Issues and Debates

Paper 3

Define free will, soft determinism and hard determinism

Free will

• The notion that humans can make choices and their behaviour/thoughts are not determined by outside forces

• Humans are essentially self-determining, and are free to choose their own behaviour, thoughts and actions. 

• We can reject influences because we are in control of our own behaviour

Hard determinism

• All human behaviour has a cause (either internal or external).

• These causes can be identified and their effect on behaviour understood

• Free will is an illusion

Soft determinism

• Behaviour is predictable, due to internal or external causes.

• There is room for personal choice, but from a restricted range of options.

• There is no true free will. 

• James (1980) - The Cognitive Approach

Define biological and environmental determinism

Biological determinism

• The belief that behaviour is controlled by biological influences we cannot control

• This includes genetic influences, the role of hormones, evolution and the role of the ANS

• Research Support by Brunner et al supports this. It is said the low activity variant of the MAOA gene is linked to high levels of aggression. He studied 26 Dutch men who were repeatedly involved in rape, attempted murder and physical assault. These men had abnormally low levels of the low activity variant of the MAOA gene, which supports biological determinism because it is their genes that have caused them to behave the way they do (very aggressive).

Environmental determinism

• The belief that behaviour is caused by features of the environment that we cannot control

• This considers societal influences, conditioning by reward and punishment, lifetime experiences and learning

• Free will is an illusion because we are really acting as a result of reinforcement that has taken place throughout our lives 

• E.g. Skinners’ rats were conditioned by rewards (food when press lever) and punishment (electric shock)

Define psychic determinism

• The belief that behaviour is caused by unconscious psychodynamic forces that we cannot control

• This considers the influence of psychological drives like the id, ego and superego, how we are motivated by our unconscious, repressed desires and the need to resolve conflicts from childhood

Does the law agree or disagree with determinism? Why?

The legal system is incompatible with the ideas of determinism. According to the US Supreme Court, free will is a “universal and persistent foundation for our system of law”. So it is actually the opposite of determinist 

Usually, it is free will that sentences offenders to prisons, but in some cases they may be let off responsibility for their actions due to determinism, like they may have been determined to commit thatbact, like a mental illness

Explain why science is determinist. Refer to the features of science in your answer (8)

Write a good answer

Evaluation of free will vs determinism

Limitation of determinism → clashes with legal system

• Law says people have free will and are responsible for their actions.

• We punish crime to hold people accountable, not excuse it with external causes.

• Only rare exceptions (e.g. severe mental illness) avoid full responsibility.

• Legal system is based on idea that people choose to commit crimes.

• So, in real life, determinism doesn’t wor

Strength of free will → useful in everyday life

• Common sense: we feel we choose our actions.

• Belief in free will = better mental health.

• Roberts study: teens with fatalism (no control) more likely to get depression.

• Believing nothing can change is demoralising.

• So, even if free will isn’t real, believing in it helps us cope and stay positive

Limitation of free will → brain scan evidence suggests decisions are pre-determined

• Libet et al: brain showed activity before people felt they chose to move.

• Suggests brain decides before conscious awareness.

• Even simple actions may be determined unconsciously.

• This challenges idea of true free will.

• Overall, Libet’s study supports determinism over free will.

Outline what nature and nurture is with an example of each

Concerned with the extent to which aspects of behaviour are a product of inherited or acquired characteristics

• Nature - inherited influences of heredity (the genetic transmission of mental and physical characteristics from one generation to another).

• Descartes argued that all human characteristics, even some aspects of knowledge, are innate. Psychological characteristics like personality and intelligence are determined by biological factors 

• Nesdatt twin studies: 68% of monozygotic twins shared OCD, compared to only 31% of dizygotic twins. So because more MZ twins share 100% of genotype, and have higher concordance rates of DZ twins for OCD, who only share 50% of genotype. So behaviour is caused by our genes (nature)

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• Nurture - influence of experience and environment.

