Cultural Bias Flashcards
What is culture bias?
A tendency to ignore cultural differences and interpret all phenomena through the lens of one’s own culture- this distorts your judgment
What is ethnocentrism?
Judging other cultures by the standards and values of one’s own culture- refers to the belief of superiority of one’s own culture
What is an etic approach?
Looks at behaviour from outside of a given culture and attempts to describe those behaviours that are universal- doesnt take into account cultural differences
What is an emic approach?
Looks at behaviours within certain cultures and identifies behaviours that are specific to that culture
What is an example of an emic approach?
Afrocentrism- a movement which proposes that all black people have their roots in africa and therefore psychological theories concerning them must be African centered
What is cultural relativism?
The view that behaviour cannot be judged properly unless it is viewed in the context of the culture in which it originates
What is an emic construct?
They believe there is no cultural difference
What is imposed etic?
Where you impose the judgments and values of your own culture on another
What us an example of culturally biased research?
Ainsworth strange situation
How has contemporary psychology attempted to become more open-minded towards other cultures?
Academics hold international conferences with researchers from different countries to discuss and exchange ideas
What are the two strengths of Cultural bias?
Cultural relativism leads to awareness- Emic approaches help to challenge the western ways of thinking. It could help to raise awareness of cultural differences and reduce discrimination. E.G Ainsworth imposed etic of the strange situation led to Ijzendoorn’s more emic study, this improved knowledge about cultural differences in the impact of in child rearing practices
Counter- some people disagree that a completely emic approach is is the best way to help psychology develop. Although it can help us understand different cultures it makes it difficult to establish general laws which are easier to follow when treating mental disorders.
The worldwide psychology community- Psychologists travel much more than they used to and are significantly more open-minded. this means they have an increased understanding of other cultures. Academics hold international conferences where researchers from many different countries and culture regularly meet to discuss and exchange ideas.
What are the two limitations of cultural bias?
Indigenous psychologies- one way to counter ethnocentrism is to encourage indigenous psychologies= the development of different groups of theories in different countries. E.G afrocentrism: a movement which proposes that all black peoples have their roots in Africa and therefore psychological theories concerning such people must be African-centred and express African values. It disputes the view that European values are universally appropriate descriptions of human behaviour.
Counter- It should not be assumes that all psychology is culturally relative. Research has suggested that basic facial expressions for emotions are the same all over the human and animal world. Ainsworth research has shown that some features of human attachment (imitation and interactional synchrony) are universal.
social implications of cultural bias- culturally biased research helps to reinforce stereotypes. E.G the US army IQ test used just before the firs world war showed that European immigrants fell slightly below white Americans in terms of IQ and African Americans were at the bottom of the scale with the lowest mental age. This had profound effects on the negative attitudes held by Americans towards this group of people.
