

 

Research – PaulaJean

From the beginning of time, women have been looked at as inferior to men in one way or another. As the stereotypes slowly diminish, people still find themselves with certain thoughts towards females, whether they are one or not.

Women are strong and independent, but this does not make them immune to expectancy bias and stereotype threat. As extremely emotional beings, women may be seen as weak. And when emotion overrides logic, they can be seen as unintelligent. Although being emotional is nowhere near a bad characteristic, some stereotypes can make society think otherwise. Some of these attributes may not be prevalent in a woman’s head all the time, but there are ways that they can be triggered into becoming entertained.

Expectancy bias is a simple yet interesting concept. Say a sibling “never does anything wrong”, so when the mother sees the broken lamp, she automatically assumes it was the other sibling and grounds them, when it was really the other sibling. The mother expects it to be the other child being that the other one usually is well behaved. An expectation can really control the way we perceive and believe things.

Josh Aronson, a New York University professor, has done multiple studies based around expectancy bias and stereotype threat. A study was done with high school students who were taking an AP calculus test. They were split up in to two different groups. One group was asked to confirm their gender before the test and the other afterwards. “Females who received the gender inquiry before the test scored an average AP Formula Score of 12.5, while males scored an average of 16.5. In the groups that received the gender inquiry after the test, females scored an average of 15, while males scored an average of 14.” (Anderson, 2011) Aronson’s study really sheds light on the importance of what we say and how.

In another study by John Bargh, a social psychologist at Yale University, he had NYU undergraduate students rearrange words into a sentence. The words appeared to be random, but they were not at all. “They were words like “bingo” and “Florida,” “knits” and “wrinkles,” “bitter” and “alone.” Reading the list, you can almost picture a stooped senior padding around a condo, complaining at the television. A control group unscrambled words that evoked no theme.” (Bartlett, 2013) After these students rearranged the words, there was a woman outside who appeared to be waiting for a meeting. She had a stopwatch hidden under her coat and timed how long it took for the subjects to get from outside the door to a specific spot marked by tape on the ground. The words above lead the subjects walk slower than the control group.

Just the words that were used resulted in people actually walking a different pace than normal. Knowing now that just the collection of words said changed a person’s actions, society should be careful with how they speak to people. For example, a proctor may say something that does not mean to be discouraging, but it could turn out to really affect the way a person takes a test.

This concept is demonstrated in multiple studies done by Steven J. Spencer, Claude M. Steele, and Diana M. Quinn. These individuals were interested in stereotype threats and women. More specifically, they wanted to see how different variables effected women and their performance on varying math tests. Within their research, there were three different studies done. The first study involved twenty-eight women and twenty-eight men who were introductory psychology students at the University of Michigan. There were also other criteria that needed to be met to be considered for this study. “All participants were required to have completed at least one semester (but not more than a year) of calculus and to have received a grade of ‘‘B’’ or better. They also were required to have scored above the 85th percentile on the math subsection of the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) or the ACT (American College Test).”

The first study involved the subjects taking a math test. They took either an easier test or a more difficult one, not knowing which one they were taking. This was to compare women’s and men’s scores on both levels of difficulty. Comparing these scores can show whether or not stereotype threat is present and if women are just not as intelligent as men. The tests were given on a computer to compare time and effort and see if that had anything to do with the results. In the first study, women did just as well as men on the easier test, but did significantly worse on the harder test. Although these students were selected carefully and are very sufficient in mathematics, the thought in the back of the women’s mind altered the way they took the test.

The second study was designed to see if mentioning that the exam is gender sensitive would effect the scores. They wrote a statement for the students to see before taking the test. This statement was put in place to see if mentioning the stereotypes will effect the results from the first study.

“As you may know there has been some controversy about whether there are gender differences in math ability. Previous research has sometimes shown gender differences and sometimes shown no gender differences. Yet little of this research has been carried out with women and men who are very good in math. You were selected for this experiment because of your strong background in mathematics.” (Spencer, Steele, & Quinn, 1999)

After reading this and taking the test, women averaged significantly less than they did in the first study, making the men the higher scorers in both studies so far. These results lead the experimenters to conclude that stereotype threat can most definitely lower a women’s score. In the third study, they had less highly selected subjects from a different college. The test given in this study was on paper and slightly easier than the tests from the first and second study. Before taking this test, they were asked to complete a questionnaire to evaluate evaluation comprehension, self-efficacy, and anxiety. One group of subjects was told there are no gender-differences on this test and the control group was not told anything about gender and how it relates to performance on math and science exams. The subjects who were told there are no differences came up with interesting results. The women did better in this group than they did in the control group. Men beat out the women in the control group as they did in the first two studies. Additionally, men actually did worse when told that there were no gender differences. Stereotype threat is everywhere and can always be altered.

