Sampling Bias and Gender

Sampling bias is a phenomenon in statistics in which a sample is collected in such a way that some members of the intended population are more likely to be included than others. With regard to gender, sampling bias refers specifically to the tendency for men to be included more often and consistently in experimental psychological and medical research than for women. This entry introduces sampling bias and discusses its specific implications on psychology research, as well as efforts to respond to and prevent sampling bias. The evidentiary basis of psychological research may be flawed due to an ongoing failure of research tools to consistently include gender differences when the designs and analyses are constructed. This flawed methodology creates a situation in which reporting bias can ...