issues and debates Flashcards
alpha bias
when differences between males and females are overstated
for example, Fred’s theory of psychoanalysis which viewed femininity as a form of failed masculinity. Freuds theory exaggerated the differences between males and females, an example of alpha bias
androcentrism
a bias towards a male-centred point of view.
In psychology, many subjects of important studies were male, resulting in general psychology paradigms being more male-centred
beta bias
when differences between males and females are understated
For example the general consensus that the fight or flight response was equally by male and female animals, whereas under scrutiny it was discovered females could also adopt the ‘tend and befriend’ response
biological determinism
the idea that all human behaviour is determined by biological processes (genetics, hormones and physiological processes). biology is destiny
biological reductionism
the idea that behaviour can be reduced to simple physical components such as nerves and ions
cultural relativism
behaviour can only be properly understood if the cultural context is considered so any study drawing its sample from one cultural context and attempting to apply to another culture is suspect
determinism
the rejection of free will, human behaviours are caused by physical processes (predetermined) and that these physical processes can’t be overruled
environmental determinism
the view that behaviours are determined by conditioning (e.g. reinforcement and punishment) from our environment i.e. upbringing and school
environmental reductionism
the idea that behaviour can be reduced to simple responses to stimuli
ethnocentrism
a bias towards your own culture, and judging other cultured by that subjective standard
hard determinism
the idea that free will is non existent, behaviour is entirely caused by physical processes that are beyond our control
holism
an approach that suggests to understand human behaviour we must look at the human as a whole.
Advocates believe that human behaviour is too complex to be explained from one level of explanation and that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’
idiographic approach
a type of learning that suggests we should focus on the unique experiences of each individual to understand human behaviour and (contra to the nomothetic approach) it is impossible to identify general laws that apply across populations
emphasis on qualitative data, prefers individual case studies and self report methods over large scale experiments, associated with humanistic approach, more subjective
interactionist approach
our genetic nature predisposes us towards some behaviours more than others but how these genes are expressed is dependent on the environment
e.g. OCD has a strong genetic component (around 67%) but not everyone with these genes go onto develop OCD i.e. drugs, CBT or never experience events that trigger OCD
nomothetic approach
a type of learning approach that suggests we should establish general laws of behaviour that can be applied to all people to understand similarities of human behaviour
emphasis on qualitative, prefers large sample sizes rather than individual case studies, behaviourist, cognitive and biological approach, more objective
psychic determinism
the idea that all human behaviour is governed by unresolved and unconscious mental processes (desires and conflicts)
e.g. unresolved oedipus complex in childhood can cause aggressive behaviour as an adult
reductionism
an approach that suggests that to understand human behaviour we must reduce it to its simplest parts
e.g depression is caused by low serotonin
e.g. biological reductionism that argues behaviour can be explained entirely in physical causes without reference to higher levels of explanation such as a person’s upbringing or cognitions
social sensitivity
research that has ethical implications for people beyond the researchers and ppts directly involved
e.g. social groups, friends and family, research institutions
soft determinism
human behaviour is largely determined by physical processes (e.g. biology and upbringing) but humans are able to overrule these processes and exert their free will in some circumstances
nurture
empricits believe that we are born blank slates with no innate nature so any behaviour must be learned from the environment
e.g. the learning approach explains behaviours as a result of operant conditioning
nature
nativists believe that our behaviour is predetermined by nature and can be explained by heredity (inherited biological characteristics such as genetics)
the heritability coefficient
a way to quantify the extent to which a characteristic is determined by genetics
(1 means the characteristic is completely genetic whereas 0 means the characteristic has nothing to do with genetics)
emic research
Berry
researching a culture from within to understand that culture specifically (and not applying the findings to other cultures)
etic research
Berry
Conducting research from an outside perspective to discover universal truths about human psychology (applying the findings to people in all culture)
can lead to ethnocentrism
