Culture Bias

• What is culture bias?

  A tendency to ignore cultural differences and assume that findings from western cultures can be applied all over the world
• What is Ethnocentrism?

  • A result of culture bias
  • Judging other cultures by the norms of ones own culture and seeing cultural differences as abnormal
  • Can lead to prejudice and discrimination towards other cultures
• Research that shows Ethnocentrism:

  • Yerkes (1917)
  • Migrants in the Military

  Findings:

  • Can grade European intelligence by country of origin
  • Northern and Western scored better than southern
  • Black = Mentally 10
  • White = Mentally 30
• 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 contexts
  • Findings from one culture should not be imposed on another