Cultural and Gender Issues Flashcards
(92 cards)
Define ‘gender bias’.
When ideas about a gender is misrepresented.
Define ‘gender stereotypes’.
Labels that can be false that present someone in a certain way, attributing certain qualities to them based on their gender.
Give an example of a psychologist who is known for their gender stereotypes.
Freud argued that anatomy is destiny and so the psychological differences between men and women is due to their anatomy.
Who suggested that there were two types of gender bias?
Hare-Mustin and Maracek (1990)
Define ‘alpha bias’.
When the differences between men and women is exaggerated.
Define ‘beta bias’.
When the difference between men and women is minimised.
Give an example of when alpha bias can occur as the most dominant.
A paper being more likely to publish significant findings than non significant ones and so exaggerates the extent of gender differences.
Define ‘methodological gender bias’.
When the design of the research biases the chance of the researcher obtaining particular findings about a gender.
Identify a psychologist who supports methodological gender bias.
Bjorkqcist (1992) found that boys displayed more physical aggression than girls but girls showed significantly more indirect aggression which suggests males are more aggressive due to the tasks that demonstrate this however this may not be true.
Define ‘culture’.
A way of life defined by a set of norms and values that a group of people share.
Describe cross-cultural research and why they’re used.
- More than one culture is studied by reproducing a procedure in multiple countries
- This allows for comparison to each other in which we can establish is behaviour is nurture if there are differences or nature if there are similarities
Identify 2 strengths of cross-cultural research.
1) High generalisability as it often studies multiple countries allowing high representatives of behaviours differing in other countries
2) High validity as the researchers are made aware of cultural differences and so would be sensitive to subjective interpretation
Identify 2 weaknesses of cross-cultural research.
1) Low reliability if there is miscommunication issues in different countries leading to inconsistencies in data gathered
2) Low validity due to the researcher still having preconceptions from their own social norms which would bias their interpretation of behaviour they don’t understand
Define ‘ethnocentric’.
When an individual judges someone else’s culture based on the perception that their own norms and values are superior.
How might ethnocentrism bias research?
- It can lower the validity as there may be elements of subjectivity in researcher bias when they define behaviours in other cultures
- These could be misinterpreted that could present a culture in an overly positive or negative way
Define ‘cultural relativism’.
The belief that the norms and values of a culture cannot be fully understood in other languages due to being specific to that culture and so to understand an individuals beliefs and behaviours it must be seen in terms of their culture.
Define ‘emic research’.
- Cultural-specific behaviours
- Explaining behaviour using native concepts
- Studying behaviour only within a culture producing findings within it
Define ‘etic research’.
- Universal behaviours that appear in a range of cultures
- Assumes that a particular behaviour is common but that cultural factors affect the display of those behaviours
- Produces findings that can be applied to a range of cultures
Identify a strength of researching culture affecting behaviours.
Ethnocentrism can be avoiding by allowing the researcher to immerse themselves within the culture being studied meaning higher validity due to a higher understanding of that culture’s beliefs and behaviours.
Identify a weakness of researching culture affecting behaviours.
With etic research, the same procedures and measures are used for different cultures which may not be valid assessments of behaviours in certain cultures, draining the meaning from the behaviour of that culture.
Identify a topic which can explain gender and cultural similarities and differences in Cognitive Psychology.
Memory
Describe the 2 memory models that suggest a difference in gender and memory in Cognitive Psychology.
1) Tulving’s theory as different genders may experience different episodic memories based on their gendered lives (e.g. Girls will lack episodic memories of shaving)
2) Schematic theory as different genders experience different things that form different schemas as a result due to having experienced different ideas of what a situation will be like
Evaluate the 2 memory models that argue a difference in memory as a result of gender in Cognitive Psychology.
1) Tulving’s theory is supported by the case study of KC whose hippocampus was destroyed as a result of a motorcycle accident leaving his episodic memory impaired but semantic memory intact
2) Brewer and Treyans’s (1989) study rejects Schematic theory due to finding that ppts recalled unusual objects in an office environment due to their uncommonness in that situation (e.g. a skull)
Describe why Cognitive Psychology argue there isn’t a difference in memory as a result of gender.
Memory is considered universal and so wouldn’t be affected by dispositional or environmental variables.