Issues and debates Flashcards
What is Alpha bias
exaggerating the differences between men and women - theories devalue one gender in comparison to the other
Alpha bias in Freuds research
- viewed women as failed men
- women seen as inferior to men as jealous of mens penis (penis envy)
- only studied boys when developing theories but applied to all
What is Androcentrism
centred or focused on men, neglect women
What is Beta bias
ignoring or minimising the differences between men and women and assuming what is true for men is also true for women
Beta bias in fight or flight research
bio research is only conducted on male animals as female varitations in hormone levels make research more difficult
fight-or-flight response assumed to be universal untill challenged by tend-and-befriend response
the beta-biased approach meant stress response never fully understood
What is gender bias
the different treatment or representation of men and women based on sterotypes than real differences
What is universality
the aim to develop theories that apply to all people
AO3 - gender bias in research
methods used in psychology studies are biased
Rosenthal found male experimenters are more friendly and encouraging to female than male ppts - males appeared to perform less well
feminists argue lab studies disadvantage women as created in controlled world and tell us little female experience in outside world
suggests a serious issue with the way data is controlled creating a false picture of male-female differences
AO3 - can counter androcentrism through a feminist perspective
feminist psychology is a branch that aims to redress the imbalances in psych research
agrees that there are real biologically based sex differences but socially determined stereotypes make a greater contribution to percieved differences
look over research where women seen to be inferior
demonstrates how fem psych seeks to understand beh in terms of social processes to find equality
AO3 - counter gender bias through reverse alpha bias
develop theories which show the differences between men and women but emphaise value of women
can be seen in feminist research which shows instances where women are better e.g research shows women are better at learning becuase more attentive and organised
challenges stereotype that in any gender difference the male position must be better
What is culture?
rules, customs, morals way of living that bind together memebers of a society
What is cultural bias
the tendency to judge all people in terms of your own cultural assumptions
cultural bias - alpha bias
theories that assume there are real differences between cultural groups
e.g distinctions often made between indivdualistic cultures and collectivist
except individualistic to be less conformist as less oreintated towards group norms
cultural bias - beta bias
theories that ignore differences between cultures
e.g IQ tests were made by western psychologists and used to study intelligence in variety of cultures
makes non-western people appear less intelligent
What is imposed etic
research method or test developed by one group is imposed on other e.g IQ test
Henrich et al - WEIRD
describes the group most likely to be studied
Western
Educated
Industralied
Rich
Democracies
means people behaviour not from these backgrounds will be seen as abnormal
What is ethnocentrism
seeing things from the point of view of ourseleves and our social group
evaluating other groups of people using the standards and cultures of ones own culture
Ethnocentrism - alpha bias
ones own culture considered to be better and other cultures are devalued
e.g indiviualistic attitudes towards attachment, independence valued and dependency undesierable
Ainsworth strange situation imposed american norms
Ethnocentrism - beta
can lead to beta bias if psychologists believe their view to be only view
e.g IQ test as believed an american test all over the world was appropriate and assumption american standard was universal
What is Cultural relativism
view that behaviour cannot be judged properly unless viewed in the context of culture which is originates
AO3 - counter ethnocentrism by encouraging indigenous psychologies
e.g afrocentrism is a movement that believes all black people have roots in africa and that psychological theories concerning such people must be African-centred and express african values
disputes the idea that european values are universally appropriate descriptions of behaviour
has led to the development of theories relevant to life and culture of people of African descent
AO3 - Afrocentriscm is emic approach
emphasises the uniquesness of every culture and focuses on culturally specific phenomena - however findings will only be significant to understanding behaviour within that culture
an ‘etic’ aims to seek universals of behaviour
one way of achieving an etic approach while avoiding cultural bias is using indigenous psychologists in each culture - Buss et al did in study of mate prefences
this approach allows research into universal behaviour while avoiding cultural bias
AO3 - consequence of cultural bias
danger of culturally biased research is helps to create or reinforce stereotypes
e.g US army IQ test before WW1
showed that european immigrants fell slightly behind america in terms of IQ and african americans were at the bottom with lowest mental age
this research effected american attitudes on black people which lead to the endurance of stereotypes of ethnic groups and their IQ
What is determinism
view that an individual’s behaviour is controlled by internal or external forces
What is soft determinism
allows some element of free will
What is hard determinism
all behaviour can be predicted and there is no free will
What is Biological determinism
Belief that behaviour is caused by biological influences we cannot control e.g fight or flight
What is environmental determinism
Belief that behaviour is cause by environment/experiences e.g phobias and two process model
