AQA A-LEVEL PSYCHOLOGY PAPER 3 QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED
ANSWERS 100% GRADED A+
why may bias be inevitable in research - (answer)because psychologists' beliefs and
values are influenced by social and historical context, yet psychology claims to have
universality in its findings (they can be applied to anyone, anywhere)
what are the two types of bias in issues and debates - (answer)gender and cultural bias
what is gender bias - (answer)the idea that research or a theory may offer a view that
does not justifiably represent the experience and behaviour of men or (usually) women
what are the main components of gender bias - (answer)alpha bias, beta bias and
andocentrism
what are the two types of gender bias - (answer)alpha and beta bias
what is alpha bias - (answer)exaggerates differences between sexes (e.g. Freud said
women were morally inferior because they had a less developed superego)
what is beta bias - (answer)minimises differences between the sexes (often occurs
when women are not included in research), assuming that finding apply equally to both
genders (e.g. Kohlberg's theory of moral development was based on an all male
sample, so his vignettes were orientated towards violence rather than dialogue)
what is androcentrism - (answer)when 'normal' behaviour is judged according to a male
standard, so female behaviour may be misunderstood pathologised (e.g. feminist
commentators say that pre-menstrual syndrome, PMS, is a social construct that
medicalises female emotions while male anger is often seen as a rational response to
external pressures)
evaluate gender bias - (answer)recognising bias but contributes to stereotypes,
institutional sexism, Worrell's criteria to avoid gender bias
describe recognising gender bias - (answer)many modern researchers are beginning to
recognised the effect of their own bias on their research and embrace it as a crucial and
critical part of research with some including reflection of how their gender-based
experiences influence their interpretation of events, so reflexivity may lead to greater
awareness about the role of personal biases in future research
describe how gender bias contributes to stereotypes - (answer)gender-biased research
may create misleading assumptions about behaviour and contribute to negative
stereotypes and discrimination, which could provide a scientific 'justification' for denying
women opportunities in the workplace or wider society
describe institutional sexism in psychology - (answer)there are fewer senior female
researchers so female concerns may not be reflected in research, male researchers are
,more likely to have their work published, and studies that find evidence of gender
differences are more likely to appear in journal articles than those that don't
describe Worrell's criteria to avoid gender bias in research - (answer)women should be
studied within meaningful real-life contexts, women should genuinely participate in
research rather than being the object of study, diversity within groups of women should
be studied, and a greater emphasis should be placed on collaborative research
collecting qualitative data
what is cultural bias - (answer)a tendency to ignore cultural differences and interpret all
phenomena through the 'lens' of one's own culture
give an example of culture bias in research - (answer)94% of the studies used in a 1991
social psychology textbook were conducted in north america, and in 1992 64% of the
world's psychology researchers were american, which suggests that psychology mainly
studies white american males despite claiming that its results are universal
describe a criticism of mainstream psychology in terms of cultural bias -
(answer)mainstream psychology tends to assume that the finding of western research
can be applied worldwide, but replications of studies such as Asch's and Milgram's have
found very different results in different countries, so cultural bias may lead to cultural
differences in behaviour being seen as abnormal, inferior, or unusual
what is ethnocentrism - (answer)judging other cultures by the standards and values of
one's own culture (e.g. Ainsworth categorised children's attachment type and suggested
that 'secure' was the ideal attachment type, however this led to mothers in other
cultures/countries such as Germany being seen as cold and rejecting rather than
encouraging independence, so the Strange Situation is an inappropriate measure of
attachment type for non-US children
what is cultural relativism - (answer)the idea that norms, values, ethics and moral
standards can only be meaningfully understood within specific social and cultural
contexts, so psychologists should be mindful of cultural relativism in their research, and
recognise this as a way of avoiding cultural bias
what is an 'etic' approach - (answer)looks at behaviour from outside of a given culture
and attempts to describe universal behaviours
what is an 'emic' approach - (answer)functions from inside the culture and identifies
behaviours specific to that culture
evaluate cultural bias - (answer)universality of some behaviours but distinguishing
between individualist and collectivist cultures, participant familiarity with research, can
