ISSUES AND DEBATES IN PSYCHOLOGY Flashcards
What is universitality
Any underlying characteristics of human beings that is capable of being applied to all, despite differences of experience and upbringing.
What do gender and culture bias threaten in psychology
The universality of findings
What might a psychologists beliefs mean for their findings
They follow a subjective and not objective view
What does it mean if there is a high universality
That conclusions drawn can be applied to everyone, anywhere regardless of time or culture
What is bias when considering human behaviour
When considering human behaviour bias is a tendency to treat one individual group in a different ways from another
What is gender bias
Psychological research or theory may offer a view that does not justifiably represent the experience and behaviour of men or women
What gender is usually not justifiably represented
Women
What are the two forms of gender bias
Alpha bias and beta bias
What is alpha bias?
Exaggerates or minimises?
Research that focuses on differences between men and women, and therefore tends to present a view that exaggerates these differences
What 2 things are differences typically presented as in alpha-bias
Fixed and and inevitable
Who’s theory is a classic example of alpha bias
Freud (1905)
What Freud theory is a classic example of alpha-bias
Theory of psychosexual development.
What occurs in the phallic stage of frauds theory of psychosexual development
Both boys and girls develop a desire for their opposite-gender parent
What does the phallic stage of frauds psychosexual theory create within a boy
Strong castration anxiety - fear his father will cut his penis off
How is a boys castration anxiety resolved in frauds psychosexual theory
When the boy identifies his father
What is the difference between a boy and girls eventual identification
What does this mean about superego
A girls eventual identification with her same-gender parent is weaker
Means her superego is weaker
Therefore girls/women are morally inferior to boys/men
Who gave an example of alpha bias favouring women in the psychodynamic approach
Nancy Chodorow (1968)
What was Chodorow’s statement that is an example of women being favoured in alpha-bias
Daughters and mothers have a greater connectedness than sons and mothers because of biological similarities.
This means women develop better abilities to bond with others and empathise.
What is beta bias
Exaggerates or minimises?
Research that focuses on similarities between men and women.
Tends to present a view that ignores or minimises differences
What issue can arise for women as a result of beta bias research and psychological findings
It assumes that research findings apply equally to both men and women even when women have been excluded from the research process.
What is one example of beta bias research
Research on the fight or flight response
What was the assumption made with results from fight or flight investigations
Assumed that both male and females respond to threatening situations with fight or flight
Why are female animals often omitted from biological research
Female behaviour is affected by regular hormonal changes dye it ovulation.
Who claimed that women also doing fight or flight response is untrue
Shelley Taylor et al. (2000)
What did Taylor suggest as a more female accurate response to threatening situations
The tend and befriend response
Describe the tend and befriend response
Name the hormone that she suggested is key in this
The ‘love’ hormone oxytocin is more plentiful in women.
Women respond to stress by increasing oxytocin production.
This reduces the fight or flight response and triggers an evolved response for looking after others.
Give an example and describe how research can misrepresent men
What has proved the initial claim wrong
Research on attachment assumed emotional care is provided solely by the mother
Research on the role of the father shows fathers can supply they emotional care often assumed to be the province of women.
What are alpha and beta bias consequences of
Androcentrism
What is androcentrism
What gender is at the centre of this
What does this mean about assumptions on the other genders behaviour
Male-centred
When ‘normal’ behaviour is judged according to a male standard.
Female behaviour is often judged as being ‘abnormal’ or ‘deficient’ in comparison.
How many women were in the American Psychological Associations list of the most influential psychologists of the 20th century
(How many were names in total)
6 out of 100
What does the number of women named as influential psychologists suggest about the traditional view of psychology as a subject
Produced by men, for men and about men
What type of perspective is psychology being produced by me, for men and about men
An androcentric perspective
What is the extreme take on women behaviour in original psychology
Key word
It has been pathologised - been taken as a sign of illness
Who gave an example of a difference in how men and women emotions are viewed
Brescoll and Uhlmann (2008)
What did Brescoll and Uhlmann state about the difference ways in which female and male emotions are viewed
Women’s emotions such as anger are medicalised by explaining in hormonal terms
Men’s anger in contrast is seen as a rational response to external pressures.
