The Finkbeiner test, named for the science journalist Ann Finkbeiner, is a checklist to help science journalists avoid gender bias in articles about women in science. It asks writers to avoid describing women scientists in terms of stereotypically feminine traits, such as their family arrangements.

It resembles but was not inspired by the Bechdel test, a measure of women's representation in fiction. The Finkbeiner test has been linked to affirmative action, because writing can cause readers to view women in science as different from men in negative or unfair ways. The test helps avoid gender bias in science reporting similar to various Bechdel tests that focus on under-representation of marginalized groups in different career fields.

 

Note:   The above text is excerpted from the Wikipedia article Finkbeiner test, which has been released under the GNU Free Documentation License.