“How Stereotypes Can Drive Women Away From Science,” by Shankar Vedantam is another article that proves stereotype threat in women is very real in the math or science field. Toni Schmader and Matthias Mehl are two experimenters who studied women and men at work. These subjects are math professors and were wired with a recording device while at work. The main thing Mehl was trying to record was the interaction between the female and male colleagues. This study was prompted by the fact that women are not only less likely to go in the science field, but less likely to stick with it. Women drop out of this type of career at a much higher rate then the male scientists.

The recording devices recorded 30 seconds of audio every 12 minutes. This was a good size sample for analyzing random and casual conversations between colleagues.

Mehl and Schmader immediately proved one stereotype wrong. They debunked the common thought that women talk a great deal more than men. “When Mehl actually measured how many words men and women speak each day, he found there was practically no difference — both men and women speak around 17,000 words a day, give or take a few hundred.” (Vedantam, 2012)

They also found that the more self conscious or worried a women was about whether or not a man (who they were conversing with) held the stereotype about women not being as competent in this particular field, the more incompetent they sounded.

When a woman spoke to another woman, they were fully engaged no matter what the topic was. Meanwhile, when a woman spoke to a man about work or research they were greatly disengaged. Though they could speak to males about other topics and be just as engaged as they would with another woman. Women who focus on the stereotype end up falling into the stereotype threat trap. They do not realize that their fear of not living up to expectations or their fear of being a stereotype, actually makes them a part of the stereotype.

A huge thing that goes along with discussing stereotype threat is talking about how to completely eliminate it from classrooms and work places. Anybody can be (and probably is) effected by stereotype threat. Promoting a growth mindset is very important. Making mistakes and thinking out loud should be encouraged and should be taken as chances to learn more. Effective feedback is also something that should be considered in classrooms everywhere. Most feedback is short and not helpful to some students and even demeaning. Effective feedback includes reassurance and shows areas where improvement is suggested. Teachers who call on students less and give them easier problems are making the stereotypes real. They are subliminally causing students to stop believing in themselves and causing them to be comfortable with the easy material rather than challenging themselves and learning. The threshold of leaning and retaining new material will never be met by keeping students discouraged or at a lower level just because they do not want to put in the extra work. Finally, creating a sense of belonging in the classroom like sharing experiences (anonymously or not) could help students feel more as one rather than a single stereotype that they do not even want to try to disprove.

Other factors outside of school that will eliminate stereotype threat could be having more women in the scientific field, mentioning that everybody has the same abilities when it pertains to gender, race, and/or ethnicity, and getting rid of the questions before the test that ask the students to confirm their gender or race.

Having more women in the field will make the other women more comfortable. The more women, the more validating it is for each female individual. As seen in the Mehl and Schmader study, women are more engaged when talking to women no matter what the topic is than when they were talking to men. Before a test or task, teachers or proctors should mention that everybody has a chance of doing good (no matter the demographics). Hearing this could give anybody more confidence, male/female, black/white, etc.. The questions before standardized tests that ask to confirm gender, race, and ethnicity actually make students who are effect by stereotype threat struggle more. Eliminating these or moving them to the end will create a more comfortable and fair for everybody.

Evidence even shows that stereotype threat can not only inhibit performance but also prevents people from learning new things. In a study done by Robert J. Rydell, Richard M. Shiffrin, Kathryn L. Boucher, Katie Van Loo and Michael T. Rydell, it was proven that women under stereotype threat had a harder time learning attention responses to targets. They used Chinese characters and tested how much the search rate increases/decreases for a whole training session. “For women not trained under ST, the presence of a trained target on one square slowed responding, indicating that training had caused the learning of an attention response to targets. Women trained under ST showed no slowing, indicating that they had not learned such an attention response.” (Rydell, Shiffrin, Boucher, Loo, and Rydell, 2010)

They also found that where the stereotype that women are not as good at math is where the women’s math performance is lower.

Women today are so much more than a stereotype. The fact that women are basically living their lives due to a false thought placed inside their heads by society is absolutely mind baffling. Stereotype threat is everywhere around us and the ways to prevent it are so simple.