What are the limitations of gender bias (3)
Gender differences are often presented as fixed and enduring
Gender bias promotes sexism in research
Research challenging gender biases may not be published
Who conducted research that falsely proves gender differences are fixed and enduring
Eleanor Maccoby and Carlton Jacklin (1974)
What research did Maccoby and Jacklin present to prove that gender differences are fixed and enduring
Presented findings of several gender studies
What did Maccoby and Jacklin conclude about their research on gender differences being fixed and enduring
Girls have superior verbal ability whereas boys have better spatial ability.
These differences are ‘hardwired’ into the brain before birth.
Who did research on brain structure that also suggests gender differences are fixed and enduring
Daphna Joel et al. (2015)
What was Joels techniqued used when showing gender differences are fixed and enduring
Braun scanning
What did Joel find on the structure of the brain when looking at gender differences
No such sex differences in brain structure or processing.
Why might have Maccoby and Jacklin’s research been popularised
It fitted the existing stereotypes of girls as ‘speakers’ and boys as ‘doers’
What does Maccoby & Jacklin as well as Joel’s findings suggest about accepting research findings
We should be wary of accepting research findings as biological facts when they might be explained better as social steroptypes
What is the counterpoint to much research showing gender differences as fixed and enduring
Psychologists should not avoid studying possible gender differences in the brain.
Who provides evidence for the counterpoint to gender differences often being presented as fixed and enduring
Madura ingalhalikar et al (2014)
What did Ingalhalikar suggest about popular stereotypes in women when counter-arguing gender differences not being fixed and enduring
Popular social stereotypes that woman are better at multitasking may have some biological truth to it.
A women’s brain may benefit from better connections between the right and left hemisphere than in a man’s
Who made statements about gender bias promoting sexism in the research process
Murphy et al (2014)
What did Murphy say about university intake and lecturers
Although psychology’s undergraduate intake is mainly of women, lectures in psychology departments are more likely to be men.
What does Murphys statement about university intake and lectures mean for research
Research is more likely to be conducted by men and this may disadvantage participants who are women.
Who gave an example of how a male psychologist may view women in his research
Nicholson (1995)
What did Nicholson suggest about male researchers expectations of women in research and its impact on results
A male researcher may expect women to be irrational and unable to complete complex tasks and such expectations are likely to mean that women underperform in research studies.
Who analysed articles to show research challenging gender bias may not be published
Magdalena Formanowicz et al (2018)
What was Formanowicz’s method when researching unpublished research challenging gender bias
Analysed more than 1000 articles relating to gender bias, published over 8 years
What did Formanowicz find about research challenging gender bias being unpublished
Research on gender bias is funded less often and is published in less prestigious journals.
What is the consequences of Formanowicz’s findings on research challenging gender bias being under published
Fewer scholars become aware of the research or apply it in their own works.
What further statement did Formanowicz make about other biases in publication
What did they control to ensure this was fair
Still held true when gender bias was compared with other forms of bias.
Gender of the authors and the methodology was controlled.
What is cultural bias
A tendency to interpret all phenomena through the ‘lens’ of ones own culture, ignoring the effects that cultural differences might have on behaviour.
Who reviewed studies focusing on cultural biases as a whole in psychology research
Joseph Henrich et al (2010)
What was Henrich’s method when looking at cultural biases in psychological studies as a whole
Reviewed hundreds of studies in leading psychology journals
What did Henrich find about the nationality used most in psychological studies
68% of research participants came from the United States
What did Henrich find about the percentage of type of nations people come from within psychological studies
96% were from industrialised nations.
Who researched the percentage of psychology undergraduates taking part in research
Arnett (2008)
What did Arnett find the percentage of participants in research were undergraduates in in psychology
80% of research participants were undergraduates studying psychology
Who coined the term WEIRED when describing people most likely to be involved in psychological studies
Henrich et al.
What does WEIRED stand for
Westernised, Educated people from Industrialised, Rich, Democracies
If the standard is set by ‘WEIRD’ people then what type of person will be seen as ‘abnormal’, ‘inferior’ or ‘unusual’
People from a non-westernised, less educated, agricultural and poorer culture.
What is ethnocentrism
Judging other cultures by the standards and values of ones own culture.
Describe ethnocentrism in its extreme form
The belief in the superiority of ones own culture which may lead to the prejudice and discrimination towards other cultures.
