gender and culture

Question 1

define gender bias

Answer 1

the differential treatment or representation of men and women based on stereotypes rather than real differences

Question 2

define androcentrism

Answer 2

the central focus on males

Question 3

define alpha bias

Answer 3

a tendency to exaggerate differences between men and women, suggesting that there are real and enduring differences between the two sexes. the consequences are that theories devalue one gender in comparison to the other, typically devaluing women

Question 4

example of alpha bias: Freud

Answer 4

psychodynamic explanations for offending behaviour suggests that criminality occurs due to a deviant superego. according to Freud, since females do not experience castration anxiety, they are under less pressure and have less of a need to identify with the moral standards of their same-sex parents compared to males.
this suggests that females, in line with the psychodynamic approach, are less moral than males

Question 5

examples of alpha bias: Wilson

Answer 5

Wilson’s sociobiological theory of relationship formation suggests that sexual promiscuity in males is genetically determined, whereas promiscuous females are going against their ‘nature’.
Females, from an evolutionary standpoint, need to be more selective when choosing their mates, due to having a limited supply of eggs and requiring more energy and effort to reproduce, compared to men.
therefore, such alpha bias may lead to prejudice and stereotyping of women who engage in these behaviours

Question 6

define beta bias

Answer 6

a tendency to ignore or minimise differences between men and women. such theories tend to ignore questions about the lives of women, or insights derived from studies of men will apply equally well to women

Question 7

example of beta bias: Kolhberg

Answer 7

Kolhberg’s levels of moral reasoning theory was developed on the basis of studying groups of American males, who all answered questions based on moral dilemmas e.g. the Heinz dilemma.
these results were then generalised to represent levels of moral reasoning for both men and women

Question 8

example of beta bias: Shelley and Taylor

Answer 8

early research conducted into the fight or flight response exclusively used male lab mice because they experience fewer hormonal fluctuations and so changes in adrenaline, due to environmental stressors, could be more reliably measured.
however, results from these studies were then generalised to females, ignoring differences between the two sexes (e.g. speed and extent of the fight or flight response)
Shelley and Taylor (2000) challenged this, they provided evidence that females produce a ‘tend and befriend’ response at times of stress which is adaptive as it ensures the survival of the offspring.
this beta bias meant that a real difference was ignored

Question 9

evaluation of gender bias

Answer 9

• gender bias creates and reinforces negative stereotypes, often around female behaviour, and could be used to justify unfair treatment of the sexes (for example, arguing that women should prioritise the domestic role over a career as they are more ‘naturally suited’ to it)
• there are more male than female researchers at a senior scientific level, meaning the concerns of women are less likely to be addressed

Question 10

define cultural bias

Answer 10

the tendency to judge all cultures and individuals in terms of your own cultural assumptions - this distorts or biases your judgements

Question 11

define cultural relativism

Answer 11

the view that behaviour, morals, standards and values cannot be judged properly unless they are viewed in the context of the culture in which they originate

Question 12

example of cultural relativism

Answer 12

the meaning of intelligence is different in every culture
e.g. Sternberg (1985) pointed out that coordination skills that may be essentially to life in preliterate society may be mostly irrelevant to intelligent behaviour for most people in literate and more ‘developed’ society

Question 13

define ethnocentrism

Answer 13

seeing things from the point of view of ourselves and our social group.
in its extreme form, can lead to prejudice and discrimination against ‘lesser’ cultures

Question 14

example of ethnocentrism

Answer 14

Ainsworth’s strange situation is an example due to suggesting that a secure attachment was only characterised by moderate separation and stranger anxiety.
therefore, German mothers, whose children showed little separation and stranger anxiety (thus being insecure-avoidant according to Ainsworth) were deemed as cold and rejecting

Question 15

define alpha bias in terms of culture

Answer 15

the assumption that there are real and enduring differences between cultural groups
example: Sternberg (same as cultural relativism)

Question 16

define beta bias in terms of culture

Answer 16

refers to theories that minimise or ignore cultural differences. they do this by assuming that all people are the same and therefore it is reasonable to use the same theories for different cultural groups
example: Ainsworth (same as ethnocentrism)

Question 17

negative evaluation of cultural bias

Answer 17

the US army IQ test showed that European immigrants fell slightly below white Americans in terms of IQ. the data has a profound effect on attitudes held by Americans towards certain groups of people - leading to stereotyping and discrimination

Question 18

evaluate how not all behaviour is affected by cultural bias

Answer 18

for example, Ekman et al demonstrated that facial expressions for anger, guilt and disgust were universally recognised across all cultures. in terms of attachment, interactional synchrony and reciprocity are universal features of infant-caregiver interactions. therefore, this suggests that to fully understand behaviour, we must look at both universal and culture-bound examples

Question 19

positive evaluation for cultural bias

Answer 19

researchers are now able to travel more and therefore have a greater understanding of other cultures, alongside having increased opportunities to conduct cross-cultural research. academics meet to discuss and share ideas at international conferences, which reduces ethnocentrism in psychology through appreciating that behaviours found in one culture may not be the same as in others, as well as real differences being identified and valued
for example, Bond and Smith noted that not all cultures will be familiar with research traditions and the aims of science, leading to a greater ‘please-U’ demand characteristic effect, which may bias the findings