Issues And Debates Flashcards
What is meant by gender bias
When a bias is made towards one gender, behaviour is then applied to the other gender
What is meant by universality? And give examples of universal behaviour.
The incorrect assumption that behaviours are universal to all humans and that gender or culture does not have an impact on this.
Examples:
Fight or flight
6 basic emotions. Happiness, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, Anger, Surprise
What is meant by Androcentrism? And give examples of androcentric studies.
Assumption that male behaviour is normal.
Examples:
Milgram -> all males looking at obedience
Zimbardo -> all males looking at conformity to social roles
Asch -> all males looking at conformity
What is meant by Gynocentrism?
Assumption that female thinking and behaviour is normal
What is Alpha bias?
When sex differences are exaggerated stating clear differences. This creates stereotypes and prejudices
What is Beta bias?
Occurs when sex differences are minimised or not stated when there could be differences. They are usually tested on one gender and applied to both without validation.
This means some theories could be not valid or only for one sex.
Examples of Beta bias:
2 process model of phobias
Faulty caudate nucleus causing OCD
Dopamine hypothesis
What is culture bias?
The act of interpreting and judging behaviour and psychological characteristics of one culture by holding them to the standards of your own
What is ethnocentrism?
Inappropriately generalising the values of findings of one culture to another without testing other cultures. This occurs when a researcher assumes that their own culturally specific practices or ideas are “normal” or “right” and superior. Our own cultures should be the basis for judgement of other groups.
What is the EMIC approach?
Refers to research that aims to study human behaviour in ONE culture, without applying behaviour elsewhere.
What is the ETIC approach?
An idea that assumes that behaviour applies to ALL cultural groups.
It looks at behaviour from outside of a given culture and attempts to find trends that can be generalised and universal behaviours.
What are imposed etics?
Behaviour is assumed to apply to other cultures.
E.g. Ainsworth’s attachment types are based on American norms
What is cultural relativism?
Idea when studying behaviour in another culture it should be from the viewpoint of the culture itself. (Context you are in). Some behaviours are affected by cultural norms.
Aims to avoid cultural bias and judging another culture by the standards of one’s own culture.
Examples of culture bias
Ainsworth - only looked at attachment types in 100 Americans
Milgram - researched American participants
Back and Ellis - Researched American norms to depression
Zimbardo - researched conformity of roles in American participants
What is free will?
Having full control over behaviour/ actions without influence or manipulation. Our behaviour is a result of what we genuinely want to do and not the cause of something in our internal or external environment.
Is free will scientific or not?
It is not scientific.
Free will is an abstract concept and it is impossible to measure something you cannot see. Making it unfalsifiable.
Which approach believes in free will?
HUMANISM
Humanism believes we have personal agency, the ability to make our mind irregardless of influence.
What is meant by Determinism?
Our behaviour is caused by something outside of our control. Variables that cause behaviour are called determinants.
What is biological determinism?
Behaviour is the result of the internal processes within the body.
Genetics, Brain physiology (physical brain structures), biochemistry and evolution.
*genetics don’t cause behaviour but increase likelihood of them occurring.
What is biological determinism?
Our behaviour is caused by our physical environment
E.g: Parenting, school teachers, people you sit with in class
What is meant by psychic determinism?
Our behaviour is caused or determined by our unconscious mind.
Example, Freud argued they every behaviour has an initial cause and that behaviour was inited in a part of our mind we cannot access.
Argues why some people do not know why they take some actions, helping to explain criminality
What is meant by Soft Determinism?
It is a middle ground in the debate which suggests human behaviour is generally predetermined by factors outside their control but they have the option to exercise free will in certain situations. It accepts humans can have a perception of control.
It is a FILTERED CHOICE.
For example, choosing what to wear but from clothes in your wardrobe.
What is meant by Hard determinism?
It is the extremist argument and suggests that human behaviour is completely determined by factors outside of their control.
Is determinism scientific or not?
Determinism is scientific!
It states that one variable has an effect on another variable.
This is because it can be usually seen / observed (EMPIRICAL), falsifiable.
Theoretically it could be proven wrong.
Describe scientific emphasis on causal explanations and isolation of variables.
Psychology wants to be scientific. Predictions help to understand behaviour. If behaviour is caused by something we should be able to accurately predict how something will react to the determinant.
All variables (such as extraneous or confounding) are controlled for this is called ISOLATION OF VARIABLES. This occurs in labs.
What is Holism?
Behaviour should be viewed as complex, and causes of behaviours are also complex and multifaceted (multiple levels or parts to it). Focuses on the whole person rather than one specific part, multiple contributing factors.
Which approach is holistic?
Humanistic approach
What is reductionism?
Suggests that behaviour is caused by a SINGLE VARIABLE
What is meant by PARSIMONY? (reductionism)
Argues we need to spot complicating theories and behaviour and should stay as simple as possible
What are the levels of explanations?
No one explanation in isolation can be taken as correct and therefore several levels would be most appropriate to adequately explain and understand behaviour.
Highest level:CULTURAL and SOCIAL
based on an understanding of the socio/cultural environment
(Holistic, higher levels of explanation)
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V
Middle level: PSYCHOLOGICAL
Behavioural, Explanations based on learning process e.g. classical and operant conditioning
Machine-reductionism, based on information processes e.g memory
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V
Lowest level:BIOLOGICAL
Explanation based on biological influenced e.g genes, evolution, neurotransmitters.
(Reductionist, lower level of explanation)
What are the two types of reductionism?
- Biological reductionism, reducing behaviour to biological aspect. E.g. biochemistry, genes.
