1 - Gender bias
AO1 AO3
Universality & bias ISSUE: Gender differences are given as fixed + enduring
Universality - Maccoby & Jacklin (1974)
- Observed behaviours apply equally to all humans / - CONCLUDED: Girls have better verbal ability / boys have
regardless of differences. better spatial ability
- Research about human behaviour is objective / value-free / - DUE TO hardwired biological brain differences
consistent across time and culture - E: Joel et al (2015) used brain scanning (fMRI) + found no
Gender bias gender differences
- The differential treatment and/or representation of males - L: We should be wary of accepting research as biological facts
and females / based on stereotypes & pre-existing beliefs, - Differences may be better explained with social stereotypes
not differences. - Social learning theory may be a better approach
AnDROocentrism ISSUE: Evidence for alpha bias
- Male-centered - Ingalhalikar et al (2014)
- Consequences of androcentrism = alpha & beta bias - SUGGESTS: the popular social stereotype that females are
- Psych = traditionally been a male-dominated subject better at multitasking may have some biological truth.
- Female behaviour is often misunderstood, even pathologised - E: Females have a thicker corpus callosum connecting the L +
(sign of illness / abnormality) R hemispheres (very small difference in size)
- L: There may be biological differences BUT we should be wary
EXAMPLE: PMS - premenstrual syndrome of exaggerating their true effect on behaviour.
- Brescoll + Uhlmann (2008) oh man
- Feminists object to PMS because it medicalises female
emotion by explaining it in hormonal terms ISSUE: Gender bias promotes sexism in the research process
- BUT male anger is often seen as a rational response to - Murphy et al (2014)
external pressures - Women are underrepresented in university depts
- AND research is more likely to be conducted by males, which
Alpha bias may disadvantage females.
- Exaggerates differences - E: Male researchers may have false expectations of female
- Differences between the sexes are presented as fixed and behaviour
inevitable (regardless of the reality) - EG: being unable to complete certain tasks / lower ability level
- Often leads to females being devalued - Women may underperform (self-fulfilling prophecy)
- L: Institutional structures & methods of psychological research
EXAMPLE: The Psychodynamic theory (Oedipus + Electra) may produce findings that are gender-biased in a
- Freud (1905) male-dominated sphere.
- Children in the phallic stage desire their oposite-sex parent
- Resolved through identification with their same-sex parent ISSUE: Research challenging bias may NOT be published
- Oedipus complex + the Electra complex - Formanowicz et al (2018)
- Female identification is weaker = weaker Superego = weaker - Content analysis of 1,000 articles relating to gender bias
moral development - FOUND: Research into gender bias is funded less often &
published by less prestigious journals.
Beta bias - E: Held true when gender bias was compared to ethnic bias &
- Minimises differences when other factors were controlled
- Ignoring or underestimating differences between men + - (eg; methodology / author’s gender)
women occurs when ppts of one gender are excluded in the - L: Gender bias may NOT be taken as seriously as other forms
research process of bias
- Assumed that the research findings apply equally to both
sexes ISSUE: Value of confronting gender bias (reflexivity)
- Gender-biased research creates misleading assumptions
EXAMPLE: Fight or flight about female behaviour
- Early research into fight or flight was based on male animals - BUT…
- BECAUSE female hormones fluctuate - Modern researchers recognise the effect assumptions have on
- It was assumed to be a universal response to a threat their work
- Taking a reflexive approach = embracing differences as a
crucial aspect of the research process.
- Declaring personal experiences + preconceptions - impacting
how they act & interpret QUALITATIVE data
- L: Gender bias may add an extra dimension to research IF
psychologists are up front about it in their work.
Limitations of androcentrism
- Prejudice against other ethnic groups
- Discrimination against other ethnic groups
- Western norm, devaluing other cultures
, 2 - Cultural bias
AO1 AO3
American students are overrepresented in research Evidence of universality
REVIEWS BY… - Ekman (1989)
Henrich et al (2010) found… - FOUND: basic facial expressions associated with emotions
- 68% of research ppts = from the US - Eg: disgust / anger / fear / happiness
- 96% of research ppts = from industrialised nations - Are the same & recognised across a range of cultures
Arnett (2008) found… - E: Indicates that some core emotional responses are
- 80% of research ppts = undergrads studying psych biologically determined & universal rather than culturally
learned
WEIRD people set standard - Ext. v - emojis (even universal digital communication)
Henrich et al - L: This suggests a full understanding of human behaviour
- Describes the group of people most likely to be studied by requires both cultural relativism & universality.
psychologists
- Westernised / Educated people from / Industrialised / Rich / The emergence of cultural psychology
Democracies - Cohen (2017)
- Norms / standards are set by WEIRD people - Cultural psychology is the study of how people shape & how
- Behaviours outside this demographic may be perceived to be they are shaped by their cultural experience.
different from the outset (outliers) - Emerging field that takes an emic approach.
