Lucy Bloomfield 29.03.19
Evaluate issues of culture and gender in studies by Rosenhan and Sherif. You must reference
to their methods and impact to society. 16 marks.
Issues of culture can be caused by ethnocentric research which is when a psychologist
completes a study from one culturally specific viewpoint. Issues of gender in psychology
studies become apparent when the sample or research team are androcentric. This is when the
majority are male, so the findings can only be applied to males and not females or other
genders. Cultural issues pose a large threat to psychology as 90% of studies are conducted in
Western societies, restricting explanations of non-Western behaviour.
Rosenhan’s study into the American diagnosis system in mental health hospitals assessed
how the DSM was used to diagnose those with schizophrenia. The DSM is only used in
Western societies, therefore, only includes Western symptoms of illnesses. For example,
depression can be diagnosed through emotional and physical symptoms in America yet in
China, symptoms are more likely to be physical. Therefore, the findings from Rosenhan’s
investigation that the diagnosis system and mental health hospital system was poor cannot be
applicable to other countries and cultures other than American. The patients may have not
been misdiagnosed in other societies with the symptoms of hearing the words ‘hollow, thud
and empty’ and this cannot be conclusive as the experiment was only completed in 12
hospitals in America. However, Rosenhan did holistically gather information from 12 mental
health hospitals in 5 different stages in America as well as gaining it from a mixture of new
and old and public and private hospitals. Therefore, it can be assumed that the findings of
depersonalization of patients can be applied to all institutions in America due to its variety of
hospitals. It is very much etic research. To conclude, Rosenhan’s study is culturally biased
towards Western cultures and cannot be applied elsewhere, vastly reducing its usefulness.
Sherif’s experiment into how prejudice and discrimination could be created by the existence
of two groups at a summer camp is culturally specific. It is a widely American phenomenon
of going to a summer camp for weeks in the summer holidays, it is not a cultural norm
worldwide. Furthermore, the US has an individualistic culture. Most Americans see
themselves and their immediate family as important, not all Americans as a group. This could
lead to them being reluctant to work as a group and cause more prejudice than if the group
was collectivist. Therefore, it can be assumed that the prejudice caused, such as the burning
of flags and raiding of bunkhouses, was impacted by the young boys’ cultural views of ‘every
man for himself’, whereas if the research was conducted in Japan, the prejudice may have
been lower, disproving Sherif’s ideas. Also, the superordinate goals of getting tokens for a
film night and camp out and fixing of a bus are culturally bound as other cultures, such as
African cultures, may not have seen the goal as desirable due to the lack of consumerism in
their cultures. This concludes that the results from Sherif’s study can only be applied to other
Western, individualistic cultures like the UK and Australia due to tis high element of
ethnocentrism.
Rosenhan’s study, based on gender and methodology, is applicable. The study included 8
participants, 5 male and 3 females, a somewhat even distribution of genders. The occupations
ranged from a painter to a housewife, inferring a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds.
There is not an element of androcentric in the research. The method of participant
observation was used to gather an insight into how mental health hospitals in America
worked and treated their patients. The notes taken by the participants may have been
Evaluate issues of culture and gender in studies by Rosenhan and Sherif. You must reference
to their methods and impact to society. 16 marks.
Issues of culture can be caused by ethnocentric research which is when a psychologist
completes a study from one culturally specific viewpoint. Issues of gender in psychology
studies become apparent when the sample or research team are androcentric. This is when the
majority are male, so the findings can only be applied to males and not females or other
genders. Cultural issues pose a large threat to psychology as 90% of studies are conducted in
Western societies, restricting explanations of non-Western behaviour.
Rosenhan’s study into the American diagnosis system in mental health hospitals assessed
how the DSM was used to diagnose those with schizophrenia. The DSM is only used in
Western societies, therefore, only includes Western symptoms of illnesses. For example,
depression can be diagnosed through emotional and physical symptoms in America yet in
China, symptoms are more likely to be physical. Therefore, the findings from Rosenhan’s
investigation that the diagnosis system and mental health hospital system was poor cannot be
applicable to other countries and cultures other than American. The patients may have not
been misdiagnosed in other societies with the symptoms of hearing the words ‘hollow, thud
and empty’ and this cannot be conclusive as the experiment was only completed in 12
hospitals in America. However, Rosenhan did holistically gather information from 12 mental
health hospitals in 5 different stages in America as well as gaining it from a mixture of new
and old and public and private hospitals. Therefore, it can be assumed that the findings of
depersonalization of patients can be applied to all institutions in America due to its variety of
hospitals. It is very much etic research. To conclude, Rosenhan’s study is culturally biased
towards Western cultures and cannot be applied elsewhere, vastly reducing its usefulness.
Sherif’s experiment into how prejudice and discrimination could be created by the existence
of two groups at a summer camp is culturally specific. It is a widely American phenomenon
of going to a summer camp for weeks in the summer holidays, it is not a cultural norm
worldwide. Furthermore, the US has an individualistic culture. Most Americans see
themselves and their immediate family as important, not all Americans as a group. This could
lead to them being reluctant to work as a group and cause more prejudice than if the group
was collectivist. Therefore, it can be assumed that the prejudice caused, such as the burning
of flags and raiding of bunkhouses, was impacted by the young boys’ cultural views of ‘every
man for himself’, whereas if the research was conducted in Japan, the prejudice may have
been lower, disproving Sherif’s ideas. Also, the superordinate goals of getting tokens for a
film night and camp out and fixing of a bus are culturally bound as other cultures, such as
African cultures, may not have seen the goal as desirable due to the lack of consumerism in
their cultures. This concludes that the results from Sherif’s study can only be applied to other
Western, individualistic cultures like the UK and Australia due to tis high element of
ethnocentrism.
Rosenhan’s study, based on gender and methodology, is applicable. The study included 8
participants, 5 male and 3 females, a somewhat even distribution of genders. The occupations
ranged from a painter to a housewife, inferring a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds.
There is not an element of androcentric in the research. The method of participant
observation was used to gather an insight into how mental health hospitals in America
worked and treated their patients. The notes taken by the participants may have been
