Issues and Debates Flashcards
Gender Bias - Alpha Bias
Differences between the sexes are real, enduring, fixed and inevitable. These may enhance/ undervalue members of either sex, typically females.
E.G. Wilson: Sociobiological theory of relationship formation - Sexual promiscuity in females seen as going against their nature, females preserve genes, males try to impregnate as many women as possible.
Gender Bias - Beta Bias
Ignoring or minimising differences between sexes (such as not including women in research).
E.G. Fight or Flight response - based exclusively on male animals as female hormones fluctuate.
Taylor et al: female biology has evolved to inhibit the fight or flight response. Females exhibit a tend and befriend response governed by the hormone oxytocin.
Gender Bias - Androcentrism
Consequence of beta bias. Female behaviour is misunderstood and even pathologised. Normal behaviour is judged according to a male standard.
Feminists object to pre-menstrual syndrome - medicalises female emotions, such as anger. But male anger is seen as a rational response to external pressures.
Evaluation of Gender Bias
✗ Gender biased research validates discriminatory practices - may provide a scientific justification to deny women opportunities within the work place/ wider society.
✗ Promotes sexism in research process - male researchers are more likely to have work published. Creates a bias in theory and research.
✓ Understanding of gender bias leads to reflexivity - may lead to greater awareness of the role of personal bias in shaping future research - embracing bias as an important aspect of the research process.
✗ Worrell argues gender bias can be avoided - women should be studied in meaningful, real-life contexts, genuinely participate, and have diversity in groups of women.
Cultural Bias
Psychological research often ignores differences between cultures.
- In 1992, 64% f the world’s 56,000 psychologists were American, most studies were conducted in America.
- Universality is assumed for results of Western research. Cultural differences in behaviour are seen as ‘abnormal’ and ‘inferior.’
Cultural Bias - Ethnocentrism
The belief in superiority of one’s own culture. Any behaviour that doesn’t conform to the (usually Western) model is deficient or underdeveloped.
Cultural Bias - Ainsworth’s Strange Situation
- Reflected only norms and values of American culture in attachment research. Misinterpretation of child-rearing practices in other countries which deviate from American norms.
E.G German mothers = cold, rejecting, rather than encouraging independence.
Cultural Bias - Respecting Cultural Relativism
Norms and values can only be meaningful and understood within specific social and cultural contexts.
Cultural Bias - Berry (1969)
- An ETIC approach looks at behaviour from outside a given culture and identifies behaviours that are universal.
- An EMIC approach functions from within certain cultures and identifies behaviours specific to that culture.
e.g. Ainsworth’s research = imposed etic.
Evaluation of Cultural Bias
✗ Distinction between individualism and collectivism - individualist cultures (US) value the individual and independence. Collectivist cultures (India) value the group and interdependence. However, this is too simplistic.
- Takano and Osaka found 14/15 studies comparing the US and Japan found no evidence of a distinction between the two types of culture.
✓ Cross-cultural research challenges Western assumption - promotes greater sensitivity to individual differences and cultural relativism. Conclusions are likely to have more validity if they recognise the role of culture.
✗ Cross-cultural research is prone to demand characteristics - in cultures without historical experience of research, local populations may be more affected by demand characteristics than Western participants - threatens validity.
Free Will
Humans can make choices and aren’t determined by biological/ external forces.
E.G. Humanistic approach.
Hard Determinism
(Fatalism) implies free will isn’t possible - all human behaviour is caused by internal or external events beyond our control.
E.G. Skinner - Free Will is an illusion.
Soft Determinism
All human action have causes, but behaviour can also be determined by our conscious choices.
Biological Determinism
Control from physiological (influence of autonomic nervous system on anxiety), genetic (mental disorders), hormones (role of testosterone in aggression) factors.
Environmental Determinism
We are determined by conditioning.
E.G. Bandura: children with violent parents are likely to become violent themselves, as a result of observation and imitation.
Psychic Determinism
Behaviour caused by unconscious conflicts that we cannot control.
E.G. Freud - unconscious conflicts repressed in childhood. Human behaviour is a result of innate drives (id, ego, superego).