- E: Research conducted from INSIDE a culture, alongside
Culture bias & ethnocentrism indigenous researchers using culturally-based techniques
Cultural bias - Eg: (Grossmann et al 1981)
- Favouring one culture over others, often unconsciously + - L: Modern psychologists are mindful of the dangers of cultural
unintentionally bias, taking steps to avoid it (reflexive approach)
EthnocentriSm (s = superior)
- Actively judging other cultures according to the standards + ISSUE: Many classic studies are culturally-biased
values of your own culture / believing one’s own culture is - Both Asch + Milgram’s original studies were conducted with
superior. white m-class US ppts (WIERD criteria).
- Can be communicated by viewing any behaviours that don’t - Replications of these different studies in different counties
conform to a European / American standard produced different results.
- As deficient or underdeveloped - E: Asch-type experiments in collectivist cultures
- Found significantly higher conformity rates than the original
EXAMPLE: Attachment studies in the US
Ainsworth + Bell’s (1970) ‘Strange Situation’ - L: Findings may only represent WIERD / individualist cultures,
- Research on attachment type reflecting the norms of US limiting the generalisability of social influence research.
culture
- Ideal (secure) attachment = defined by a baby showing ISSUE: Ethnic stereotyping
moderate stress when left alone by the mother figure - Gould (1981)
Takahashi (1986) - EXPLAINED how the 1st intelligence tests (IQ) led to eugenic
- Found Japanese babies (rarely left alone) are more likely to social policies in America.
be classed as insecurely attached - During WW1, psychologists gave IQ tests to 1.75m army
- Showing distress on separation recruits (data used to sterilise the population in Nazi Germany)
- E: Many test items were ethnocentric
- Eg; naming US presidents / so recruits from other cultural
Cultural relativism vs universality backgrounds (Eastern European or African American heritage)
Cultural relativism scored lowest = deemed genetically inferior
- Behaviour can only be understood in the context in which - L: Cultural bias can be used to justify prejudice &
the culture or society’s norms / beliefs / values occur in discrimination towards ethnic & cultural groups.
- Universality: all behaviours apply equally, regardless of
differences
Ways to avoid cultural bias in research (ao2 q’s)
Etic vs emic approaches - Use researchers native to the culture being investigated
Berry (1969) argues… (indigenous researchers)
- Etic (them) approach: looks at behaviour OUTSIDE a given - Take a reflexive approach (constantly reflecting on own biases
culture / identifying when conducting research)
behaviours which are - Don’t attempt to extrapolate findings to cultures that aren’t
universal represented in the research sample
- Emic (me) approach:
functions from INSIDE a
culture / identifies
behaviours that are
specific to that culture
AO1 AO3
Universality & bias ISSUE: Gender differences are given as fixed + enduring
Universality - Maccoby & Jacklin (1974)
- Observed behaviours apply equally to all humans / - CONCLUDED: Girls have better verbal ability / boys have
regardless of differences. better spatial ability
- Research about human behaviour is objective / value-free / - DUE TO hardwired biological brain differences
consistent across time and culture - E: Joel et al (2015) used brain scanning (fMRI) + found no
Gender bias gender differences
- The differential treatment and/or representation of males - L: We should be wary of accepting research as biological facts
and females / based on stereotypes & pre-existing beliefs, - Differences may be better explained with social stereotypes
not differences. - Social learning theory may be a better approach
AnDROocentrism ISSUE: Evidence for alpha bias
- Male-centered - Ingalhalikar et al (2014)
- Consequences of androcentrism = alpha & beta bias - SUGGESTS: the popular social stereotype that females are
- Psych = traditionally been a male-dominated subject better at multitasking may have some biological truth.
- Female behaviour is often misunderstood, even pathologised - E: Females have a thicker corpus callosum connecting the L +
(sign of illness / abnormality) R hemispheres (very small difference in size)
- L: There may be biological differences BUT we should be wary
EXAMPLE: PMS - premenstrual syndrome of exaggerating their true effect on behaviour.
- Brescoll + Uhlmann (2008) oh man
- Feminists object to PMS because it medicalises female
emotion by explaining it in hormonal terms ISSUE: Gender bias promotes sexism in the research process
- BUT male anger is often seen as a rational response to - Murphy et al (2014)
external pressures - Women are underrepresented in university depts
- AND research is more likely to be conducted by males, which
Alpha bias may disadvantage females.
- Exaggerates differences - E: Male researchers may have false expectations of female
- Differences between the sexes are presented as fixed and behaviour
inevitable (regardless of the reality) - EG: being unable to complete certain tasks / lower ability level
- Often leads to females being devalued - Women may underperform (self-fulfilling prophecy)
- L: Institutional structures & methods of psychological research
EXAMPLE: The Psychodynamic theory (Oedipus + Electra) may produce findings that are gender-biased in a
- Freud (1905) male-dominated sphere.
- Children in the phallic stage desire their oposite-sex parent
- Resolved through identification with their same-sex parent ISSUE: Research challenging bias may NOT be published
- Oedipus complex + the Electra complex - Formanowicz et al (2018)
- Female identification is weaker = weaker Superego = weaker - Content analysis of 1,000 articles relating to gender bias
moral development - FOUND: Research into gender bias is funded less often &
published by less prestigious journals.
