Feminist Psychology: History, Practice, Research, and the Future

Detailing the field of feminist psychology since its origins, this book assesses its early figures, theory, and research as well as current and emerging theory and research and its associations with general feminist beliefs.

Feminist psychology developed as a reaction to historical psychological thought initiated by men who controlled the theory and research of the field. By holding all of society to "norms" based in male behavior, this so-called "masculine psychology" effectively assigned women lower societal status than men and had disturbing effects on women's health and self-esteem.

Feminist Psychology focuses on gender differences, social structure, and the values and principles of women's rights within the world's individual, social, and political spheres. Contrary to popular notion, feminist psychology does not involve man-hating, but instead focuses on loving the concept that women have equal potential to set and achieve goals and to contribute to society. In this volume, psychologist Vera Maass explains the history, theory, research, and current state of this growing field, which is becoming increasingly popular as colleges offer majors or concentrations in feminist psychology, and argues that women are both different from and equal to men.

• Assesses the behaviors, mental disorders, and mental health problems that may arise when studies are conducted on men alone
• Elucidates the errors, injustices, and consequences of gender bias
• Illustrates concepts through case studies
• Notes criticisms from the field's detractors to present an objective and fair view
• Includes a glossary of terms used throughout the text
• Directs readers to resources for further reading in an appended list