• Locke argued the mind is a blank slate at birth, which is then shaped by the environment. (Became important view in the behaviourist approach)

• Lerner identified different levels of the environment: prenatal factors like how physical influences (smoking) or psychological influences (music) affects a foetus. It also includes postnatal factors, like social conditions a child grows up in. 

One example is the behaviourist approach, they assume all behaviour can be explained in terms of experience alone. Skinner uses classical/ operant conditioning to explain learning

What is a correlation coefficient

Correlation coefficient - the degree to which 2 people are similar on a particular trait (called concordance). It provides an estimate about the extent to which a trait is inherited (called heritability, the proportion of differences between individuals, with regard to a particular trait, that is due to genetic variation). 0.1 or 1% means genes contribute barely anything, but 1.0 or 100% means genes are the only reason for individual differences 

What is the interactionist approach

Interactionist approach - behaviour arises from a combination of nature and nurture. E.g. eye colour is 0.8 heritable. E.g. Bowlby claimed a baby’s attachment type is determined by the warmth and continuity of parental love, but Kagan said a baby’s innate personality affects attachment. So it’s environment and heredity

For this reason, psychologists are likely to ask what the relative contribution of each influence is. So this debate becomes more about discussing rather than picking a side.

It involves the diathesis stress model, which suggests behaviour is caused by a biological or environmental vulnerability, which is only expressed when there’s a bio/env trigger. E.g. a person with genetic vulnerability for OCD may not develop it if it's not combined with a psychological trigger like a traumatic experience.

Evaluation for nature vs nurture

Supports nature → shows genetic influence on OCD

• Nestadt et al:

  • 68% MZ twins (100% shared genes) had OCD.

  • Only 31% DZ twins (50% shared genes) did.

• Higher concordance in MZ twins = strong genetic link.

• OCD more common when more genes are shared → supports nature argument.

• But: hard to fully rule out environment, even for MZ twins.

• Also, small MZ sample sizes reduce generalisability.

Limitation: hard to fully separate nature and nurture

• Siblings share family but have different experiences (e.g. attention, friends).

• So, nurture varies, even in same household.

• MZ twins share 100% genes but don't show 100% concordance (e.g. in IQ or mental health).

• If only nature mattered, they'd be identical in traits.

• Shows nature and nurture are intertwined.

• Hard to tell which has more influence → limits the debate.

Strength: Supports epigenetics (genes affected by environment)

• Environment (e.g. smoking, trauma, diet) changes gene expression, not DNA itself.

• These changes can be passed to future generations.

• Example: 1944 Dutch famine – 22,000 died of starvation.

• Susser & Lin: babies of pregnant women had low birth weight and were 2x more likely to get schizophrenia.

• Shows war (environment) altered mothers’ gene expression → passed to babies.

• Suggests life events leave epigenetic markers affecting future generations

Define holism and reductionism

Holism - an argument or theory that proposes that it only makes sense to study an indivisible system rather than its component parts. Attempts to understand human behaviour only done through analysing the person as a whole. Considers the whole persons experience (looking at ALL of the following: cognitive, emotional, developmental, social, environmental, economic etc)

Reductionism- the belief that human behaviour is best understood by studying the smaller component parts. It is based around the scientific principle of parsimony. All behaviour should be explained using the most basic principles. Considers the major systems involved (like only biological or environmental)

What are the levels of explanation?

Idea that there are several ways (levels) that can be used to explain behaviour

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HIGHEST LVL: social and cultural explanations

MIDDLE LVL: psychological explanations

LOWEST LVL: biological/physiological explanations

Define biological and environmental reductionism

Biological reductionism - a form of reductionism which attempts to explain behaviour at the lowest biological level (in terms of the actions of genes/hormones etc)

Environmental reductionism-  the attempt to explain all behaviour in terms of stimulus - response links that have been learned through experience and society 

Define experimental reductionism and parsimony

Experimental reductionism - reducing behaviour to isolated variables, which is useful for conducting controlled research. Underlying principle of the experimental approach where behaviours are reduces to operationalised variables that can be manipulated and measured to determine causal relationships 

Parsimony - the concept that the most complex phenomena should be explained by the simplest underlying principle, e.g. genetics. The simplest explanation is the correct one

Evaluation for holism vs reductionism

• Limitation of holism → lacks practical value, especially for treating disorders like depression.

