Doing Psychology In Unsettled Times

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2022

Published In

Reflections From Pioneering Women In Psychology

Abstract

I entered the discipline of psychology in an era of cultural, social, and political upheavals – the dramatic uptake of feminism, campus opposition to US involvement in Vietnam, and mobilization for racial justice and civil rights. Women’s presence was not welcome in the academy. As a junior professor, I studied gendered power relations and women’s experiences of inequitable treatment – issues curtly dismissed by mainstream psychologists as unscientific. Colleagues in Feminist Studies introduced me to the 1980s “turn to language” and to critical science studies. Collaborative endeavors in Sweden, the UK, Norway, and Sri Lanka led me to question the quantitative imperative of US psychology and the presumption that Western-centric ways of being were universal. With the editorial team of Feminism & Psychology and as coauthor of Making a Difference, Gender and Culture in Psychology, and Doing Interview-Based Qualitative Research, I worked with colleagues to put forward alternate ways of doing psychology.

Published By

Cambridge University Press

Editor(s)

J. Bookwala and N. J. Newton

Comments

This material has been published in Reflections From Pioneering Women In Psychology, edited by Jamila Bookwala and Nicky J. Newton. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution or re-use. © Cambridge University Press 2022.

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