Issues and debates *

• what are the 6 debates?

  reductionism v holism

  gender bias

  culture bias

  nature v nurture

  free will v determinism

  idiographic v nomothetic
• what does holism mean

  this considers all aspects that could affect human behaviour
• what does reductionism mean

  breaks down human behaviour into basic parts
• what is gender bias

  this is research that treats one gender differently to another
• gender bias - alpha bias

  alpha bias is research that studies both/one gender and exagerates the differences between gender. An example of this is Freud.
• gender bias - beta bias

  beta bias is research that studies one gender and minimises differences between genders. Examples of this is zimbardo, milgram and asch.
• gender bias - androcentric

  androcentrism is male behaviour is the norm. this is also a consequence of beta bias.
• what is cultural bias

  research that treats one culture/s differently to another.
• cultural bias - individualistic culture

  individualistic culture focuses on the individual. it states that people work hard for their own benefit.
• cultural bias - collectivist culture

  this focuses on society. it states that people work hard for their own benefit.
• cultural bias - enthrocentrism

  this states that one cultures behaviour is the norm and we judge other cultures against them norms.
• cultural bias - cultural relativism

  considering the behaviour based on the culture of the person/people belong to.
• cultural bias - imposed etic

  this is taking one cultures view and putting this on another culture. an example of this is the strange situation.
• nature v nurture - nurture

  things in our environment. eg family, friends and workplace
• nature v nurture - nature

  genetics and out biological makeup
• free will v determinism - free will

  when you have control over your own actions, behaviours and choices. nothing causes your behaviour.
• free will v determinism - determinism

  influences outside of your control cause your behaviour.
• idiographic v nomothetic - idiographic

  focuses on individuals and only explains their behaviour. this means it isnt generalisable. this data is subjective and qualitative. examples are KF, little hans, kim peek and self report.
• idiographic v nomothetic - nomothetic

  this focuses on groups and creates general laws for behaviour. this generalises to the wider population. this data is objective and quantitative. examples of this is social influence, romanian orphans study and the little albert experiment.