cultural bias

Question 1

Cultural Bias

Answer 1

tendency to ignore cultural differences and interpret all behaviour through the “lens” of your own culture

Question 2

Ethnocentrism

Answer 2

judging other cultures by the standards and values of your own culture

Question 3

Cultural relativism

Answer 3

the idea that social norms, values, behaviours etc can only be understood and interpreted within the context of individual cultures

Question 4

Collectivist cultures

Answer 4

those that value family and tradition and put others before themselves (China, Japan, India)

Question 5

Individualist cultures

Answer 5

those that value independence and autonomy of the individual (Uk, USA)

Question 6

culture bias - Asch, Milgram

Answer 6

• Classic social influence studies by Asch (conformity) and Milgram (obedience) were only conducted on (male) American students.
• People assumed that the results would be universal (i.e. humankind in general is very quick to conform and obey given the right circumstances.
• In fact, this research was culturally biased.
• In reality, when other researchers investigated the same phenomena all over the world, completely different results were obtained:

Question 7

collectivist vs individualistic cultures - smith + bond

Answer 7

Smith and Bond carried out a meta-analysis of conformity studies using the Asch paradigm and found vast differences between conformity levels in individualistic vs. collectivist cultures- with collectivist cultures being far more likely to conform.

Question 8

cultural relativism - Milgram

Answer 8

• Furthermore, when Milgram’s paradigm was tested across the world, particular cultures stood out as being much more or less obedient- with extremely high obedience levels in Germany and extremely low obedience levels in Australia.
• This shows the importance of CULTURAL RELATIVISM- that behaviour should always be measured and judged within its specific cultural context. Universality was NOT appropriate here.

Question 9

ethnocentrism - ainsworth’s strange situation

Answer 9

• This is a shining example of ETHNOCENTRISM- essentially a belief in the superiority of your own culture.
• Ainsworth emphasised that the ideal attachment type- secure- is always characterised by certain measurable behaviour in the strange situation- moderate distress on separation, instant joy on reunion etc, because this was the behaviour shown by the toddlers in her original American sample.
• It was soon revealed that the Strange Situation was a completely biased measure of attachment, appropriate ONLY in the culture in which it was developed.

Question 10

Imposed etic - ainsworth strange situation

Answer 10

• Ainsworth’s research is an example of IMPOSED ETIC in Psychology. She takes her own biased model and tries to IMPOSE it, inappropriately, on other cultures.
• German infants were judged as avoidant and their Mothers cold and rejecting when in actual fact they were merely independent, and did not react at separation or reunion. They were ACTUALLY still secure.
• Similarly, Japanese infants had NEVER been separated from their Mothers due to specific child-rearing practices in Japan, and so separation was so traumatic for these infants that they could not be calmed even at reunion- they looked resistant when they were not at all