Issues and Debates

Question 1

What is the nature debate?

Answer 1

A debate that suggests that behavior is the product of biological or genetic factors

Question 2

What is the nurture debate?

Answer 2

A debate that suggests that behavior is the product of environmental factors.

Question 3

What is the interactionist approach?

Answer 3

The view that both nature and nurture work together to shape behavior.

Question 4

Give an approach that supports the nature debate

Answer 4

The biological approach

Question 5

What is a research study that supports the “nature” debate?

Answer 5

Menzies et al’s study testing what dispositional and genetic factors contribute to the development of OCD.

Question 6

What is one approach that supports the nurture debate?

Answer 6

Behaviorism and/or Social Learning Theory

Question 7

What is one study that supports the nurture debate?

Answer 7

Ainsworth’s Strange Situation study

Question 8

Name one psychological theory that supports the nature debate?

Answer 8

Bowlby’s proposal that suggestion that children have an innate biological affinity to form attachments- developed to aid survival and maintained through natural selection.

Question 9

Name one real life situation that supports the interactionist approach?

Answer 9

The genetic disorder PKU. People with PKU are unable to break down the amino acid phenylalanine, which can build up in the brain and cause brain damage as well as mental retardation. However, if a child with PKU stays on a low protein diet for their first 12 years of life, they can avoid this brain damage therefore the disorder (nature) can be suppressed by an altered environment (nurture)

Question 10

What is alpha bias?

Answer 10

a type of bias that overly emphasises the differences between genders, often causing the study to be more tailored to one gender

Question 11

What is beta bias?

Answer 11

A type of bias that minimises the difference between genders. This means that the individual differences or needs of one gender are usually ignored.

Question 12

What is androcentrism?

Answer 12

Psychology is a very male-dominated subject. Therefore many of the studies and theories presented are from a male perspective.

Question 13

What is universality?

Answer 13

The aim to develop theories that apply to all people, including the real differences between individuals.

Question 14

What is Holism?

Answer 14

viewing people and behavior as indivisible beings that we must perceive the whole experience of rather than just individual features out of context.

Question 15

What is reductionism?

Answer 15

Viewing people and behavior as a complex system that consists of many small parts that we should study separately.

Question 16

What are the three levels of explanation within holism and reductionism?

Answer 16

• The use of holism and reductionism in social/cultural psychology (e.g. conformity/obedience)
• The use of holism and reductionism in psychological psychology (i.e . the behavioral approach, the cognitive approach etc.)
• Biological Psychology (genetics, biopsychology, neuroscience)

Question 17

What is biological reductionism?

Answer 17

The theory that explaining behavior can be reduced to a physical level.

Question 18

What is one example of biological reductionism?

Answer 18

Determining that genes and neurotransmitters are the factors that determine mental disorder.

Question 19

What is environmental reductionism?

Answer 19

suggesting that all behavior can be explained in terms of simple stimulus to response links.

Question 20

What is one example of environmental reductionism?

Answer 20

The behaviorist approach.

Question 21

What is experimental reductionism?

Answer 21

Reducing complex behaviors to isolated variables - aka reducing behaviors to operationalised variables.

Question 22

What are three examples of holism?

Answer 22

Gestalt Therapy, Humanistic Psychology, cognitive psychology

Question 23

What is gestalt therapy?

Answer 23

A psychological approach focusing on perception, arguing that the explanation for what we perceive only makes sense through considering the perception as a whole rather than individual elements.

Question 24

How does the humanistic approach relate to holism?

Answer 24

It suggests that human reaction is a response to an organised whole environment, rather than specific stimulus having specific behavioral responses. It suggests that people need a sense and unified identity and that a lack of “wholeness” stipulates mental disorder

Question 25

Name five reductionist approaches/theories

Answer 25

The behaviorist approach, The cognitive approach, the psychodynamic approach, The biological approach and social learning theory.

Question 26

What is free will?

Answer 26

Each individual’s ability to make a meaningful choice between possible behaviors. It suggests our courses of action are self-determined.

Question 27

What is determinism?

Answer 27

The idea that all behaviors are determined by external or internal factors acting upon the individual. This suggests that our course of action/behavior is predetermined by situational factors.

Question 28

What is hard determinism?

Answer 28

The belief that stimulus directly causes a response an that this dictates the behavior, therefore all behavior is predicted and there is no free will. Hard determinism is incompatible with free will.

Question 29

What is soft determinism?

Answer 29

A version of determinism that allows for some element of free will This suggests that everything is determined by our biology, past experiences and environment, but that this still leaves some element of free will in our behaviors.

Question 30

What is reciprocal determinism?

