Clinical Judgment: A Search for Sex Differences

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Abstract
Two studies investigated the effects of sex differences on clinical judgments. In Study I, 50 male and 50 female college students evaluated self-disclosing statements attributed to seriously disturbed psychiatric patients of both sexes. Judgments of emotional maladjustment were not influenced by sex of patient or judge. In Study II, 80 psychologically more knowledgeable judges read eight case studies and evaluated the patients in terms of degree of maladjustment, need for psychiatric intervention, and prognosis. Sex of patient had no effect on any of these judgments. Sex of judge frequently influenced judgments of need for intervention. No effect of Sex of Patient × Sex of Judge was observed. Discussion emphasized that sex-related bias in clinical judgments is not all-pervasive and that sex of patient rarely elicits bias by itself. The finding that women consistently perceive a greater need for intervention than do males is provocative but requires more precision in defining the types of intervention on which judges of both sexes differ.

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