An Example of Psychological Science's Failure to Self-Correct

Abstract

This paper illustrates the impact of the human element in the scientific process by presenting the history of Broverman, Broverman, Clarkson, Rosenkrantz, and Vogel (1970) , one of the most highly cited papers in psychology. Broverman et al. stimulated remarkable interest in sex bias among mental health professionals. Several articles published in major psychology journals demonstrated the paper's fatal flaws in the 2 decades following its publication. Nonetheless, Broverman et al. was accepted with little resistance. Broverman et al. continues to be cited as empirical support for the sex bias hypothesis among mental health professionals.