Answer 30

Theorised by Bandura, it suggests that a person’s behavior both influences and is influenced by personal factors and their environment.

Question 31

What is biological determinism?

Answer 31

The idea that genes, brain structures and neurotransmitters determine our behavior.

Question 32

What is environmental determinism?

Answer 32

The idea that all behavior is determined by previous experience. (The behaviorist approach is environmentally determinist)

Question 33

What is Psychic determinism?

Answer 33

The idea that internal unconscious factors such as innate drives or early experience determines our behavior ( Freud’s theory of the psychosexual stages is psychic determinism)

Question 34

What is scientific determinism?

Answer 34

the theory that all events must have a cause, like how an IV leads to a change in DV.

Question 35

What is one way that the humanistic approach supports free will?

Answer 35

It suggests that self-determinism is a necessary factor of human behavior, otherwise self development and self actualisation are not possible. Rodgers suggested that if one does not take responsibility for their own behavior, one can not begin to change their behavior.

Question 36

What is one aspect of free will in criminology and the justice system?

Answer 36

Moral Responsibility- the belief that an individual of a sound mind can exercise free will so is therefore in charge of their own actions. This is used in determining whether a criminal is responsible for a crime, if they do not have moral responsibility (i.e. if they are mentally ill or a child) they can not be.

Question 37

What is one piece of neuroscience that supports determinism?

Answer 37

Research has shown that our brain makes a decision before we are even consciously aware, judging by activity shown in specific regions when under an fMRI machine.

Question 38

What is one piece of research that supports free will?

Answer 38

Trevena and Miller (2009) suggested that brain activity recorded before a conscious decision is actually just a state of readiness rather than an already made decision, and that free will determines the final decision.

Question 39

How is the idea of self-determinism culturally relative?

Answer 39

As behavior from individuals in individualist societies are more likely to be self-determined while behavior from collectivist culture may have behavior more determined by the group’s needs.

Question 40

What is gynocentrism?

Answer 40

When theories are centred/focused on women.

Question 41

What is one example of Androcentrism?

Answer 41

Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Experiment

Question 42

What is one example of Gynocentrism?

Answer 42

Ainsworth’s Strange Situation Study

Question 43

What is one example of Beta Bias?

Answer 43

Asch generalising his findings on social conformity to women despite his sample being entirely male.

Question 44

What is the idiographic approach?

Answer 44

When psychologists focus on the individual and emphasise people’s unique personal experiences.

Question 45

What is the nomothetic approach?

Answer 45

When psychologists are concerned with establishing general laws, based on the study of large groups of people.

Question 46

What are three example of idiographic research methods?

Answer 46

• Case studies
• Unstructured Interviews
• Thematic Analysis

Question 47

What are three examples of nomothetic research methods?

Answer 47

• Experimental Research
• Correlational Research
• Psychometric Testing

Question 48

What is socially sensitive research?

Answer 48

Any research that might have direct social consequences for the participants in the research or the group that they represent.

Question 49

How can the ethical issue of privacy show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 49

Research can either cause participants to give more information than they intended too an the effect of the publication of this socially sensitive research can result in the invasion of people’s private lives.

Question 50

How can the ethical issue of confidentiality show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 50

Participants may be less willing to give information in socially sensitive research if they believe confidentiality might be breached, so further research would be compromised.

Question 51

How can the ethical issue of valid methodology show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 51

Scientist may be aware of poor methodology and invalid findings, but the media and the public may not, thus having a detrimental impact on the social groups represented by the research.

Question 52

How can the ethical issue of deception show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 52

In socially sensitive research, self-deception can occur, when research may lead people to form stereotypes which can affect the individual’s performance.

Question 53

How can the ethical issue of informed consent show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 53

In socially sensitive research, participants may not fully understand what is from them/what is involved in the research.

Question 54

How can the ethical issue of equitable treatments show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 54

All Participants should be treated equally and resources that are important to a person’s wellbeing (e.g. educational opportunities should not be just available to some and not available to others, for fear of mis-representation if the findings were ever published.

Question 55

How can the ethical issue of scientific freedom show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 55

The scientist has every right to investigate socially sensitive topics, but they also have an obligation to not have the findings harm participants or institutions in society.

Question 56

How can the ethical issue of ownership of data show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 56

issues can rise over who owns the data and who has the right to publish the data if the data is sponsored by other people (such as universities or commercial organisations.

Question 57

How can the ethical issue of values show itself in socially sensitive research?

Answer 57

Psychologists differ in values. sensitive issues can arise when there is a clash between the scientist (who is likely to have more objective values) and the recipient (who is likely to have more subjective, idiographic values)