hypothesis posed, hypothesis tested

Kim Weeden sent me a guest post based on the post I wrote yesterday for Scatterplot.  I include it in full below.  At this rate we are moving toward A Unified Theory Of Sex Differences In Academia faster than most sociology journals can even get something under review.

 

In Jeremy’s last post, he offered this hypothesis, “Men are more likely than women to submit comments to journals that directly attack a paper that was previously published in that journal.” It so happens that I can offer some data that are relevant to the hypothesis. 

 

men are from mars, women are from venus: the sociology edition

Greetings from Australia, where I am on research leave.  I keep meaning to write to y’all about the extensive comparative authethnography I have done by this point of dining out in tipping versus non-tipping societies.  (Hint: anybody who tells you tipping doesn’t make a difference is either unobservant or an ideologue.)

Anyway, wanted to poke my head out of the socblog hidey-hole becuase of the report from Social Problems that included the observation men were more likely to appeal decisions than women.  First, I cannot imagine that this is not a more correct broader generalization about sex differences in likelihood of appeal.  We don’t get many appeals at TESS, but, for every example that comes to mind, it was a guy doing the appealing.  More to the point, though, I want to establish a claim for two ancillary hypothesis that I think are related to the idea that men and women respond differently to disciplinary stimuli, so I can say it was my idea if anybody actually looks at this someday:

Hypothesis 1:  Men are more likely than women to write the blind reviews of manuscripts that prompt authors to appeal.

Hypothesis 2:  Men are more likely than women to submit comments to journals that directly attack a paper that was previously published in that journal.

on teaching durkheim at the high holidays

Many Septembers I find myself teaching Durkheim right around the Jewish high holidays (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur). I’ve often felt a degree of connection between the two: the juxtaposition between ritual and scholarship that characterizes the high holiday services, the emphasis on separating the holy from the ordinary, the sacred from the profane. My point in this post is not to establish that Durkheim’s work is in some way essentially Jewish, but to highlight this affinity. I also want to emphasize that I am no expert in Judaism; these are impressions I’ve noticed.

happy sixth birthday scatterplot!

On this day in 2007 you were born! Time flies. 

junior theorists’ symposium

The Junior Theorists’ Symposium has been a really successful, exciting place to be for a good number of years now. Tell everyone you know to submit and attend!