- Environmental reductionism, focuses on stimulus and response. Operant and Classical conditioning.
Evaluations of reductionism and holism.
Biological reductionism:
+ precise, simpler explanations so easier to understand
+ practical applications as generates biological treatments
Environmental reductionism:
+easy to test as simplifies behaviour to stimulus-response
- parochial (too simple), inadequate way of describing the complexities of human behaviour
Holism:
+praised for appreciating full complexities of human behaviour
- not considered scientific, makes harder to study and predict behaviour.
What is the interactionist perspective in reductionism/homism?
Belief that several levels of explanation are necessary to explain behaviour.
What is the NATURE side of the debate?
Nature = refers to all the genes and hereditary factors that influence who we are. This can form physical appearance and personality characteristics.
Natavism- the nature side of the debate
Philosophers such as Plato and Descartes suggested that certain things are inborn and occur naturally regardless of environment influences
What is the NURTURE side of the debate?
Nurture= refers to all the environmental variables that impact who we are, including our early childhood experiences, how we were raised, our social relationships, our surrounding culture.
Empiricists- the nurture side of the debate.
John Lock believed in tabula rasa which is that the mind begins as a blank slate.
What is the interactionist argument in nature/nurture?
Nature AND nurture both have an effect. This can end the debate completely.
Explain the heritability coefficient.
It is used to measure the extent to which behaviour is caused by either genes or environment. It’s a numerical figure ranging from 0.1.
0= entirely environmental
1= entirely heritable/ genetic
A03 nature nurture
~ niche picking, people chose environments that complement their genetics
~ epigenetic, behaviour can effect genes and genes can effect behaviour (what you do in your environment impacts your genes at a molecular level.
~ interactionist approach makes debate redundant
+ research support for nature , twin studies, grossman schizophrenia
+ research support for nurture, Bandura
+ debate has evolved to which side (nature or nurture) effects behaviour
- nature can be socially sensitive as behaviours are destined.
Describe Ideographic approach.
Attempts to explain behaviour of INDIVIDUALS. It argues people are all unique each with own subjective experiences. It doesn’t try and create general laws. Produces qualitative data that aim to describe the richness and detail of human experiences.
Uses small case studies, cannot take these studies and apply them out to other people. Case studies can be longitudinal.
Describe the Nomothetic approach.
The main aim of the nomothetic approach is to produce general laws of human behaviour. These provide a benchmark against people can be compared, classified or measured. Behaviour can be predicted and even controlled. Nomothetic is associated with scientific methods which produce quantitative data. It tries to establish norms of behaviour over a large number of people. Methods include experiments, questionnaires, content analysis and observations.
What are the three general laws in the nomothetic approach?
- Classifying people into GROUPS E.G 16 personalities/have depression or not.
- Establish PRINCIPLES OF BEHAVIOUR. E.g. if then laws.
*3. Establish DIMENSIONS on which people can be placed and compared on. Spectrum/extent to which you have it.
AO3 of idiographic vs nomothetic approaches
Ideographic:
+ in-depth data of individuals traits and behaviour, smaller sample size (1/2).
+ satisfies a key aim of science
+ focusing on individual makes them feel valued and unique
+ can challenge theories
- cannot generalise or apply, is it useful?
-non-scientific
Nomothetic:
+ scientific, precise prediction + control of behaviour, investigates large groups
+practical applications, establishing norms and general laws of behaviour allows predictions about future behaviours and interventions.
-doesn’t apply to everyone (certain individuals), issues of validity.
-approach has been accused of losing sight of the whole person
- Superficial understanding people may act the same same but for different reasons so gives a shallow explanation.
- doesn’t tell you why
What does ethical implications refer to?
Ethical implications refers to the impact that psychological research may have in terms of;
1. The rights of the people who are participating in the research.
2. The impact on wider society.
-1. The influencing of public policy.
-2. The way certain social groups are treated (e.g. research may lead to the discrimination of certain groups) or the perception of certain groups of people
What is social sensitivity? Sieber and Stanley
Studies and which that are potential consequences or implications either directly for the participants involved in the research or for the class of individuals represented by the research
The percentage of sensitive proposals which were approved by the American psychological association.
50% of the time
The percentage that the American psychological Association approved nonsensitive proposals
95% of the time.
Why should psychologist investigate sensitive topics?
Because they are more likely to become more to be if they remain under investigated.
Examples of socially sensitive research
- Fallon a neuroscientist discovered individuals who demonstrate psychotic personality traits display low brain activity in frontal lobes.
- The schizophrenic mother, cold/distant mothers create schizophrenic children.
- Milgrims obedience.
Sieber and Stanley’s four aspects in the research process that could bring about social consequences:
- The RESEARCH QUESTION. asking a question could be damaging to members of a particular group of people and. Could be seen to add scientific credibility to prevailing prejudice so must ask question carefully as could be seen as a leading question
- The METHODOLOGY USED. The researcher needs to consider the treatment of participants is right.
- The INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT, Who is FUNDING the research?
- INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION OF FINDINGS. how will results be interpreted and applied to real world by the public? Could data or results be used to inform government policy?
How should psychologist deal with socially sensitive research?
- Consider potential implications and discuss with colleagues.
- Brief participants about potential implications of the research.
- Obtain full informed consent from participants.
- Give participants right to withdraw any time.
- Protect the identity of participants.
- Publish with discretion and a carefully worded introduction.
Evaluations of ethical implications
-damages reputation of psychology as society may view the field as antagonistic and provocative.
+ cost benefit analysis. Reveal long-term benefits of socially sensitive research (Milgram explained why nazis behaved a certain way) PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS.
+ Raises interest in a field
