Gina Rippon

Education

Rippon gained her PhD in 1982.

Research

Rippon's research involves the application of brain imaging techniques, particularly electroencephalography,(EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) using cognitive neuroscience paradigms to studies of normal and abnormal cognitive processes. This work has been applied to the study of Autistic Spectrum Disorders and to developmental dyslexia.

Criticism of 'neurotrash'

Rippon is critical of what she sees as the misrepresentation and hijacking of neuroscience, what she calls 'neurotrash'. "The logic of their argument is that males and females are biologically different, men and women are behaviourally different, so their behavioural differences are biologically caused and cannot and, more importantly, should not be challenged or changed. I aim to... produce a guide to spotting such ‘neurononsense’."

As an example she describes how a report examining new ways to look at the brain, considering pathways and connections, rather than structures, was used by the Daily Mail to infer that women and ethnic minorities are inferior.

Books which Rippon cites as examples of neurotrash include:

• Allan and Barbara Pease's "Why Men Don't Listen and Women Can't Read Maps"
• Anne Moir's and David Jessel's "Brain Sex: the Real Difference Between Men and Women"
• Louann Brizendine's "The Female Brain"
• Michael Gurian's "Boys And Girls Learn Differently!"
• Simon Baron-Cohen's "The Essential Difference"

She would like people to question research findings from neuroscientists in terms of effect size, she is critical of neuroscientists who describe slight statistical differences between the genders as significant differences in their findings. Rippon also says, if you are going to look at brain volume differences then you need to know how heavy and how tall those people are – a volume correction, otherwise the data is meaningless, and not all researchers, she says, do that. Another worry for Rippon is a publication bias, that publishers will only publish when a difference is found rather than publishing research proving there are no differences.

Neurotrashers, she says, "extrapolate wildly" and such science can be used for "social engineering" to reinforce perceived male and female roles and status, an example of the kind argument she feels could be deployed is, "You are what your brain can do, and if your brain can’t do tricky things like running a country, designing a bridge, starting a war, you shouldn’t try and society shouldn’t let you."

Rippon is also opposed to the "continued emphasis on 'essentialist', brain-based explanations in both public communication of, and research into, many forms of gender imbalance."

Media appearances

Rippon has appeared on a number of media broadcasts within the UK discussing the neurosciences in terms of the male and female brain, such as the Horizon programme, Is your Brain Male or Female? BBC Radio 4's Today programme alongside professor Robert Winston, and No More Boys And Girls: Can Our Kids Go Gender Free? for the BBC.