Who has an example of research that has been criticised as reflecting only norms and values of ‘western culture’
Mary Ainsworth and Silvia Bell (1970)
What was Ainsworth and Bells criticised experiement called
Strange Stituation
What was Ainsworth and Bells researching within their criticised work
Conducted reserach on attachment type
What did Ainsworth and Bell suggest was the ideal attachment
Ideal attachment is characterised but the babies showing moderate amounts of distress when left alone by their mother-figure
What was the cultural based misinterpretation made in other country’s from Ainsworth and Bell’s findings
Misinterpretation of child-rearing practices in other counties which were seen to deviate from the American ‘norm’
Who investigated attachment type in children in Japan
Takahashi (1986)
What did Takahashis results mean in terms of Ainsworth and Bells findings
Japanese infants were much more likely to be insecurely attached because they showed considerable distress on separation.
What is cultural relativism
The idea that norms and values, as well as ethics and moral standards, can only be meaningful and understood within specific social and cultural contexts
Who drew a distinction between etic and emic approaches in the study of human behaviour
John Berry (1969)
What is an etic approach
An approach that looks at behaviour from outside of a given culture and attempts to describe those behaviours as universal
What is an emic approach
An approach that functions from inside a culture and identifies behaviours that are specific to that culture.
Is Ainsworth and Bells research an example of etic or emic approach
Explain
It was an imposed etic
Explain why ainsworth and bells research is an imposed etic
They studied behaviour in one culture and then assumed their ideal attachment type could be applied universally.
What should psychologists be much more mindful of in their research when it comes to culture
Cultural relativism
The things they discover may only make sense from the perspective of the culture within which they were discovered.
What are the limitations of psychology in terms of cultural bias (2)
Many of the most influential studies in psychology are culturally-bias
Cultural bias in psychology has led to prejudice against groups of people
Give two examples of a very influential study only conducted on American, white, middle-class students
Asch and Milgram
Who repeated Asch’s study on conformity in other cultures
Smith and Bond (1993)
What did Smith and Bond find out about conformity when completing Asch’s experiment in other cultures.
Key words for both culture names
Asch-type experiment in collectivist cultures found significantly higher rates of conformity than the original studies in the US, an individualist culture
What is the counter argument to the differences between individualist and collectivist cultures
Increased media globalisation has lead to the individualist-collectivist distinction no longer applying.
Who conducted research on the individualist-collectivist distinction
Yohtaro Takano and Eiko Osaka (1999)
What did Takano and Osaka find about the individualist-collectivist distinction
14 out of 15 studies that compared the US and Japan found no evidence of individualism or collectivism - describing the distinction as lazy and simplistic.
Who explained how the first intelligence test led to eugenic social policies in the US
Stephen Jay Gould (1981)
When did psychologists pilot the first IQ tests - on how many people
Used WW1 and did it on 1.75 million recruits
Name an ethnocentric item on the original IQ test
Assuming everyone would know the names of the US presidents
What did the ethnocentric items on the original IQ test mean for results
Recruits from south-eastern Europe an African-americans recieved the lowest scores.
What came as a result of different cultures doing ‘worse’ on an ethnocentric IQ test
Ethnic minorities were deemed ‘mentally unfit’ and ‘feeble-minded’ in comparison to the white majority and were denied educational and professional opportunities as a result.
Who defined the term cultural psychology
Dov Cohen (2017)
What did Cohen say cultural psychology was
The study of how people shape and are shaped by their cultural experiences
What approach do cultural psychologists take to avoid ethnocentric assumptions
An emic approach
How do psychologists achieve an emic approach in cultural psychology
Conduct research from inside a culture, alongside local researchers using culturally-based techniques
Work from what other disciplines is incorporated in cultural psychology
Anthropology, sociology and political science
Cross-cultural research tends to focus on how many cultures
2
What question does the free will-determinism ask
Is our behaviour a matter of free will or are we the product of a set of internal and/or external influences that determine who we are and what we do?
What is free will?
The notion that humans can make chooses and their behaviour / thoughts are not determined by biological or external forces
What is determinism
The view that an individuals behaviour is shaped or controlled by internal or external forces rather than an individual’s will to do something
What to some extent are most approaches in psychology
Determinism
What does the biological approach suggest the cause of behaviour is
What debate is this
Internal
Nature and nurture
What does the behaviourist approach suggest the cause of behaviour is
External
What approach embraces the concept of free will
The humanistic approach
What are the two extremities of determinism
Hard and soft
What is hard determinism
The view that all behaviour is caused by something (internal or external actors) so free will is an illusion.
