Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

 
Module 1 
Psychologists at Work 
11
to the knowledge base and practices of psychology (Nelson, 2007; Peiro & Lunt, 2003; 
Stevens & Gielen, 2007). 
In the United States, women outnumber men in the fi eld, a big change from 
earlier years when women faced bias and were actively discouraged from becoming 
psychologists. Today, around three-fourths of new psychology doctorate degrees are 
earned by women. There is an active debate about whether, and how, to seek balance 
in the percentage of men and women in the fi eld (Cynkar, 2007; Frincke & Pate, 2004). 
The vast majority of psychologists in the United States are white, limiting the 
diversity of the fi eld. Only 6% of all psychologists are members of racial minority 
groups. Although the number of minority individuals entering the fi eld is higher than 
a decade ago—around 20% of new master’s degrees and 16% of new doctorate degrees 
are awarded to people of color—the numbers have not kept up with the dramatic 
growth of the minority population at large (Hoffer et al., 2005; Maton et al., 2006). 
The underrepresentation of racial and ethnic minorities among psychologists is 
signifi cant for several reasons. First, the fi eld of psychology is diminished by a lack 
of the diverse perspectives and talents that minority-group members can provide. 
Furthermore, minority-group psychologists serve as role models for members of 
minority communities, and their underrepresentation in the profession might deter 
other minority-group members from entering the fi eld. Finally, because members of 
minority groups often prefer to receive psychological therapy from treatment provid-
ers of their own race or ethnic group, the rarity of minority psychologists can dis-
courage some members of minority groups from seeking treatment (Bernal et al., 
2002; Bryant et al., 2005; Jenkins et al., 2003).