Summary Full A-Level Issues and Debates Notes - AQA Psychology Paper 3
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Course
Issues and Debates
Institution
AQA
Full notes for aqa a level psychology paper 3 issues and debates covering all bullet points in the specification, including holism vs reductionism, nature vs nurture etc - these notes got me an A* in my A-Level and include evaluations of the debates
Cultural Bias
Alpha Bias
Theories that assume there are real and enduring differences between cultural groups.
● Example: the distinction often made between individualist and collectivist cultures; we would
expect individuals to be less conformist (less orientated towards group norms).
○ Takano & Osaka (1999) reviewed 15 studies comparing US & Japan in terms of
collectivism/individualism - 14/15 did not support the common view.
Beta Bias
Theories that ignore or minimise cultural differences, assuming all people are the same & same
theories/methods can be used,
● Example: Intelligence testing - IQ tests devised by Western psychologists, assuming their view of
intelligence applies to all cultures equally - IMPOSED ETIC
○ Western = intelligence within the individual, Collectivist like Uganda = relationship of
shared knowledge between individual & society
Ethnocentrism
Using our own ethnic group as a basis for judgements on other groups, behaviours of others are
‘strange’, whereas ours are ‘normal’.
● Alpha Bias - because one's own culture can be considered to be different and better, devaluing
others e.g. dependence is looked down on in ind. but valued higher in coll.
● Beta Bias - can lead to a beta bias, if psychologists believe their world view is the only view, e.g.
IQ testing.
Cultural Relativism
Opposite of ethnocentrism = all cultures are worthy of respect & behaviour must be judged in its original
context.
● Alpha Bias - the assumption of real differences results in overlooking universals e.g. Mead
concluded significant gender differences in Papua New Guinea, but later recognised universals
(men in all cultures are more aggressive than women).
● Beta Bias - behaviours that are statistically infrequent in one culture may be more frequent in
another e.g. a symptom of schizophrenia is hearing voices = normal in some cultures - so by
assuming same rules apply, means diagnosis is relative to our culture.
AO3 - Indigenous Psychology
One way to counter ethnocentrism is by encouraging indigenous psychologies - developing different
groups of theories in different countries.
● Example - the afrocentrism movement, proposing that all black people have their roots in africa,
and therefore psychological theories concerning them should be African centred and express
African values. Also suggests European culture can devalue non-europeans, and is irrelevant to
the life & culture of those of African descent.
AO3 - Bias in Research Methods
Cultural bias can be dealt with by using studies with samples from different cultures.
● This was not common until recently, as in 1998 Smith & Bond surveyed research in a social
psych european textbook - found 66% studies american, 32% european, 2% other.
● Henrich et al. (2010) found a randomly selected american student was 4000 more likely to be a
participant than a random non-westerner - suggests much of psychology is based on middle
class, academic, young adults.
, Determinism
Based on the concept that human behaviour is caused by factors not under an individual’s personal
control.
Biological Determinism
Behaviour is determined by our genes.
● For example the IGF2R gene is found in those with high intelligence.
Environmental Determinism
Behaviourists believe that all behaviour is caused by previous experience, through classical & operant
conditioning. This can be applied to many areas of behaviour, such as aggression.
Psychic Determinism
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality suggests adult behaviour is determined by a mix of innate
drives and early experience - driven by the libido and its link to the erogenous zones.
AO3 - Genetic Determinism
Unlikely that 100% genetic determination will be found for any behaviour. For example, twin studies
have found an 80% similarity for intelligence, and 40% for depression. Therefore, genes do not entirely
determine behaviour.
AO3 - Environmental Determinism
Must be some genetic input, shown by concordance rates above. Therefore environmental explanations
cannot fully explain behaviour.
Free Will
Humanistic Approach
Maslow & Rogers argued that self-determination was a necessary part of human behaviour, and without
it healthy self-development & self-actualisation are not possible. Only when an individual takes
responsibility is personal growth possible, resulting in psychological health.
Moral Responsibility
Free will is the basis of moral responsibility. The law states that children and the mentally ill do not have
this responsibility, but otherwise humans are held accountable for their actions, regardless of innate
factors or early experiences.
AO3 - Illusion of Free Will
Some psychologists such as Skinner, argue that free will is just an illusion, and that behaviour is
environmentally determined even if we are unwilling to admit it.
● More recent evidence provides some support for this - Libet et al. (1983) found that motor
regions of the brain become active before a person registers consciousness of their decision.
This suggests that many responses are biologically determined, and so free will is an illusion.
AO3 - Cultural Relativism
The idea of self-determination may be a culturally relative concept, appropriate for individualist societies
only, as collectivist cultures place greater value on behaviour determined by group needs.
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