What is hard determinism sometimes reffered to
Fatalism
Is it possible to identify the causes in hard determinism
It should be possible
Who first put forward the notion of soft determinism
What was his expertise
William James (1890)
Philosopher
What approach is soft determinism an important feature of
The cognitive approach
What is soft determinism
The view that behaviour may be predictable (caused by internal or external factors) but there is also room for personal choice from a limited range of possibilities (restricted free will)
What are the three types of determinism
Biological determinism
Environmental determinism
Psychic determinism
What is biological determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by biological (genetic, hormonal and evolutionary) influences that we cannot control
Give an example of biological determinism in action
The influence of the automatic nervous system on the stress response
Influence of genes on mental health
What is environmental determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by features of the environment (such as systems of reward and punishment) that we cannot control.
Who argued that free will is an illusion and behaviour is a result of conditioning
B.F. Skinner
In environmental determinism we might think we are acting independently but our experience of ‘choice’ is merely the sum of what
The sum total of reinforcement contingencies that have acted upon us throughout our lives.
What is psychic determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by unconscious psychodynamic conflicts that we cannot control
Who believed that free will is an illusion and emphasised the influence of biological drives and instincts
And in psychic determinism
Sigmund Freud
One of the basic principles of science is that every event in the universe has ____
Is this hard or soft determinism
A cause and that cause can be explained using general laws
Hard
Why is the knowledge of causes and the formation of laws so important to scientists
They allow scientists to predict and control events in the future.
What type of experiment is the ideal of science as it enables causal relationships to be demonstrated
Lab experiment
What is one strength of free will rather than determinism
Practical value
Even if we dont have free will, what can thinking we do exercise free choice do in everyday life
Improve our mental health
Who conducted a study on believing in free will and mental health
Rebecca Robert’s et al (2000)
What was Robert’s method when looking at free will and mental health
Looked at adolescents who had a strong belief in fatalism (determinism).
Those that believed that their lives were ‘decided’ by events outside their control.
What was Robert’s findings when looking at belief in free will and mental health
Adolescents that believed in fatalism were at significantly greater risk of developing depression.
What is the link between locus of control and optimism
People who exhibit external, rather than internal locus of control are less likely to be optimistic.
What is one limitation of free will
That brain scan evidence does not support it but does support determinism.
Who did research on brain scan evidence for free will and determinism
Benjamin Libet et al (1983)
What was Libet’s method when using brain scans to look at free will and determinism
Instructed participants could choose a random moment to flick their wrist while he measured activity in their brain (readiness potential).
Participants had to say when they felt the conscious will to move.
What was libet’s findings when using brain scans to look at free will and determinism
He found that the unconscious brain activity leading up to the conscious decision to move came around half a second before the participants consciously felt they had decided to move.
How might Libet’s findings be interpreted when looking at free will and determinism
Even our most basic experiences of free will are actually determined by our brain before we are aware of them
What is the counterpoint to Libet’s findings on free will and determinism
Focuses on subconscious and conscious decisions
Just because we aren’t aware of the decision to act doesn’t mean that there was no decision - just that the decision took time to reach out consciousness.
What is one limitation to determinism
The position of the legal system on responsibility
Who is held responsible for your actions in the court of law
Does this support determinism or free will
You are
A dependent has exercised their free will in committing the crime
What is the nature-nurture debate
Concerned with the extent to which aspects of behaviour are a product of inherited or acquired characteristics.
Why is the nature-nurture debate not really a debate
Any behaviour / characteristic arises from a combination of both.
Give an example of nature and nurture working together to determine attachment type
Nature (the child’s temperament) in a real sense creates the nurture (the parents response) so environment and heredity interact.
What type of approach is it when looking at how nature and nurture interact
An interactionist approach
How does the diathesis-stress model support the nature and nurture debate
It suggests behaviour is caused by a biological or environmental vulnerability which is only expressed when coupled with a biological or environmental ‘trigger’ (stressor)
What does epigenetic refer to
A change in our genetic activity without changing the genes themselves.