Reference

Bartlett, T. (2013, January 30). Power of Suggestion. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from https://www.chronicle.com/article/Power-of-Suggestion/136907

Expectancy Bias. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from https://psychlopedia.wikispaces.com/Expectancy Bias

Reducing Stereotype Threat. Retrieved from http://teachingcenter.wustl.edu/resources/inclusive-teaching-learning/reducing-stereotype- threat/

Rydell, R. J., Shiffrin, R. M., Boucher, K. L., Loo, K. V., & Rydell, M. T. (2010, August 10). Stereotype threat prevents perceptual learning. Retrieved from http://www.pnas.org/content/107/32/14042

Spencer, S. J., Steele, C. M., & Quinn, D. M. (1999). Stereotype Threat and Women’s Math Performance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 35(1), 4-28. doi:10.1006/jesp.1998.1373

Vedantam, S. (2012, July 12). How Stereotypes Can Drive Women To Quit Science. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2012/07/12/156664337/stereotype-threat-why-women-quit-science -jobs

Why Stereotype Threat Keeps Girls Out of Math and Science, and What to Do About It. (2011, June 01). Retrieved April 18, 2018, from http://theglasshammer.com/2011/06/01/why-stereotype-threat-keeps-girls-out-of-math-and-science-and-what-to-do-about-it/

Grammar Exercise – PaulaJean

If primary caretakers have a negative attitude toward their child it increases the risk that their child will grow up hostile towards others. And it’s not just aggression toward others that results from child abuse; a large amount of children raised by abusive parents also harm themselves. This misbehavior is because the children don’t learn appropriate techniques for handling life’s disappointments. If children aren’t raised with coping skills, they’re much too likely to act “inappropriately” than if they have developed more reasonable approaches. The effect of poor parenting as reported by Dr. Geoffrey Dahmer in “The Bully Papers,” is that everyone gets the child they deserve.

Rebuttal – PaulaJean

-Raymond Nickerson blames ineffective medical procedures. If a patient recovered, doctors counted the treatment as successful instead of looking for alternative explanations. Example: The disease had actually just run it’s course but the treatment was still unsuccessful.

-Confirmation bias may also cause doctors to perform unnecessary medical procedures due to pressure.

-According to Aaron Beck, biased information processing is a factor in depression. He suggested that you treat every problem equally.

Phobias and Hypochondrias have been shown to involve confirmation bias for threatening information.

Confirmation bias is often described as a result of automatic, unintentional strategies rather than deliberate deception.

On social media, confirmation bias is amplified by the use of “algorithmic editing”, which shows individuals information that they are more likely to agree with, while excluding opposing views.

Nobody likes to be wrong…

Wording of a sentence triggers confirmation bias and allows the reader or audience to subconsciously believe that what’s said is true.

Prior goals or thoughts will influence how one reacts.

 

Reference

Arguing against confirmation bias: The effect of argumentative discourse goals on the use of disconfirming evidence in written argument. (2016, July 18). Retrieved March 19, 2018, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883035516300453

 

Safer Saws – PaulaJean5

2. Customers

2A. A testimonial from a SawStop customer: “This saw is everything I imagined the saw to be. It moves easily around in its stand. I feel safe using it.”

2B. This customer claims that the saw lives up to its standards.

2C. Type of claim: Evaluative

2D. I think this claim is valid as he states a reason why the saw is valuable and also adds in personal experience.

11. Amputees

11A. Hobbyist: “I’ve been doing this for years and never been hurt. That evening I spent 14 hours in surgery.”

11B. This individual is claiming that anybody can get hurt no matter how long you have been working with saws.

11C. Type of Claim: Ethical

11D. I think this claim is valid, but not complete. I think there needs more clarification on why the saw helped him. (or would help him)

5. Injured Plaintiffs

5A. “Every year, there are over 40,000 table saw injuries, resulting in more than 4,000 amputations.”

5B. This lawyer claims that out of all of the table saw injuries, 10% of them result in amputations.

5C. Type of Claim: Factual

5D. This claim is reasonable and definitely makes point.

2. Customers

2A. A customer stated, “I’m a happy camper and glad to recommend this saw to anyone. I am an Emergency Physician, and I’ve seen firsthand (no pun intended) several times over what a table saw can do to a hand- most recently last week. I didn’t need much convincing that I wanted a SawStop.”

2B. This customer is claiming that since he is a physician he knows what a table saw injury looks like.

2C. Type of Claim: Evaluative

2D. I think this claim is valid. The customer has experience on both sides of the situation as he is a doctor and uses a saw.

6. Personal Injury Lawyer

6A. “Only 20% of the injuries occur in people who are on the job, where injuries are usually covered by workplace accident insurance.”

6B. This lawyer is making the claim that 20% of the injuries occur in people who are on the job, which means the other 80% will most likely have to pay out of their own pockets for the injury they acquired.