be used to justify discrimination
,describe universality of some behaviours - (answer)research suggests that the basic
facial expressions for emotions e.g. happiness and disgust are the same all over the
world, so not all of psychology is culturally relative, and a full understanding of human
behaviour requires the study of both universals and variation among individuals and
groups
describe distinguishing between individualist and collectivist cultures - (answer)many
past studies have made a distinction between individualist (e.g. USA) and collectivist
cultures (e.g. China), however critics have suggested that this distinction is lazy and
simplistic, while research such as Osaka's (14/15 studies showed no cultural distinction
between USA and Japan) may suggest that cultural bias is now less of an issue
because of globalisation
describe participant familiarity with research - (answer)research conducted in western
cultures assumes that participants are familiar with the general aims and objectives of
scientific research, but this knowledge may not extend to other cultures, so the
importance of demand characteristics may be exaggerated when working with a
different culture, lowering the validity of research
describe how cultural bias can be used to justify discrimation - (answer)during WW1
psychologists gave IQ tests to 1.75 million recruits, but many of the questions were
ethnocentric (e.g. about previous US presidents), so recruits from different cultural
backgrounds (e.g. european people) scored lower and were deemed genetically inferior,
which shows how cultural bias can be used to justify prejudice and discrimination
towards ethnic/cultural groups
what is free will the opposite of - (answer)determinism
what is free will - (answer)the notion that humans can make choices and are not
determined by biological or external forces
what is determinism - (answer)the notion that an individual's behaviour is shaped or
controlled by internal or external forces rather than an individual's will to do something
what does free will imply - (answer)free will do not deny that biological and
environmental forces exert some influence on our behaviour, but implies that we are
able to reject these forces
what are the two types of determinism (both suggest that free will cannot explain
behaviour) - (answer)hard and soft determinism
what is hard determinism - (answer)implies that free will is not possible as our behaviour
is always caused by internal or external events beyond our control
what is soft determinism - (answer)suggests that all human action has a cause but
people have freedom to make choices within a restricted range of option
, what are the other types of determinism - (answer)biological, environmental and psychic
what is biological determinism - (answer)the belief that behaviour is caused by
biological (genetic/hormonal/evolutionary) influences that we cannot control (e.g. twins
studies)
what is environmental determinism - (answer)the belief that behaviour is caused by
features of the environment (such as systems of reward and punishment) that we
cannot control (e.g. Bandura)
what is psychic determinism - (answer)the belief that behaviour is caused by
unconscious conflicts that we cannot control (e.g. Freud)
why is determinism useful - (answer)knowledge of causes and the formulation of laws
allows scientists to predict and control future events (so lab studies in psychology allow
researchers to remove all other extraneous variables in order to be scientific and
attempt to precisely control and predict human behaviour)
evaluate free will - (answer)has face validity but contradictory research by Libet & Soon
why does free will have face validity - (answer)is makes cognitive sense because we
appear to have free will when we make choices each day, and research suggests that
people with an internal LOC tend to be more mentally healthy while people with an
external LOC are more likely to develop depression, so even if we don't have free will,
thinking we do may have a positive impact on our mind and behaviour
describe Libet & Soon's research that contradicts free will - (answer)their research
suggests that the brain activity that determines the outcome of a choice may pre-date
our knowledge of having made the choice, so our basic experiences of free will may be
decided and determined by our brains before we are aware of them
evaluate determinism - (answer)consistent with the aims of science but has implications
for legal systems
how is determinism consistent with the aims of science - (answer)because it suggests
that human behaviour is orderly and obeys laws, while research has led to the
development of treatments (e.g. schizophrenia medications) for mental disorders that
cannot be explained by free will, which suggests that behaviour is determined at least in
terms of mental illness
why does determinism have implications for legal systems - (answer)the hard
determinist stance has implications for legal systems because offenders are held
morally accountable for their behaviour in a court of law, and determinism is
unfalsifiable because it is based on the idea that causes of behaviour will always exist