What is environemnt
Any influence on human behaviour that is non-genetic.
This may range from parental influences in the womb through to cultural and historical influences at a societal level.
It includes biological influences (food you eat etc.)
What is heredity
The genetic transmission of both mental and physical characteristics from one generation to another.
What is the interactionist approach
A way to explain the development of behaviour in terms of a range of factors, including both psychological ones. Most importantly such factors dont simply add together but combine in a way that cant be predicted by each one separately (they interact)
How long does epigenetics occur for?
What causes it?
A process that occurs throughout life
Caused by interactions with the environment.
Describe how epigenetics occurs
Aspects of our life style or events we encounter (smoking, diet, trauma) leave ‘marks’ on our DNA (genes), which switch genes on or off.
Does epigenetics only effect you
No changes may go on and influence the genetic codes of our children.
What is the third-element that epigenetics brings into the nature-nurture debate
The life experience of previous generations
What does nature refer to
Inherited influences or heredity.
Who argued that all human characteristics and even some aspects of knowledge are innate
Rene Descartes (1596-1650)
What does nurture refer to
Influence of experience and environment
Who argued that the mind is a blank slate at birth and then shaped by environment
John Locke (1632-1704)
What approach does the nurture debate and Locke’s view play a huge role in
Behaviourist approach
Who identified different levels of the environemnt
Richard Lerner (1986)
What do the different levels of environment include when looking at a feotus
Prenatal factors such as how physical influences (smoking) or psychological influences (music)
What represents the degree to which two people are similar on a particular trait
What is this called
A correlation coefficient
Concordance.
Concordance provides an estimate about the extend to which a trait is___
What is this called
Inherited
Heritability
What is heritability
The proportion of differences between individuals in a population, with regards to a particular trait, that is due to genetic variation
What figure or percentage means genes contribute almost nothing to individual differences
.01 or 1%
What figure or percentage means genes are the only reason for individual differences
1.0 or 100%
What is the general figure for IQ heritability across multiple studies in varying populations
Who found this
0.5
Plomin (1994)
What does 0.5 being the most common figure for IQ heritability mean
That about half of a person’s intelligence is determined by genetic factors and the other half environment
What are 3 strengths of the nature-nurture debate
The use of adoption studies
Support for epigenetics
Real-world application
Why are adoption studies useful when looking at the nature-nurture debate
They separate the competing influences
What is the suggested bigger influence when an adopted child is more like their adoptive parents
Environment is a bigger influence
Who performed an analysis on aggression and adoption studies
Soo Rhee and Irwin Waldman (2002)
What did Rhee and Waldman do to investigate aggression within the nature-nurture debate
Conducted a meta-analysis of adoption studies
What did Rhee and Waldman find about aggression in the nature nurture debate
Genetic influences accounted for 41% of the variance in aggression.
What is the counterargument for the nature-nurture debate being investigated through adoptive studies
The approach may be misguided and that nature and nurture are not two entities that can simply be pulled apart.
Who made a statement that backs up the counterpoint of nature and nurture not being two entities
Robert Plomin (1994)
What was Polmin’s statement about nature and nurture being two entities
People create their own ‘nurture’ by actively selecting environments that are appropriate for their ‘nature’.
Put Polmins statement on nature and nurture in the context of aggressive children
What does he refer to this as
A naturally aggressive child is likely to feel more comfortable with children who show similar behaviours and will ‘choose’ their environment accordingly.
Chosen companions further influence their development.
Niche-picking
What event is an example of how environmental factors can span generations presumably through epigenetics
The Second World War.
In 1944 the Nazis blocked the distribution of food to the Dutch people and 22,000 died of starvation - Dutch Hunger Winter.
Who investigated the effect of the Dutch Hunger Winter on epigenetics
Ezra Susser and Shang Lin (1992)
What was Susser’s and Lin’s two findings on the effect of the Dutch hunger winter on epigenetics
Women who became pregnant during the famine went on to have low birth weight babies.
These babies were twice as likely to develop schizophrenia.
What does research suggest about the heritability of OCD
It is highly heritable mental disorder.
