LT9 Genie Flashcards
What was the aim of the genie study
To test the theory that there was a critical period for language development. Investigate whether the effects of early provision could be reversed
When was genie discovered
Genie was discovered in 1970 at the age of 13 years old, after suffering extreme probation for most of her childhood
What had happened to Genie
She had been neglected by her parents, spending her life locked in a room tied to a party share by day and tied to a crib night
What were the problems that Genie had when they found her
Jamie could not talk properly when she was found, it was found that she had been beaten by her father for making a noise. Jamie was found with severe physical development problems: she could not walk properly she had a physical stoop, being unable to straighten her arms or legs. She was severely undernourished and had stunted growth, she had only been fed baby food and it was discovered that she could not due a swallow solid food
What happened to Janie when she was in the Children’s Hospital
During her time at the Children’s Hospital, Jenny made social, emotional and physical improvements such as bathing herself. This was because she was removed from her natural home environment. She also started to make emotional attachments with staffshowing distress when she was separated from them
What happened when she was fostered by researchers
She was fostered by researchers and given the therapy and rehabilitated buy them in her own home. She showed signs of language improvement, although this did not match up to her chronological age. In particular her understanding of grammatical structure did not improve beyond that of a two-year-old and her IQ reached a maximum of 70 meaning it could not be concluded that her language was normal
What happened to Janie after funding was cut
After funding was stopped she was returned to local authority care where she went through a succession of foster homes. During this time she regressed emotionally and stop talking; this was due to ill treatment by her foster parents. She now lives out her life in a residential care home for adults with learning difficulties and there is a court order protecting her privacy, due to the concerns with overtesting
What was the conclusion from Genie study
The study showed us that there is a critical period for language development as Jeannie was never able to fully develop a language ability, further suggesting that the effects of probation cannot be fully reversed
Why is the case study of Jeannie hi invalidity
As a case study the research is high and validity because it gathered rich and detailed quantitated and qualitative data. The researchers used a variety of research methods, such as eeg, cognitive tests and observation is to assess genies development this allowed for triangulation to be achieved which increases validity
Why is it high in ecological validity for the genie study
The case study method has high ecological validity is because studies real-life cases in context, for example Jamie informed us of the nature of the real-life probation as she was isolated from a young age due to her real life circumstances.
Why does the genie case study have good reliability
The researchers were able to check for reliability because a range of tests for example IQ and cognitive and observations were carried out on G need to understand her condition and how she is progressing. This allows for crosschecking of the results to take place, ensuring consistent results across all tests were found
What is an ethical strength of the genie case study in terms of harm
The research is protected her from harm and her confidentiality by giving Jamie a pseudonym. This was very important because Jamie was a sensitive case and extremely vulnerable because I’ve gained a lot of media attention and unwonted intrusion into her life
What is an ethical concerns of the genie case study in terms of testing
Jeannie was subjected to a great deal of testing and questioning such as many experiments and brain scans which could have caused her to become distressed. She was also relocated repeatedly which did have negative effects on her emotional well-being. This could be seen as the research is not treating her properly and therefore putting their research ahead of jeans and welfare
Why was the junior case study more ethical than something else
Is more ethical than causing artificial probation as Jenny was a very unique individual and her situation was naturally occurring event, which means it is ethical. This is because it would be highly unethical to set up a situation involving a probation experiment. Using a unique case studies such as Jeannie it is seen as bettermore ethical option
Why is the role of the psychologist in the genie case study debatable
The moral code and ethics of this case study of questionable as the researchers were said to put research before Jamie’s welfare, satisfying their desire to explain her condition rather than try and help it. The research subject of her to over assessment by completing many different tests from cognitive tests and sleep tests to constant observations by filming; this may have been an abuse of the research role. However by taking junior to their homes research shows that they are sympathetic of Jeannie special requirements which enabled her to build a close emotional bonds, and can be seen as a key aspect of genies early progress
