🔴 Issues and debates: Culture bias

Question 1

What is culture bias

Answer 1

tendency to ignore cultural differences and interpret everything from own culture perspective
- 1992: 64% psychology researcher were American

Question 2

How does cultural bias affect the universality of findings

Answer 2

psychology claims to find universal truths, but findings only apply to studied culture
- assumes Western culture applies to the world

Question 3

What is universality

Answer 3

Anything that can be applied to all
- psychologists beliefs cause bias
- bias threatens universality

Question 4

What is ethnocentrism

Answer 4

• judging a culture by the standards of another
• believing own culture is superior=discrimination of other cultures

Question 5

What is an example of ethnocentrism in psychology

Answer 5

• behaviour not ‘typical’ in Western culture=unsophisticated e.g Ainsworth’s Strange Situation
• only reflected Western norms/values (separation anxiety)
• German parenting seen as cold than encouraging independence

Question 6

What is cultural relativism

Answer 6

• idea that norms/values (including ethics/moral standards) only understood in specific social/cultural contexts

Question 7

How does Ainsworth’s resarch show cultural relativism

Answer 7

imposed etic: imposed her own cultural understanding onto other countries

Question 8

According to Berry, what is emic and etic

Answer 8

Emic: identifying behaviours in a culture specific to that culture
Etic: looks at behaviour outside a culture and describes these behaviours as universal
- psychology uses etic approach when research is emic

Question 9

What are the evaluation points for cultural bias?

Answer 9

• individualism and collectivism
• cultural relativism versus universality
• unfamiliarity with research tradition
• operationalisation of variables
• challenging ‘implicit’ assumptions

Question 10

What is the ‘individualism and collectivism’ evaluation point of cultural bias

Answer 10

Individualist: Western;value independence
Collectivist: China;needs of the group
- global communication=no longer distinction
Takano/Osaka: 1415 studies of USvsJPN=no evidence of distinction
- cultural bias less of an issue than the past

Question 11

What is the ‘cultural relativism versus universality’ evaluation point of cultural bias

Answer 11

• shouldn’t assume all research culturally relative/no human behaviour is universal
  Ekman: basic emotional facial expressions same across humans/animals

Question 12

What is the ‘unfamiliarity with research tradition’ evaluation point of cultural bias?

Answer 12

• knowledge/faith in scientific research not extended to other cultures
• demand characteristics exaggerated when working with local population=adverse effect on validity

Question 13

What is the ‘operationalisation of variables’ evaluation point of cultural bias?

Answer 13

• variables not experienced same by all
• emotional behavioural expression different across cultures
• invasion of personal space normal in China not West

Question 14

What is the ‘challenging implicit assumptions’ evaluation point of cultural bias?

Answer 14

• cross-cultural research challenge Western ways of thinking
• promotes sensitivity to individual difference
• conclusions more valid if they recognise culture influence

Question 15

What is imposed etic

Question 16

What is an imposed etic

Answer 16

Wrongfully imposing an etic to…