Who found the heritability rate for OCD
Gerald Nestadt et al. (2010)
What was Nestadts heritability rate for OCD
0.76
What does being able to know the heritability rate for a disorder mean for someone with parents that have the disorder and getting help
They can receive advice about the likelihood of developing the disorder and how they might prevent it
What is the holistic-reductionism debate
The question of whether holism or reductionism is the better approach to use in order to understand human behaviour.
What is the holistic approach
Studying the ‘whole’
Any attempt to subdivide behaviour or experience into smaller units is innapropriate
What is the relationship between holism and reductionism
Why
There is no continuum between the two
The debate is more about preference
If you broke down the holistic approach it is not holistic anymore
Does the humanistic psychologists take a more holistic or reductionist approach
Holistic
Does the behaviourists take a more holistic or reductionist approach
Reductionist
What is holism
An argument or theory which proposes that it only makes sense to study an individual system rather than its constituent parts.
What is reductionism
The belief that human behaviour is best understood by studying smaller constituent parts.
What is the reductionist approach
Seeks to analyse behaviour by breaking it down into its constituent parts.
Which psychologists took the holistic view
Gestalt psychologists
What do Gestalt psychologists argue
That the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
The humanistic approach focuses on the individuals ____
Experience
What methods do humanistic psychologists research with
Qualitative methods
Themes are analysed rather than breaking he concept into component behaviours
What scientific principle is reductionism based on
Parsimony
What is parsimony
All phenomena should be explained using the simplest principles.
What are levels of explanation
The idea that there are several ways that can be used to explain behaviour.
What does the lowest level of explanation consider
Physiological / biological explanations
What does the middle level of of explanation consider
Psychological explanations
What does the highest level of explanation consider
Social and cultural explanations
List the 6 levels that OCD could be considered at
Socio-cultural
Psychological
Environmental behavioural
Physiological
Neurochemical
How is OCD understood at the socio-cultural level
OCD interrupts social relationships
How is OCD understood at the psychological level
The person’s experience of anxiety
How is OCD understood at the physical level
Movements e.g. washing hands
How is OCD understood at the environmental / behavioural level
Learning experiences
How is OCD understood at the physiological level
Abnormal functioning in the frontal lobes
How is OCD understood at the neurochemical level
Underproduction of serotonin
Name the psychology hierarchy of science in order
Sociology
Psychology
Biology
Chemistry
Physics
In reductionism what is each level more than the one before it
Reductionist
What is biological reductionism
A form of reductionism which attempts to explain behaviour at the lowest biological level
What levels of explanation are included in biological reductionism (2)
What are the 2 other influences
Neurochemical and physiological levels as well as evolutionary and genetic influences
How do biologically reductionist arguments usually work
Backwards
Give an example with OCD of biologically reductionist arguments working backwards
Drugs that increase serotonin have been found to be effective in treating OCD.
Working backwards - low serotonin may be the cause of OCD.
What type of reductionism is the behaviourist approach built on
Environmental reductionism
What is environmental reductionism
The attempt to explain all behaviour in terms of stimulus-response links that have been learned through experience.
Give an example of the stimulus-response and conditioning in attachment and feeding of babies
The learning theory of attachment reduces the idea of love (between baby and feeder) to a learned association between the feeder (neutral stimulus) and food (unconditioned stimulus) resulting in pleasure (conditioned response).
What is one limitation of the holism approach
It may lack practical value
What is the issue with the holistic approach and its practical value in therapy
There are many factors that contribute to depression
It is hard to know which is the most influential
Difficult to know what to prioritise in therapy
What is one strength of the reductionist approach
They often form the basis of a scientific approach
What do we need to do to variables to conduct well-controlled research
Operationalise variables
Having operationalise variables allows us to conduct experiements or record observations in a way that is____
Objective and reliable
What is the counterpoint to the reductionist approach often forming the basis of a scientific approach
Reductionist approaches have been accused of oversimplifying complex phenomena
What does oversimplifying complex phenomena do to validity
Reduces it
What do explanations that operate at the level of the gene or neurotransmitter fail to include
An analysis of the social context within which behaviour occurs - and this is were behaviour may derive its meaning.
What does explanations operating only at one level in reductionism mean about findings
They can only ever form part of an explanation
What is a limitation of reductionism
Some behaviours can only be understood at a higher level.