Beta bias - E: Held true when gender bias was compared to ethnic bias &
- Minimises differences when other factors were controlled
- Ignoring or underestimating differences between men + - (eg; methodology / author’s gender)
women occurs when ppts of one gender are excluded in the - L: Gender bias may NOT be taken as seriously as other forms
research process of bias
- Assumed that the research findings apply equally to both
sexes ISSUE: Value of confronting gender bias (reflexivity)
- Gender-biased research creates misleading assumptions
EXAMPLE: Fight or flight about female behaviour
- Early research into fight or flight was based on male animals - BUT…
- BECAUSE female hormones fluctuate - Modern researchers recognise the effect assumptions have on
- It was assumed to be a universal response to a threat their work
- Taking a reflexive approach = embracing differences as a
crucial aspect of the research process.
- Declaring personal experiences + preconceptions - impacting
how they act & interpret QUALITATIVE data
- L: Gender bias may add an extra dimension to research IF
psychologists are up front about it in their work.
Limitations of androcentrism
- Prejudice against other ethnic groups
- Discrimination against other ethnic groups
- Western norm, devaluing other cultures
, 2 - Cultural bias
AO1 AO3
American students are overrepresented in research Evidence of universality
REVIEWS BY… - Ekman (1989)
Henrich et al (2010) found… - FOUND: basic facial expressions associated with emotions
- 68% of research ppts = from the US - Eg: disgust / anger / fear / happiness
- 96% of research ppts = from industrialised nations - Are the same & recognised across a range of cultures
Arnett (2008) found… - E: Indicates that some core emotional responses are
- 80% of research ppts = undergrads studying psych biologically determined & universal rather than culturally
learned
WEIRD people set standard - Ext. v - emojis (even universal digital communication)
Henrich et al - L: This suggests a full understanding of human behaviour
- Describes the group of people most likely to be studied by requires both cultural relativism & universality.
psychologists
- Westernised / Educated people from / Industrialised / Rich / The emergence of cultural psychology
Democracies - Cohen (2017)
- Norms / standards are set by WEIRD people - Cultural psychology is the study of how people shape & how
- Behaviours outside this demographic may be perceived to be they are shaped by their cultural experience.
different from the outset (outliers) - Emerging field that takes an emic approach.
- E: Research conducted from INSIDE a culture, alongside
Culture bias & ethnocentrism indigenous researchers using culturally-based techniques
Cultural bias - Eg: (Grossmann et al 1981)
- Favouring one culture over others, often unconsciously + - L: Modern psychologists are mindful of the dangers of cultural
unintentionally bias, taking steps to avoid it (reflexive approach)
EthnocentriSm (s = superior)
- Actively judging other cultures according to the standards + ISSUE: Many classic studies are culturally-biased
values of your own culture / believing one’s own culture is - Both Asch + Milgram’s original studies were conducted with
superior. white m-class US ppts (WIERD criteria).
- Can be communicated by viewing any behaviours that don’t - Replications of these different studies in different counties
conform to a European / American standard produced different results.
- As deficient or underdeveloped - E: Asch-type experiments in collectivist cultures
- Found significantly higher conformity rates than the original
EXAMPLE: Attachment studies in the US
Ainsworth + Bell’s (1970) ‘Strange Situation’ - L: Findings may only represent WIERD / individualist cultures,
- Research on attachment type reflecting the norms of US limiting the generalisability of social influence research.
culture
- Ideal (secure) attachment = defined by a baby showing ISSUE: Ethnic stereotyping
moderate stress when left alone by the mother figure - Gould (1981)
Takahashi (1986) - EXPLAINED how the 1st intelligence tests (IQ) led to eugenic
- Found Japanese babies (rarely left alone) are more likely to social policies in America.
be classed as insecurely attached - During WW1, psychologists gave IQ tests to 1.75m army
- Showing distress on separation recruits (data used to sterilise the population in Nazi Germany)
- E: Many test items were ethnocentric
- Eg; naming US presidents / so recruits from other cultural
Cultural relativism vs universality backgrounds (Eastern European or African American heritage)
Cultural relativism scored lowest = deemed genetically inferior
- Behaviour can only be understood in the context in which - L: Cultural bias can be used to justify prejudice &
the culture or society’s norms / beliefs / values occur in discrimination towards ethnic & cultural groups.
- Universality: all behaviours apply equally, regardless of
differences
Ways to avoid cultural bias in research (ao2 q’s)
Etic vs emic approaches - Use researchers native to the culture being investigated
Berry (1969) argues… (indigenous researchers)
- Etic (them) approach: looks at behaviour OUTSIDE a given - Take a reflexive approach (constantly reflecting on own biases
culture / identifying when conducting research)
behaviours which are - Don’t attempt to extrapolate findings to cultures that aren’t
universal represented in the research sample
- Emic (me) approach:
functions from INSIDE a
culture / identifies
behaviours that are
specific to that culture