even if they have not been found yet
ANSWERS 100% GRADED A+
why may bias be inevitable in research - (answer)because psychologists' beliefs and
values are influenced by social and historical context, yet psychology claims to have
universality in its findings (they can be applied to anyone, anywhere)
what are the two types of bias in issues and debates - (answer)gender and cultural bias
what is gender bias - (answer)the idea that research or a theory may offer a view that
does not justifiably represent the experience and behaviour of men or (usually) women
what are the main components of gender bias - (answer)alpha bias, beta bias and
andocentrism
what are the two types of gender bias - (answer)alpha and beta bias
what is alpha bias - (answer)exaggerates differences between sexes (e.g. Freud said
women were morally inferior because they had a less developed superego)
what is beta bias - (answer)minimises differences between the sexes (often occurs
when women are not included in research), assuming that finding apply equally to both
genders (e.g. Kohlberg's theory of moral development was based on an all male
sample, so his vignettes were orientated towards violence rather than dialogue)
what is androcentrism - (answer)when 'normal' behaviour is judged according to a male
standard, so female behaviour may be misunderstood pathologised (e.g. feminist
commentators say that pre-menstrual syndrome, PMS, is a social construct that
medicalises female emotions while male anger is often seen as a rational response to
external pressures)
evaluate gender bias - (answer)recognising bias but contributes to stereotypes,
institutional sexism, Worrell's criteria to avoid gender bias
describe recognising gender bias - (answer)many modern researchers are beginning to
recognised the effect of their own bias on their research and embrace it as a crucial and
critical part of research with some including reflection of how their gender-based
experiences influence their interpretation of events, so reflexivity may lead to greater
awareness about the role of personal biases in future research
describe how gender bias contributes to stereotypes - (answer)gender-biased research
may create misleading assumptions about behaviour and contribute to negative
stereotypes and discrimination, which could provide a scientific 'justification' for denying
women opportunities in the workplace or wider society
describe institutional sexism in psychology - (answer)there are fewer senior female
researchers so female concerns may not be reflected in research, male researchers are
,more likely to have their work published, and studies that find evidence of gender
differences are more likely to appear in journal articles than those that don't
describe Worrell's criteria to avoid gender bias in research - (answer)women should be
studied within meaningful real-life contexts, women should genuinely participate in
research rather than being the object of study, diversity within groups of women should
be studied, and a greater emphasis should be placed on collaborative research
collecting qualitative data
what is cultural bias - (answer)a tendency to ignore cultural differences and interpret all
phenomena through the 'lens' of one's own culture
give an example of culture bias in research - (answer)94% of the studies used in a 1991
social psychology textbook were conducted in north america, and in 1992 64% of the
world's psychology researchers were american, which suggests that psychology mainly
studies white american males despite claiming that its results are universal
describe a criticism of mainstream psychology in terms of cultural bias -
(answer)mainstream psychology tends to assume that the finding of western research
can be applied worldwide, but replications of studies such as Asch's and Milgram's have
found very different results in different countries, so cultural bias may lead to cultural
differences in behaviour being seen as abnormal, inferior, or unusual
what is ethnocentrism - (answer)judging other cultures by the standards and values of
one's own culture (e.g. Ainsworth categorised children's attachment type and suggested
that 'secure' was the ideal attachment type, however this led to mothers in other
cultures/countries such as Germany being seen as cold and rejecting rather than
encouraging independence, so the Strange Situation is an inappropriate measure of
attachment type for non-US children
what is cultural relativism - (answer)the idea that norms, values, ethics and moral
standards can only be meaningfully understood within specific social and cultural
contexts, so psychologists should be mindful of cultural relativism in their research, and
recognise this as a way of avoiding cultural bias
what is an 'etic' approach - (answer)looks at behaviour from outside of a given culture
and attempts to describe universal behaviours
what is an 'emic' approach - (answer)functions from inside the culture and identifies
behaviours specific to that culture
evaluate cultural bias - (answer)universality of some behaviours but distinguishing
between individualist and collectivist cultures, participant familiarity with research, can
