Issues and Debates Flashcards
What is gender bias?
The differential treatment/representation of men + women based on stereotypes rather than real differences (can exist in how research is conducted or in theories biased to one gender)
What is andro-centrism?
Male-centred: taking male thinking or behaviour as universally ‘normal’
What is alpha-bias?
Exaggerating the differences between men and women or between cultures
What is beta-bias?
Ignoring/minimising differences between men and women or between cultures (often happens when findings from men are applied universally)
What is universality?
Theories that apply to all people, regardless of gender or culture (gender + culture bias threaten universality of findings)
What are the consequences/implications of gender bias? (AO3) (3 points)
Research involving ‘all male’ samples may lead to normalisation of male behaviour and ab-normalisation of female behaviour.
Could provide ‘scientific’ justification for gender discrimination
So gender bias in research could = damaging consequences affecting lives of real women
What is sexism within the research process? (AO3) (2 points)
Institutional sexism: more men at senior research level –> more male researchers having work/interests published –> female interests/concerns ignored/marginalised
Procedures in research process: way research done needs addressing (women often studied by men = unequal power relationship)
(AO3) Avoiding Beta Bias?` (2 points)
minimising differences can have dual effects:
+ equal treatment has allowed women greater educational/occupational opportunities
- draws attention away from important differences e.g. in relation to biological demands of childbirth (equal parental leave could therefore be said to disadvantage women as it ignores biological demands)
(AO3) Feminist Psychology? (2 points)
Feminist psychology agrees real bio differences with men + women, but says social stereotypes increase perceived differences, so its essential to re-examine ‘facts’ about gender.
Research agenda should have = focus on men + women’s concerns- could call for more females needed at senior research level
(AO3) Challenging assumptions about gender? (3 points)
Gender bias unchallenged in many theories (e.g. Darwin sexual selection suggest women= choosy + men compete to be chosen)
Theory challenged as being rooted in Victorian ideas of women as coy & men as aggressive.
DNA evidence suggests women also likely to mate with multiple men (stud sampling) suggesting women equally competing with other women (so may be as competetive as men)
What is culture?
The behaviours, attitudes and values of a particular group, community or nation
What are the main advantages of cross cultural research?
5 points
Awareness of implicit assumptions, separating behaviour from context (help counteract ethnocentrism), separating cultural confounding variables, study conditions rare in the US/other cultures, test applicability of theories to other cultures
What is collectivism?
Collectivists focus on identifiable ‘in’ group and reject ‘out’ group. Behaviour regulated by group norms.
Emphasis on social hierarchy, stress ‘in’ group fate, encourage child obedience. WE not I
What is individualism?
Behaviour is regulated by personal lives. More emotionally detached from larger ‘in’ group. Encourage autonomy + self reliance in children. ME not WE
What is an EMIC approach?
Culturally specific- studying one culture alone to study culture-specific behaviours. Researchers try to study behaviour through perspective of those living in that culture.
What is an ETIC approach?
Culturally general: views/evaluates from outside cultures Compares psychological phenomena across cultures to try to find universal human behaviours.
What is an imposed ETIC bias?
Trying to generalise observations/findings from one culture to another or universally
What are some examples of imposed etics?
Attachment- strange situation- Ainsworth- Takahashi: possible inaccurate classification of insecure-resistant due to distress of Japanese children- probably due to cultural norms of staying together constantly Definitions of abnormality- deviance (statistical infrequency) from white middle-class values
What are disadvantages/limitations of cross-cultural psychology?
Ambiguity, complexity, potential confusion, challenges of interpreting meanings, miscommunication/translation issues, harder to reach consensus, very difficult to avoid ethnocentric bias
What is holism?
Perceiving the whole experience rather than the individual features (the whole is greater than the sum of its parts)
What is reductionism?
breaking complex phenomena (e.g. human behaviour) down into simpler components (the whole consists of its parts and the relations between them)
What are the different levels of reductionism? (highest to lowest?) (use example of OCD)
Socio-cultural level: It’s considered odd by most people
Psychological level: experience of having obsessive thoughts.
Physical level: The movements involved in handwashing
Physiological level: Neurochemical level – low levels of serotonin
What is the basis of reductionism?
Scientific assumption of parsimony (simplest possible assumptions). Complex phenomena should be explained by simplest underlying principles possible,
Reductionism is in line with the scientific approach and the findings can be replicated and verified.
What is biological reductionism?
All behaviour can be reduced down to a physical level since all animals are made up of atoms.
Reduce behaviour to the actions of: Neurons/Neurotransmitters/Hormones/Genetics/Evolution
What is environmental reductionism?
Behaviourism: Reduce behaviour to simple stimulus–response links which can be tested and explained using laboratory experiments.
(Phobias, Attachment)
What is machine reductionism?
Cognitive approach:
Compares the human mind to a computer (inputs and outputs etc)
Reduces complexity of mind to machine, + so ignores influence of human motivation + emotion e.g. fear on the cognitive system.
Therefore may not give us full insight into mental complexities.
What is experimental reductionism?
Reducing complex behaviour to operationalised variables (IV, DV) that can be manipulated and measured to determine causal relationships
What are the strengths of reductionism? (AO3)
+ Reducing complex behaviour to lowest, simplest form makes it easier to understand (and treat)
+ Allows detailed look at factors that effect behaviour.
+High level of predictive power.
+Scientific: Breaking complicated behaviours down to small parts (operationalise variables) means they can be scientifically tested + explanations based on scientific evidence will emerge.
What are the weaknesses of reductionism? (AO3)
-Ignores complexity of behaviour and can be oversimplified
(E.g. Giving ppl medication may miss real cause of a behaviour e.g. family problems)
-Focus on a single level of explanation leaves out other levels of explanation – incomplete explanations
-Lacks validity (e.g. we can see how the brain responds to particular musical sounds by viewing it in a scanner, but not how you feel)
What did the Gestalt psychologists argue?
Gestalt: German for ‘whole’
Argued when studying human functioning, we need to look at whole person
Focused on perception
The whole is not simply a sum of its parts. It’s greater than that.
How is social psychology linked to holism?
Some aspects of social behaviour only emerge within a group context, and cannot be understood at the level of individual group members
(Conformity to social roles, deindividuation)
How is the humanistic approach involved in holism?
Rejects reductionism totally.
Belief that holism the only valid approach to complete understanding of mind + behaviour.
Starting point is self (personal identity) which they consider a functioning whole.
Includes awareness of person I ‘am’ and ‘could be’.
Lack of identity/‘wholeness’ leads to mental disorder.
Successful therapy brings together aspects of ‘whole person’.
What are the strengths of holism?
+Looks at everything that may impact on behaviour – provides more complete understanding of human behaviour
+Considers more than one cause – appreciates humans are complex
What are the weaknesses of holism?
- Doesn’t allow for detailed study into one area
- Non- scientific: often hypothetical & lacks predictive power of more scientific explanations
- Over complicates behaviours which may have simple explanation
- Neglects importance of biological influences
What are the alternative levels of reductionism? (3 levels not 4)
Very similar just 3 not 4:
Highest level: includes cultural + social explanations of how social groups affect behaviour
Middle level: includes psychological explanations of behaviour
Lower level: biological explanations including hormone and genes.
