Issues and Debates (culture&gender)

Question 1

What is gender bias

Answer 1

The differential treatment or representation of men and women based on stereotypes or real differences

Question 2

What is an alpha bias

Answer 2

Exaggerating the differences between men and women.

Question 3

What is beta bias

Answer 3

Ignoring or minimising the sex differences by assuming that the findings from males can apply equally to females and vice versa

Question 4

Examples of beta biases in study

Answer 4

• Milgram’s obedience study (only make ppts but generalised to everyone)
• Asch conformity research
• Zimbardo prison study

Question 5

What is Androcentrism

Answer 5

The consequences of beta bias and occurs when all behaviour is compared to a male standard, often to neglect women’s POV.
- leads to female behaviour being misunderstood or pathologised.

Question 6

Example of theory with androcentrism

Answer 6

• Freud’s theory that everyone wanted to be male and women had penis envy
• Making men look superior to women and exaggerating the differences
• SO AN ALPHA BIAS

Question 7

Who argued that alpha bias, beta bias and androcentrism exists in psychology

Answer 7

Hare-Mustin & Marecek

Question 8

What is gynocentrism

Answer 8

• Focusing on the female perspective of behaviour

Question 9

Example of gynocentric research

Answer 9

• Mary Ainsworth (strange situation) as only focuses on mothers attachment w child

Question 10

What is universality

Answer 10

The aim to develop theories that apply to all people , which may include real differences.

Question 11

What is cultural bias

Answer 11

Tendency to judge all cultures based on your own cultural assumptions.

Question 12

What is cultural relativism

Answer 12

Behaviour must be understood from the perspective of a specific culture

Question 13

Examples of cultural relativism

Answer 13

• Milgram’s obedience study using 40 male Americans but later replicated using Spanish students (Miranda et al) and Australian students . However Milgram’s original results were specifically bound to American culture

Question 14

What can cultural relativism lead to?

Answer 14

• Alpha bias - where assumptions of real differences lead psychologist to overlook universals.
• Beta bias - some behaviours are statistically infrequent in one culture may be more frequent in another. Schizophrenia is claiming to hear voices but this experience is more common in African cultures

Question 15

Alpha bias in cross cultural research

Answer 15

• the differences made between Individualistic and collectivist cultures
• Individualistic cultures are less orientated to group norms and value the needs of the group over he

Question 16

Who devised emic-etic distinction?

Answer 16

Berrry 1969

Question 17

Imposed etic

Answer 17

Assuming the behaviour from outside of a given culture can be applied universally

Question 18

Imposed emic

Answer 18

Examines behaviour within a culture & identifies behaviours that are specific to that culture

Question 19

What is ethnocentrism

Answer 19

• Seeing the world from our POV and our cultural perspective and evaluating other groups of people using the standards from our own culture.

Question 20

Examples of ethnocentrism

Answer 20

• Ainsworth’s strange situation is an example of cultural relativism due to suggesting that a secure attachment was based of moderate separation and stranger anxiety. Therefore German kids who showed little separation and stranger anxiety were seen and insecure-avoidant (cold and rejecting)

Question 21

What is alpha bias in culture

Answer 21

Exaggerating the difference between culture

Question 22

What is beta bias in culture

Answer 22

Ignoring or minimising the differences between culture (Ainsworth’s strange situation)

Question 23

What did Takano and Osaka find about alpha biases between collectivist and individualistic cultures

Answer 23

They found in 14/15 studies that compared to the US and Japan that there wasn’t a common view about differences in conformity.
- Suggests that there is led of a collectivist/individualistic divide in an increasingly global world