Issues and Debates in Psychology

We consider philosophical debates in psychological research because the debates are relevant when deciding how to study humans. Questions about what shapes human behavior, how humans make decisions, and how humans change are all relevant to the development of psychological research.

Gender bias in psychology is the perception or treatment of one gender in a more or less favorable way compared to another gender, based on gender stereotypes.

Cultural bias in psychology is when research, findings or theories from one culture are applied to another.

The philosophical debate concerned with the way we study humans in psychological research is the debate of reductionism versus holism.

The idiographic approach uses qualitative methods and the nomothetic approach uses quantitative methods to study human behavior.

This is false. The nature-nurture debate is concerned with the source of the formation of a person's characteristics and behavior. It studies whether we are a result of nature or nurture.

Gender bias is the more favorable or unfavorable perception or treatment of any gender group.

Gender bias can affect psychological research if it is not conducted fairly or produces misleading or inaccurate findings. Research can also be impacted if it is overly generalized or based on cultural values ​​rather than scientific factors. An example of gender bias is using all-male participants to study human behavior; this is because the results will be applied to everyone even though there were no female participants.

Alpha bias

One disadvantage of alpha bias is that the differences betwen men and women may sometimes come from cultural values, which can be hard to distinguish in psychological findings. Other correct answers include: there are differences within genders, alpha bias upholds stereotypes and justifies discrimination, the differences may not exist as much as portrayed, and alpha bias appears to maintain male dominance in several contexts.

Ethnocentrism is the belief or assumption that one culture's ideas, values and practices are 'natural' or 'correct'. The individual uses the standards in their own culture to assess other cultural groups or races.

The Strange Situation procedure was considered to be ethnocentric because it assumed that the secure attachment style was the 'healthiest' form of attachment between an infant and mother. This concept was an American concept that was believed to be 'correct' and 'natural'. In fact, it did not consider cultural variations in child-rearing practices.

Cultural bias is when a study, research or findings from one culture are applied to another. For example, it may be inappropriate to apply Western theories about obedience to other cultures as the theories may be based on Western ideals of obedience.

The main aim of cultural relativism is to avoid or reduce ethnocentrism in scientific studies.

The researcher can ensure they are not subconsciously holding the belief or assumption that their culture's values ​​about familial relationships are 'correct'. They must take care not to use Western ideals to evaluate East Asian familial structures. They should consider each country and culture individually and ensure all relevant factors are considered before reaching conclusions.

The nature-nurture debate in psychology concerns whether our characteristics, behavior and personality are due to our genetics (nature) or our environment (nurture). It is concerned with which of these two 'factors' influences our behavior more. This may help us understand why humans behave in certain ways.

Chomsky's Universal Grammar Theory (1965). It proposes that all humans are innately capable of learning a language. The human mind is 'prewired' for language learning.

Empiricism claims that our minds are a 'tabula rasa' (blank slate) at birth and that they are gradually filled with knowledge and experiences. These shape our behavior. On the other hand, nativism claims that our biology is 'written' and that we are born with behavioral tendencies and abilities.

Bandura's Bobo doll study supported the nurture side of the debate, as it showed that behavior, in particular aggression, was learned by observation and imitation.

An adoption study or twin study would be appropriate to determine whether memory is influenced by genetics or the environment, as comparisons could be made through different memory abilities.

If one identical twin is more aggressive than the other despite being in the same environment, it is likely that the difference is due to environmental factors (nurture). As identical twins have the same genes, any differences are likely to be non-genetic.

The name of the approach that suggests nature and nurture work together is the interactionist approach.

The diathesis-stress model. It was used to study schizophrenia.

The three main philosophical debates in psychology are the nature vs nurture debate, free will vs determinism, and reductionism vs holism.

The nature vs nurture debate attempts to explain human behaviour as a product of naturally occurring genes or as a product of environmental factors and life experience.

False.

Nurture.

Nature provides a foundation to our behaviour with genetics.

Nature does not consider the complex social structures of society or the complicated situations that shape human development.

The free will and determinism debate explores whether our actions are our choices or result from conditions, environment, and internal genetic and cognitive processes.

The humanistic approach.

A bias is a false or inaccurate perception about a group of people or a set of beliefs. These perceptions are often based on stereotypes relating to characteristics such as race, gender, or sexual orientation.

Unconscious or implicit bias is when our beliefs or attitudes are outside our awareness or control. For example, an automatic association of a nurse being female.

Universality means that psychological findings and theories are applicable to all people.

Through a biased sample and biased interpretation of results.

Cultural bias occurs when research findings from one culture are applied to another.

Cultural bias can arise when researchers assume there must be vast differences between cultures or if they fail to acknowledge real cultural differences.

A subculture is a smaller culture within a larger culture. Subcultures are grouped in some way, e.g., through age, social class, or sexual orientation.

Ethnocentrism is the belief or assumption that a culture's ideas, values, and practices are 'natural' or 'right'. The standards of one culture are used to judge other cultural groups or races.

Using one culture's standards to assess other cultural groups or races may negatively portray different cultures' ideas or practices compared to one 'right' culture.

Gender bias means treating one gender more or less favourably based on gender stereotypes rather than actual differences.

Gender bias can cause misleading or inaccurate scientific results, perpetuate gender stereotyping and justify gender discrimination.

Alpha bias is the exaggeration or emphasis on the differences between men and women. It makes one gender seem 'better' than the other. This usually involves devaluing the less 'superior' gender.

Beta bias is the downplaying of differences between men and women. It refers to research that applies equally to both genders without considering gender differences within the research.

Androcentrism

The argument of free will argues that humans have complete autonomy to make their own decisions. Proponents of free will argue that although external factors affect our behaviour, ultimately, humans decide how to respond to them. 

It is impossible to predict someone's behaviour with accuracy.