Issues and Debates Flashcards
what is gender bias?
when one gender is treated less favourably than the other
what are the 3 consequences from gender bias
scientifically misleading
upholding stereotypical assumptions
validating sex discrimination
what are the 2 types of gender bias?
alpha bias and beta bias
what is alpha bias?
tendency to exaggerate differences between men and women
suggests that there are real and enduring differences between the sexes
what is the onsequence of alpha bias?
theories devalue one gender in comparison to the other, typically devalue women
what is beta bias?
tendency to ignore or minimise differences men and women
tend to ignore questions about the lives of women or insights derived from studies of men will apply well to women
whats one example of alpha bias?
psychodynamic explanations for offending behaviour suggests that criminality occurs due to deviant superego
freud = because women do not experience castration anxiety, they are under less pressure
whats another example of alpha bias?
wilson’s sociobiological theory of relationship formation suggests that sexual promiscuity in males is genetically determined, promiscuous females are going agaisnt their ‘nature’
whats an example of beta bias?
early research into the fight of flight response - exclusively used in male lab mice because they experience fewer hormonal fluctuations and so changes in adrenaline and so changes in adrenaline could be more reliably measured
results from these studies were generalised to females
whats androcentrism?
consequence of beta bias
occurs when all behaviour is compared according to a ‘male’ standard, often to the neglect or exclusion of women
whats another example of beta bias?
Kohlberg’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., Heinz)
results generalised to represent levels of moral reasoning for the sexes
whats an example of androcentrism?
PMS
has been criticised by some as being a social construction - trivialises female emotion, particularly anger
OTOH, male anger is seen as a logical response to external pressures (Brescoll and Uhlman)
whats another example of androcentrism?
research on fight of flight
usually conducted with male animals as in females the variation in hormone levels would make research more difficult
what are the 2 positive consequences of alpha bias?
led to theorists to assert the worth and valuation of ‘feminine qualities’ (Gilligan)
led to healthy criticism of cultural values that praise certain ‘male’ qualities (aggression and individualism) as desireable, adaptive and universal
what is the positive consequence of beta bias?
makes people see men and women as the same, which has led to equal treatment in legal terms and equal access to (e.g., education adn employment)
what are the negative consequences of alpha bias?
focus on the differences between genders leads to the implication of similarity within genders - ignores the many ways women differ from each other
can sustain prejudices and stereotypes
what are the negative consequences of beta bias?
draws attention away from the differences in power between men and women
considered an egalitarian approach, but it results in major misrepresentations of both genders
what’s one positive evaluation?
- feminist psychology argues that difference psychology arises from biological explanations of behaviour - the social constructionist approach aims to understand behaviour in terms of social processes
- argues that there are real differences but socially determined stereotypes make a greater contribution
- androcentrism can be countered by a feminist view and the balance can be readdressed
- e.g., Eagly (1978) acknowledged that women may be less effective leaders than men but this knowledge should be used to develop suitable training programmes and therefore create a future with more women leaders
what’s another positive evaluation?
- reverse alpha bias describes the development of theories that show a greater emphasis on women = Cornwell et al 2013 showed that women are better at learning because they are more attentive, flexible and organised
- this research challenges the stereotype that in any gender differences the male position must be better and challenges people’s perconceptions
whats another positive evaluation?
- avoiding beta bias = allowed women greater access to educational and occupational opportunities
- Hare, Mustin and Marecek pointed out that arguing for equality draws attention away from women’s special needs (e.g., biological demands of pregnancy, childbirth, menstrual cycle etc.)
- suggests that some elements of beta bias may actually disadvantage women
what’s a negative evaluation of gender bias?
- RM = if theories and studies are gender biased, the research may find differences between genders but it may not be the genders that differ but the methods used to test or observe
- e.g., Rosenthal (1966) found that male experiments are more pleasant and encouraging to female participants and subsequently they perform better in tasks/male participants appeared to perform less well
- secondly, fewer women being appointed at senior research positions means that female concerns are less likely to be reflected in the experimental questions
what’s another negative evaluation of gender bias?
- lab experiment may also be an example of institutionalised sexism within psych = male researches (e.g., Nicolson, 1995) have the authority to deem women as “unreasonable, irrational and unable to complete complex tasks”
- Eagly and Johnson noted that studies in real life settings in real life settings found women and men were judged as more similar in styles of leadership that in lab settings
what’s the emicperspective?
- researching a culture from within to understand that culture specifically
What’s the etic perspective?
-conducting research from an outside perspective to discover universal truths about human psychology
- i.e applying the findings to all cultures
Whats and imposed etic perspective?
- perspective where the behaviours of a certain ethnicity or culture are seen as the default and normal (e.g. deviation from social norms)
what can an imposed etic lead to?
- ethnocentrism
what is cultural bias?
- tendency to judge all cultures and individuals in terms of your own cultural assumptions
what is cultural relativism?
- view that morals, behaviour, standards and values cannot be judged properly unless they are viewed in the context of the culture in which they originate
what’s an example of cultural relativism?
- milgrims study of obedience - replicated with Spanish students, replicated again with Australian students - specifically bound to american cultures
how can alpha bias lead to cultural bias?
- when the assumption of real differences lead psychologists to overlook universals
how can beta bias lead to cultural bias?
- cultural relativism is often discussed in the context of defining mental disorders
- behaviours that are statistically infrequent in one culture may be more frequent in another
whats an example of alpha and beta bias in cross-culture research?
- the distinction that is often made between individualistic collectivist cultures
- we would expect individualistic cultures to be less conformist as they are less orientated towards group norms and value the needs of the group over the individual
whats a study that researches the distinction between individualistic and collectivist cultures? what does it suggest?
- Takaho and Osaka reviewed 15 studies that compared thew US and Japan in terms of collectivist/individualism and foudn that 14 out of 15 studies did not support the common view about differences in conformity
- suggests that there is of a collectivist/individualist divide in an increasingly global world
whats an example of beta bias in culture?
- IQ tests
- psychologists use IQ tests to study intelligence in many different cultures based on American intelligence
- non-western people may appear less intelligent
what are the percentages of studies globally for bias?
- 66% of the studies were American
- 32% European
- 2% rest of the world
what are the consequences of cultural bias?
the us army IQ test showed that European immigrants fell slightly below white Americans, therefore stereotypes
not all behaviours are affected by cultural bias
Worldwide psychology: researchers are now able to travel more and therefore have a greater understanding of other cultures
what is determinism?
the belief that behaviour is controlled by external or internal factos acting upon the individual and beyond their control
3 types
what are the 3 types of determinism?
biological
environmental
psychic
what is biological determinism?
view that behaviour is always caused by interl biological forcees beyond our control
whats are 2 examples of biological determinism?
research on intelligence has identified genes in those with high intelligence - such as the IGF2R gene (Hill et al, 1999)
genes which affedct brain structure and neuro-transmitter production (i.e serotonin) may also determine our behaviour e.g., the CDH-13 and MAOA gene being candidate genes for criminality
what is environmental determinism?
the belief that behaviour is caused by previous experience through classical and operant conditioning
whats an example of environmental determinism?
phobias: are a result of conditioning, demonstrated by Watson’s study on Little Albert and Skinner’s box. these are external forces over which we have no control
what is psychic determinism?
belief that adult behaviour is determined by a mix of innate drives and early experience
result in unconscious conflicts over which we have no control
