Feminism in psychology: Aotearoa/New Zealand and beyond

Abstract

In response to an invitation to contribute to an ongoing feature on contemporary feminist thought in Aotearoa/New Zealand, this article provides an overview of some key aspects of feminist psychology. Feminist psychologists have had a strong influence in the improvement of the status of women in Aotearoa/New Zealand and elsewhere in areas such as addressing domestic violence. Feminist psychologists have also been influential in the development of research methods for exploring feminist issues, for example, discourse analysis and conversation analysis. This paper provides an overview of some key psychological contributions to feminist scholarship, with a particular focus on the work of New Zealanders. It includes a brief disussion of the context, both within academia and more broadly, before moving on to specific areas of endeavour, including the development of research methods and research into violence, body image, objectification and sex, and mental health.