Aspects of social behaviour may only emerge within what type of context
Group context
Give an example of where a social behaviour is only visible within group context
Example experiment
The effects of conformity to social rules
Stanford prison experiment
What is the idiographic approach
An approach to research that focuses more on the individual case as a means of understanding behaviour, rather than aiming to formulate general laws of behaviour.
What is the nomothetic approach
Aims to study human behaviour through the development of general principles and universal laws.
What is the effect of the idiographic-normothetic debate on research methods
Whether an individual in depth or a larger group and discussion of averages is studied in research
What is the usual number of participants in idiographic research
Small, often a single case ( single person, group or institution)
Do generalisations occur in idiographic research
Yes but the initial focus is about understanding the individual
Is idiographic research concerned with quantitive or qualitative research
Qualitative
Describe the style of interview is used most commonly in idiographic research
Unstructured interview - in depth on one person about their experience
What happens to the data in idiographic research (2 things)
It is analysed and emergent themes are identified.
What approaches is the idiographic approach most associated with in psychology
The humanistic and psychodynamic approach
Who looked at explaining the process of self-development and used an idiographic approach
Carl Roger’s
What was Roger’s method when looking at the process of self-development
What type of approach was this
In-depth conversations with clients in therapy
Idiographic
What famous psychologist also used the idiographic approach
What were they investigating
Freud
Explanations of human nature
What is the main aim of the nomothetic approach
To create ‘laws’ that can be applied to individual situations
Does the nomothetic approach use quantitive or qualitative research
Quantitive
Does the idiographic or nomothetic approach best fit with scientific method
Nomothetic
How would research for the nomothetic approach take place
(4 stages)
Hypothesis formulated
Samples of people assessed in some way
Numerical data produced
Data is analysed for statistical significance
What type of interview would most likely take place in the nomothetic approach
Structured questionnaires
What two psychological approches are nomothetic
Behaviourist and biological
Who used the nomothetic approach to create the general laws of learning
B.F. Skinner
How was Skinner’s method inline with the nomothetic approach
Research looked at one aspect in behaviour in a few animals
BUT the main aim was to establish general laws
Does objectivity lie at the heart of the idiographic or nomothetic approach
Nomothetic
Laws of behaviour in the nomothetic approach are only possible if…
Methods of assessment are delivered in a standardised and objective way
What do researchers working in the idiographic approach believe about objectivity
That objectivity in psychological research is possible.
What is one strength to the idiographic approach
It contributes to the nomothetic approach
How does the idiographic approach compliment the nomothetic approach
By shedding further light on general laws or indeed by challenging such laws.
Describe how an idiographic approach may help a nomothetic approach with hypothesis
A single case may generate a hypothesis for further study and may reveal important insights about normal functioning which may contribute to our overall understanding.
Can the idiographic approach help form scientific laws of behaviour
Yes
What is a counterpoint to the strength of the idiographic approach
Supporters of the idiographic approach should still acknowledge the narrow and restricted nature of their work.
What else is required to make a meaningful generalisation from the idiographic approach
Why
Further examples
Without further examples there is no adequate baseline with which to compare behaviour
Why are methods associated with the idiographic approach have the least scientific conclusions
They rely on the subjective interpretation of the researchers and are open to bias.
What is one strength of both the idiographic and nomothetic approach
They fit with the aims of science
What is it called when findings from a range of studies using different qualitative methods are compared as a way of increasing their validity
Triangulation
What is one limitation to the nomothetic approach
Loss of understanding of the individual
Give an example with schizophrenia of where the individual is lost in the nomothetic approach
Knowing that there is a 1% lifetime risk of developing schizophrenia tells us little about what life is like for someone who has been diagnosed
When is understanding the subjective experience for schizophrenia crucial
When it comes to devising appropriate treatment options
What was established to protect participants and guide researchers
Ethical guidelines
What are ethical implications
The consequences of any research in terms of the effects on individual participants or on the way in which certain groups of people are subsequently regarded.
What is a wider scale in which ethical implications may occur
Wider societal level
When do ethical implications apply in research
They apply within all research
Some ares of research may have greater ___ than others
Social sensitivity
what is socially sensitive research
Studies in which there are potential consequences or implications, either directly for the participants in the research or for the class of individuals represented by the research.
