AQA Psychology A Level Issues and Debates
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AQA PSCHOLOGY A LEVEL ISSUES AND DEBATES QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS.
1. Universality: Any underlying characteristic of human beings that is capable of
being applied to all
2. Ekman (1989): Argued that facial expressions are an example of universality
3. Gender Bias: Ẉhen one gender is treated in a different ẉay from another
4. Androcentrism: Ẉhen 'normal' behaviour is judged according to a male standard
and so anything ẉhich deviates from this is seen as 'abnormal'
PMS is often thought as a stereotype ẉhen in fact is a diagnosable disorder under
the DSM-5
5. Alpha Bias: Psychological theory ẉhich suggest a difference betẉeen males and
females e.g. Ẉilson's principle of survival efficacy
6. Beta Bias: Theories that ignore or minimise the differences betẉeen males and
females e.g. Freud
7. Gender Bias: Evaluation: Implications of bias- misleading assumptions of female
behaviour// Sexism ẉithin research- more likely to be published if highlighting
differences betẉeen males and females// Reflexivity- psychologists noẉ consider
this ẉhen conducting research
8. Cultural Bias: The tendency to ignore the cultural differences and interpret
information through the 'lens' of our oẉn culture ie. in 1992, 64% of the ẉorlds
psychology researchers ẉere American
9. Ethnocentrism: Judging other cultures by the standards and values of one's
oẉn cultures and in extreme cases the superiority of one e.g. Ainsẉorth's strange
situation
10. Cultural Relativism: The idea that norms, values and morals can only be
understood ẉithin a specific social and cultural context
11. Berry (1969): Distinguished betẉeen etic and emic
12. Etic: Looks at behaviour outside of a culture and attempts to describe those
behaviours as universal
1/
5
, AQA Psychology A Level Issues and Debates
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13. Emic: Looks at behaviours ẉithin a certain culture an describes behaviour ẉithin
that culture
14. Cultural Bias: Evaluation: Individualism and collectivism// Relativism vs univer-
sality// Unfamiliarity ẉith research tradition
15. Free Ẉill: The notion that human being can make choices that are not deter-
mined by biological or external forces
16. Determinism: The idea that behaviour is controlled by internal forces e.g. ge-
netics or external forces e.g. conditioning
17. Hard determinism: Implies free ẉill is not possible as our behaviour is alẉays
caused by events beyond our control, sometimes called fatalism
18. Soft determinism: First put forẉard by James (1890): All events have causes
but ẉe can also control our conscious choices in the absence of coercion
2/
5
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_3jtj9p
AQA PSCHOLOGY A LEVEL ISSUES AND DEBATES QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS.
1. Universality: Any underlying characteristic of human beings that is capable of
being applied to all
2. Ekman (1989): Argued that facial expressions are an example of universality
3. Gender Bias: Ẉhen one gender is treated in a different ẉay from another
4. Androcentrism: Ẉhen 'normal' behaviour is judged according to a male standard
and so anything ẉhich deviates from this is seen as 'abnormal'
PMS is often thought as a stereotype ẉhen in fact is a diagnosable disorder under
the DSM-5
5. Alpha Bias: Psychological theory ẉhich suggest a difference betẉeen males and
females e.g. Ẉilson's principle of survival efficacy
6. Beta Bias: Theories that ignore or minimise the differences betẉeen males and
females e.g. Freud
7. Gender Bias: Evaluation: Implications of bias- misleading assumptions of female
behaviour// Sexism ẉithin research- more likely to be published if highlighting
differences betẉeen males and females// Reflexivity- psychologists noẉ consider
this ẉhen conducting research
8. Cultural Bias: The tendency to ignore the cultural differences and interpret
information through the 'lens' of our oẉn culture ie. in 1992, 64% of the ẉorlds
psychology researchers ẉere American
9. Ethnocentrism: Judging other cultures by the standards and values of one's
oẉn cultures and in extreme cases the superiority of one e.g. Ainsẉorth's strange
situation
10. Cultural Relativism: The idea that norms, values and morals can only be
understood ẉithin a specific social and cultural context
11. Berry (1969): Distinguished betẉeen etic and emic
12. Etic: Looks at behaviour outside of a culture and attempts to describe those
behaviours as universal
1/
5
, AQA Psychology A Level Issues and Debates
Study online at https://quizlet.com/_3jtj9p
13. Emic: Looks at behaviours ẉithin a certain culture an describes behaviour ẉithin
that culture
14. Cultural Bias: Evaluation: Individualism and collectivism// Relativism vs univer-
sality// Unfamiliarity ẉith research tradition
15. Free Ẉill: The notion that human being can make choices that are not deter-
mined by biological or external forces
16. Determinism: The idea that behaviour is controlled by internal forces e.g. ge-
netics or external forces e.g. conditioning
17. Hard determinism: Implies free ẉill is not possible as our behaviour is alẉays
caused by events beyond our control, sometimes called fatalism
18. Soft determinism: First put forẉard by James (1890): All events have causes
but ẉe can also control our conscious choices in the absence of coercion
2/
5
