issues and debates

Question 1

universality

Answer 1

Any behaviour that is capable of being applied to all, despite differences of experience and upbringing

Question 2

gender bias

Answer 2

Psychological research or theory may offer view that doesn’t represent the experience and behaviour of men or women

Question 3

androcentrism

Answer 3

Male-centred, when ‘normal’ behaviour judged according to male standard so female behaviour is ‘abnormal’

Question 4

alpha bias

Answer 4

Research focuses on differences in men and women which tends to present a view that exaggerates them

Question 5

alpha bias example

Answer 5

Freud psychosexual development- girls identification with same-gender parent weaker meaning superego weaker making girls morally inferior to men

Question 6

beta bias

Answer 6

Researchers focuses on similarities between men and women, presents view that ignores or minimises differences

Question 7

beta bias example

Answer 7

E.g fight or flight, research favoured male animals and just assumed both respond the same. However, tend and befriend later discovered

Question 8

cultural bias

Answer 8

Interpret phenomena through lens of one’s culture ignoring effects of cultural differences on behaviour

Question 9

ethonocentrism

Answer 9

Judging others cultures by the standards and values of own. Believe own culture superior which leads to prejudice and discrimination.

Question 10

ethnocentrism example

Answer 10

E.g Ainsworth’s strange situation classed ideal attachment type as secure attachment however didn’t fit in with other cultures norms

Question 11

cultural relativism

Answer 11

Norms and values can only be meaningful and understood within specific social and cultural contexts

Question 12

emic

Answer 12

refers to research that studies within one cultural context

Question 13

etic

Answer 13

refers to research that studies cross-cultural differences

Question 14

imposed etic example

Answer 14

Strange situation- studied in American culture and assumes it could be applied universally

Question 15

free will

Answer 15

humans are free to make choices,
there are biological and environmental influences on our behaviour BUT free will implies we can reject them

Question 16

which approach uses free will

Answer 16

humanistic approach

Question 17

determinism

Answer 17

behaviour outside of our control, due to internal or external factors which we have no control over

Question 18

Hard determinism

Answer 18

Suggests that all human action has a cause, and it should be possible to identify these causes

Question 19

Soft determinism

Answer 19

Suggests that all behaviour has a cause but people have freedom to make choices within a restricted range of options

Question 20

Biological determinism

Answer 20

Behaviour determined by biological factors
The biological approach describes many causes of behaviour e.g the influence of the ANS on stress or the influence of genes in mental health

Question 21

Environmental determinism

Answer 21

Skinner described free will as an ‘illusion’ and all behaviour as a result of conditioning. Our experience of ‘choice’ is the sum total of reinforcement contingencies that have acted upon us throughout our lives

Question 22

Psychic determinism

Answer 22

Freud emphasised the influence of biological drives and unconscious conflicts repressed in childhood

Question 23

nature

Answer 23

Early nativists argued that human characteristics are innate as a result of our genes

Question 24

nurture

Answer 24

Empiricists argue the mind is a blank slate at birth and is shaped by interaction with the environment (behaviourism)

Question 25

interactionist approach

Answer 25

the view that both nature and nurture work together to shape human behaviour

Question 26

example of how nature and nurture interact

Answer 26

Neuroplasticity- changes in the structure of the brain (nature), as a result of life experience (nurture). E.g, Maguire concluded that driving a taxi (nurture) actually had an effect on the size of the hippocampi (nature)

Question 27

diathesis stress model

Answer 27

Behaviour is caused by a biological vulnerability but only expressed when coupled with an environmental trigger (stressor)

Question 28

epigenetics

Answer 28

behaviours and environment can cause changes to how your body reads a DNA sequence

Question 29

Holism

Answer 29

looks at the system as a ‘whole’ and doesn’t think subdividing behaviour is appropriate

Question 30

limitation of holism

Answer 30

lacks scientific evidence

Question 31

strength of holism

Answer 31

easy to understand

Question 32

Biological reductionism

Answer 32

reduce behaviour to a physical level and explain it in terms of neurons, neurotransmitters, hormones, brain structure, etc

Question 33

Reductionism

Answer 33

seeks to analyse behaviour by breaking it down into its constituent parts

Question 34

Levels of explanation

Answer 34

1)Socio cultural level
2)Psychological level
3)Physical level
4)Environmental/behavioural
5)Physiological level
6)Neurochemical level

Question 35

strengths of reductionism

Answer 35

-objective
-greater clarity
-parsimonious (simple explanation often the best)

Question 36

limitation of reductionism

Answer 36

-oversimplifies complex behaviour leading to reduced validity as you ignore the complex interaction of many factors

Question 37

idiographic approach

Answer 37

suggest that psychology should be the study of individuals

Question 38

what approaches is the idiographic approach most widely associated with

Answer 38

the psychodynamic and humanistic approach

Question 39

what type of data does the ideographic approach use

Answer 39

qualitative research for example, research on depression would be based on first hand accounts from a small number of people. Ppts would be interviewed in depth using unstructured interviews.

Question 40

nomothetic approach

Answer 40

suggests we should study large and varied groups in order to make generalised laws

Question 41

what type of data does the nomothetic approach use

Answer 41

uses quantitative research by studying groups of people and formulating hypotheses. Structured questionnaires are used to make it easier to interview group of people and the numerical data that us collected is analysed to see if it has an statistical significance. This idea is mostly used in behaviourist and biological approach

Question 42

strength of the idiographic approach compared to nomothetic

Answer 42

provides more in depth data to analyse as opposed to the nomothetic approach that only provides data with less depth to analyse

Question 43

similarities with nomothetic and ideographic

Answer 43

both approaches use scientific method which give them credibility

Question 44

strength of the nomothetic approach compared to idiographic

Answer 44

the data gathered can be used to make generalisations unlike the idiographic idea

Question 45

ethical issues

Answer 45

Informed consent
Deception
Protection from harm
Privacy
Confidentiality

Question 46

example of ethical implications

Answer 46

Milgram wanted to find out if the Germans in WW2 were an evil race or if in fact anyone would behave in a similar way when faced with an authority figure.
His findings had positive implications for society (and Germans) because he showed that anyone was capable of such acts. This could have reduced discrimination/racism

Question 47

what are ethical implications

Answer 47

the consequences that psychological research (studies/theories) may have

Question 48

what are the ethical implications of Bowlby’s research

Answer 48

Had an impact on child rearing practices
Told us a lot about the impact of parenting on a child’s future
But has reinforced the notion that a mothers place is at home (not at work) this can lead to guilt for mothers who want to go back to work or judgement from others.

Question 49

Socially sensitive research (SSR)

Answer 49

any psychological research that has potential social consequences for participants or the group(s) being represented by the research.