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I think the term is meant to draw attention to the fact that most study populations in psychology meet all of these criteria (a disproportionate number are col
by marchenko 8y ago
I think the term is meant to draw attention to the fact that most study populations in psychology meet all of these criteria (a disproportionate number are college students, for example) and are statistically unrepresentative of the majority of humanity. Therefore their responses should be interpreted/extrapolated with caution - they are demographically "weird". It's not really intended to cast aspersions on the people themselves.
- Avshalom 8y agoYeah, I don't know if it's the origin of the phrase but College Students Are WIERD is the popularizer. The point being that a bunch of psychology undergrads taking surveys because it's required of them is not necessarily a good way to draw conclusions about the species.