be used to justify discrimination
,describe universality of some behaviours - (answer)research suggests that the basic
facial expressions for emotions e.g. happiness and disgust are the same all over the
world, so not all of psychology is culturally relative, and a full understanding of human
behaviour requires the study of both universals and variation among individuals and
groups
describe distinguishing between individualist and collectivist cultures - (answer)many
past studies have made a distinction between individualist (e.g. USA) and collectivist
cultures (e.g. China), however critics have suggested that this distinction is lazy and
simplistic, while research such as Osaka's (14/15 studies showed no cultural distinction
between USA and Japan) may suggest that cultural bias is now less of an issue
because of globalisation
describe participant familiarity with research - (answer)research conducted in western
cultures assumes that participants are familiar with the general aims and objectives of
scientific research, but this knowledge may not extend to other cultures, so the
importance of demand characteristics may be exaggerated when working with a
different culture, lowering the validity of research
describe how cultural bias can be used to justify discrimation - (answer)during WW1
psychologists gave IQ tests to 1.75 million recruits, but many of the questions were
ethnocentric (e.g. about previous US presidents), so recruits from different cultural
backgrounds (e.g. european people) scored lower and were deemed genetically inferior,
which shows how cultural bias can be used to justify prejudice and discrimination
towards ethnic/cultural groups
what is free will the opposite of - (answer)determinism
what is free will - (answer)the notion that humans can make choices and are not
determined by biological or external forces
what is determinism - (answer)the notion that an individual's behaviour is shaped or
controlled by internal or external forces rather than an individual's will to do something
what does free will imply - (answer)free will do not deny that biological and
environmental forces exert some influence on our behaviour, but implies that we are
able to reject these forces
what are the two types of determinism (both suggest that free will cannot explain
behaviour) - (answer)hard and soft determinism
what is hard determinism - (answer)implies that free will is not possible as our behaviour
is always caused by internal or external events beyond our control
what is soft determinism - (answer)suggests that all human action has a cause but
people have freedom to make choices within a restricted range of option
, what are the other types of determinism - (answer)biological, environmental and psychic
what is biological determinism - (answer)the belief that behaviour is caused by
biological (genetic/hormonal/evolutionary) influences that we cannot control (e.g. twins
studies)
what is environmental determinism - (answer)the belief that behaviour is caused by
features of the environment (such as systems of reward and punishment) that we
cannot control (e.g. Bandura)
what is psychic determinism - (answer)the belief that behaviour is caused by
unconscious conflicts that we cannot control (e.g. Freud)
why is determinism useful - (answer)knowledge of causes and the formulation of laws
allows scientists to predict and control future events (so lab studies in psychology allow
researchers to remove all other extraneous variables in order to be scientific and
attempt to precisely control and predict human behaviour)
evaluate free will - (answer)has face validity but contradictory research by Libet & Soon
why does free will have face validity - (answer)is makes cognitive sense because we
appear to have free will when we make choices each day, and research suggests that
people with an internal LOC tend to be more mentally healthy while people with an
external LOC are more likely to develop depression, so even if we don't have free will,
thinking we do may have a positive impact on our mind and behaviour
describe Libet & Soon's research that contradicts free will - (answer)their research
suggests that the brain activity that determines the outcome of a choice may pre-date
our knowledge of having made the choice, so our basic experiences of free will may be
decided and determined by our brains before we are aware of them
evaluate determinism - (answer)consistent with the aims of science but has implications
for legal systems
how is determinism consistent with the aims of science - (answer)because it suggests
that human behaviour is orderly and obeys laws, while research has led to the
development of treatments (e.g. schizophrenia medications) for mental disorders that
cannot be explained by free will, which suggests that behaviour is determined at least in
terms of mental illness
why does determinism have implications for legal systems - (answer)the hard
determinist stance has implications for legal systems because offenders are held
morally accountable for their behaviour in a court of law, and determinism is
unfalsifiable because it is based on the idea that causes of behaviour will always exist
even if they have not been found yet
