Gender and Culture bias Flashcards
(28 cards)
What does WEIRD stand for ?
Western
Educated
Industrialised
Rich
Democratic societies.
What is bias?
It happens when a psychologists pre-existing beliefs/viewpoints influence their theories/data interpretation.
Where can this bias stem from?
Personal experiences
Cultural background
Education
Political beliefs
Gender-related experiences
What is the issue with bias?
Research tends to be generalised to the understanding of all human behaviour.
However this has been shaped by the researchers perspectives/misconceptions. (May not be valid)
What is gender bias ?
Also known as Androcentricism
Researchers stereotypical views about female/male behaviour will affect their assumptions.
This leads to misrepresentations of actual behaviours.
(Incorrectly assuming gender differences)
(Overlooking gender differences)
What is Cultural bias?
Interpreting human behaviour based on findings from one culture’s norms/values.
This can come from an ethnocentric perspective
What is an ethnocentric perspective ?
Where researchers view their culture as superior/the standard.
Ignoring other cultures leading to a misrepresentation.
Research may not be generalisable to human behaviour.
What is universality ?
The assumption that observed behaviours apply to all humans regardless of personal differences.
(Gender-Culture-biological)
Alot of psychologists often discover a behaviour an claim it applies to everyone.
What is the problem with assuming something can be universalised ?
If a researchers hypothesis is tested on a non-diverse sample then the claim that it applies to all is an assumption and cannot be generalised.
What is an example of a behaviour that is truly universalised ?
Laughter
Reasons for finding something funny can change by culture but it is produced by speakers of all languages in all different societies.
(Babies can laugh before they can speak)
(Not learnt but is innate)
What is one reason why some psychological research cannot be universalised?
Multiple participants in studies are WEIRD
These studies tend to have a sampling bias with many being opportunity samples making most participants western psychology students.
(A lot of research is conducted in the UK/US)
What is gender bias ?
(Androcentrism) (Androcentric)
Theories/Psychologists reflect and support a male-centric view of the world.
More psychologists that developed the theories were male. (Freud)
The imbalance can be seen when learning about psychology. (More male psychologists referenced)
The spec has upto 32 males and only 4 females
There are none who are not of white european descent.
Males
Zimbardo - Social influence
Asch - Social influence
Harlow - Attachment
Lorenz- Attachment
Pavlov- Behaviourist - Classic conditioning
Skinner - Behaviourists - Operant conditioning
Females
Mary Ainsworth - Attachment
Sandra Bem - Gender
What are the 2 kinds of bias in regards to gender ?
Alpha bias
Beta bias
What is Alpha bias?
Assumption that there are differences in behaviour between genders.
Exaggeration of these differences
What is Beta bias?
Assumption that there are not differences in behaviour between genders.
Underestimating/minimising actual behavioural differences.
What is an example of Alpha Bias
Bowlby
Bowlby’s monotropic theory - Attachment
Over emphasise the role of the mother in infants development over the father’s role.
Bias likely caused by the time it was created which would have impacted views of gender roles.
(1950s) - Lack temporal validity
Problem is that it would have made families who were not traditional to feel inadequate.
What is an example of Beta bias?
Milgram - original study - Obedience study
Asch’s - conformity study
Included only male participants
Focus on obedience to male authority figures.
Overlooking responses females may have had.
Asch’s study only included male participants
(Sample bias)
What did the use of male samples in Milgram and Asch’s study ignore?
The possibility of gender-specific differences.
Influenced by societal norms of the time
(A belief that male subjects would result in more generalisable results)
What is an example of a theory that has beta bias?
The psychodynamic approach
Freud only spoke about boys in his ideas about the unconscious mind.
What is culture bias?
When human behaviour is interpreted/judged only from one culture’s norms/values/experiences.
May not apply to people outside of that culture.
(Individualist cultures vs Collectivist cultures)
What could culture bias effect ?
How we diognose people with different disorders
E.G. - Schizophrenia/Aggression
Schizophrenia - Some cultures it is normal to hear voices seen as ancestors speaking to them.
Aggression - In some cultures people may shout more (caribbean) but not mean they are aggressive.
What is a category failure?
Western definitions of mental health are inappropriately applied to non-western populations.
In west indies normal to hear voices
In Uk not normal
What is ethnocentrism ?
Researchers think their own culture is superior to another and so use it as a standard.