6C. Type of Claim: Factual

6D. This claim is very valid and I think it makes a great point. Majority of the injuries caused by table saws are not going to get money to pay for their hospital costs.

 

Causal Argument First Draft – PaulaJean5

The World Around You is Creating a Biased Version of Yourself

Today, the placebo effect has been a big part of pharmaceutical trials. Placebos and their effect really only have had a place in medical facilities. But, once you dive in to the placebo effect and the way it affects our mind, there is a whole different side of placebos and the way we view them.

We are affected by unconscious forces 24/7. You may randomly be in a bad mood and not know why. This is most likely due to something you heard or saw without really taking notice to it. If you walked past a couple fighting, you may have noticed it and then let the thoughts pass. The feelings may have stayed with you , though. Although these two individuals arguing did not make you directly upset, you may have heard a word or phrase that subconsciously triggered a negative feeling in your mind. This may be because of certain stereotypes or different experiences in your life.

One study included two classes taking a standardized test. One class was asked to confirm their gender beforehand and one was asked to after. The class that got asked prior to taking the test had very interesting results. The girls in that particular class did worse than the girls in the other class while the boys did better than the others. This was due to stereotypes against certain genders. The females may have subconsciously felt inferior and created a lower self esteem before the test which led to a lower average grade than the other class. The males could have been reassured or had a boost in self esteem due to a male’s role in society being stereotypically and in some cases actually superior to a female’s. This was such a simple question yet had such an effect on their actions and results.

A lot of the things around you really impact what and how you do things.

References

S. (2011, June 02). Asking Students to Confirm Their Gender Before a Test Leads to Lower Scores for Girls, Higher for Boys. Retrieved February 27, 2018, from https://www.themarysue.com/gender-in-test-taking/

Visual Rewrite—PaulaJean5

Staring Contest, Discover The Forest

0:00-0:01

The first second of this video is an image of two deer. They are in the middle of a forest or some grassy area. The deer look like they are eating the grass. The scene is peaceful and very green. This picture is very natural.

0:01-0:02

The same picture of the deer, but the one on the right lifts its head up. I am assuming that somebody or something is looking at them. Maybe this person/animal/thing made a noise and this caused the deer to shift its attention so suddenly.

0:02-0:04

The image shifts from the two deer to a little girl and middle-aged man. The girl looks like she is in elementary or middle school while the man looks like he could be her father or uncle. They are behind a large log or fallen tree. By the look of their faces, they seem to be admiring what is in front of them. I assume that they are looking at the deer and are the reason the deer on the right to lift its head up towards something. They background is very dark and has multiple trees with not many leaves on them.

0:04-0:08

Again, the deer are shown. They look like they are standing closer together than in the previous scene of them, but this might be the angle of the camera. They are looking around still and the deer on the left lifts its head in the same direction that the other one did before. It looks like it is staring right into the camera.

0:08-0:10

Then we see the girl and man again. They are still behind the log/tree. You can really only see their faces and shoulders. The man is looking the left at something. The little girl is looking forward a little bit past where the camera would be.

0:10-0:13

The next image is the deer. The deer is moving his nose around and is looking straight at the camera. It looks a little bit intimidating to me. Everything is still except the deer’s nose.

0:13-0:14

Now we see the little girl again. She is smiling at the deer. Her eyes are very wide and her mouth is shut, but definitely smiling. The picture is focused only on her, the background is very blurry and gray.

0:14-0:16

The image is back to the deer. The picture is very close. The picture is only focused on the deer. It is still looking straight at the camera. Still pretty intimidating.

0:16-0:17

The picture is the girl, again. This seems like a face off between the deer and the girl. Maybe like it would be in a movie? She blinks and shakes her head a little bit. She starts to stand up and turn around quickly.

0:17-0:19

The two deer are in view now. The one on the right is facing the other deer. The other one is still looking straight ahead of it.

0:19-0:20

The deer on the left now turns his head toward the one on the right. The deer look like they are giving each other a look of confusion maybe. They have not run away from the little girl and the man. This leads me to think that they do not feel scared or threatened.

0:20-0:22

The girl now looks at her father/uncle/family member with joy. She looks at him, at the camera, and then back at him. The man is smiling and laughing. She looks like she just won something. Maybe a staring contest, due to the title.

0:22-0:24

Now we see the two deer. They look like they’re prancing/walking away.

0:24-0:30

The man and the girl are now walking in the opposite direction as if they were leaving too. The girl is skipping and laughing and holding the man’s hand who is looking down on her.