Who defined social sensitivity
Sieber and Stanley (1988)
Who may a study on depression have consequences for (3 things)
May have consequences in terms of individual participants, the wider social group they represent and for social policy
Does all psychological research have potential consequences
Yes
What are three important stages of planning to consider when thinking of social sensitivity
Research question
Dealing with participants
The way in which findings are used
Who made a warning about the way in which research questions are phrased
Joan Sieber and Barbara Stanley (1988)
What did Sieber and Stanly state about the way in which research questions are phrased
The way in which research questions are phrased and investigated may influence the way in which findings are interpreted
Who noted that research into relationships has a heterosexual bias
Celia Kitzinger and Adrian Coyle (1995)
What did Kitzinger and Coyle state about ‘heterosexual bias’ in research questions
Research into relationships has been guilty of a form of ‘heterosexual bias’ within which homosexual relationships were compared and judged against heterosexual norms.
What issues under dealing with participants may be especially important in socially sensitive research (3)
Informed consent
Confidentiality
Psychological harm
What may a person worry about in research on domestic abuse - example for dealing with participants
May worry that an ex-partner will find out about the study and it is likely to be extremely stressful for participants to describe their experiences.
Why is a participant providing informed consent not enough for some research
Participants may provide informed consent at the start of the study but not fully understand the effect of the research
Why is it important that researchers consider the way in which their findings are used
(2 things - aiding research and prejudice)
May impact on what data they actually collect.
Findings from research may be seen as giving scientific credence to existing prejudices
Give an example of a scientific study giving scientific credence to existing prejudices
Studies examining the ethnic basis of intelligence (IQ testing WW2)
What is the link between psychological information and media interest
The media tends to be more interested in and will publicise more sensitive information
Give an example of when research got particular media attention
(Who, why so much attention)
Adrian Owen’s research on people in a minimally concious state.
It apprehend he has made contact with patients who were thought to be unreachable.
What are two strengths of socially sensitive research
It can have benefits for the group who have been studies
Certain groups rely on research related to socially sensitive issues
Who conducted an experiment that is an example of socially sensitive research having benefits for the group who have been studied
Kinsey et al. (1948)
What was the method of the Kinsey report
Anonymous interviews with over 5000 men about their sexual behaviour
What did the Kinsey report conclude
Homosexuality is a typical expression of human sexual behaviour
What data did the Kinsey report do to report about women
Included data on interviews with 6000 women
Why was their outrage towards the Kinsey report
These were topics that no one discussed
What was the Kinsey report’s impact on the DSM
In 1952 the DSM-1 listed homosexuality as a ‘sociopathic personality disorder’
Removed it in 1973 - credit given to the Kinsey report.
What is the counterpoint to socially sensitive research having benefits for the group who have been studied
In some studies there could be negative consequences for the groups being studied, which in some cases could have been anticipated.
What is an example for negative consequences for the groups being studied.
Research investigating the genetic bias of criminality has found a ‘criminal gene’.
If true does it mean someone could be convicted because they have the gene of should they be excused because they cannot be held responsible for any wrong doing?
Who looks to research when developing important social policies
The government
Give examples of when the government might look to research when developing important social policies (4)
Child care, education, mental health provision, crime
Name the independent group in the UK who are doing research for the government social policies
ONS
Office for National Statistics
How do ONS describe themselves / what do they do
Responsible for collecting, analysing and disseminating objective statistics about the UKs economy, society and population.
What is one limitation to social sensitive research
Poor research design may lead to erroneous findings, which once’s in the public area, continue to have an impact.
Who conducted research that shows poor research design leading to erroneous findings
Cyril Burt (1955)
What was Burt influential in establishing
The 11+ exam which determines what type of secondary school a child goes to.
What was the fraud in Burt’s findings on the 11+ exam
The data later revealed that much of it was fake
Including 2 imaginary research assistants and he was publicly discredited
What happened to the 11+ exam after Burt’s fraud was exposed
11+ continued to be used.
The 11+ is still used as a selection tool in parts of the UK today (Kent, Belfast)
Why did Burt’s ‘results’ suggest its an 11+ exam
Suggested that this is when genetic potential has released itself
What was the American Psychological Association’s (APA 2001) report on ethical committees
Ethical committees approved 95% of non-sensitive proposals that didn’t include ethical problem’s whereas ‘sensitive’ proposals were only approved about 50% of the time.