• Holistic explanations are complex and hard to apply in therapy.

• E.g. many factors in depression (past, job, family, etc.) → hard to know what to focus on.

• Makes treatment planning less effective.

• Holism is also hard to test scientifically → too broad or vague.

• Lacks falsifiability and scientific credibility.

• Reductionist approaches (e.g. biological) are simpler, testable, and lead to clear treatments.

• So, reductionism may be more useful in real-world settings

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• Limitation of reductionism → oversimplifies complex behaviour.

• Ignores social/contextual factors that give actions meaning.

• Leads to lower validity and incomplete explanations.

• E.g. explaining aggression only with genes ignores peer pressure/culture.

• Misses key influences → misguided or limited understanding.

• Offers only a fragmented view of behaviour.

• Should be combined with broader perspectives for full understanding

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• Strength of reductionism → led to drug therapies (biological reductionism)

• Helped reduce institutionalisation since 1950s → patients way to manage symptoms outside hospitals

• Patients can live freer lives; NHS burden reduced.

• Seen as more humane – blame on biology, not the person.

• May increase tolerance and empathy for mental illness.

• Limitation: drugs often ignore social/psychological factors.

• May treat symptoms, not underlying causes.

• CBT and other holistic therapies may be more comprehensive and effective long-term

What does idiographic mean?

• Uniqueness of individuals

• Focuses more on the individual case as a means of understanding behaviour

• Individual people's behaviour in lots of detail so we can understand human behaviour better

• Not concerned with formulating laws of behaviour that apply to everyone

• Interviews or questionnaires on a single person to gain insight into their subjective experiences (it's subjective). E.g. a case study like Clive Wearings 

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E.g. Freud’s careful observations of an individual were the basis of his explanation of human behaviour, e.g. Little Hans case study to was used to explain how a phobia might develop

Nomothetic meaning

• Trying to establish universal rules for everyone rather than focusing on indiv cases

• Interviews with large groups of people to generate theories to apply to everyone

• Removes any variables and is controlled so it's replicable (its objective)

• E.g. Asch's study results on conformity applied to the population

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Nomothetic research is quantitative, numerical data is produced for analysis of its statistical significance, hypotheses are made and there are samples of people.

Objective as laws of behaviour are only possible if methods of assessment are standardised, to ensure replication occurs across samples of behaviour and removes the influence of bias

Idiographic vs nomothetic approaches evaluation

• Strength of idiographic approach → gives rich, detailed insights from individuals

• Can contribute to nomothetic research.

• E.g. Clive Wearing and HM helped shape understanding of memory.

• Helps form or challenge general theories.

• Counterpoint: hard to generalise from single cases.

• Methods like case studies can be subjective and less scientific.

• Researcher bias may influence conclusions.

• Idiographic data should be combined with nomothetic for full understanding

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• Strength of both approaches: they support the features of science

• Nomothetic

  • objective → standardised procedures, quant data

  • reliability → procedures can be rep

  • hypothesis testing → tests gen laws → falsified

  • theory construction to develop universal theories

• Idiographic

  • empirical evidence

• Both approaches aim for scientific rigour, just in different ways

• Idiographic as unscientific:

  • case studies not replicable → unreliable

  • subjective/open to interpretation

• Together, they strengthen psychology’s status as a science.

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• Limitation of the nomothetic approach: it can lose sight of the individual

• Focuses on general laws and predictions, not personal experiences.

• May overlook unique aspects of a person’s life or behaviour.

• E.g. Saying 1% risk of schizophrenia doesn’t explain what it’s like to live with it.

• Lacks insight into subjective experience, which could help improve personalised treatments.

• So, it may miss the full picture of human behaviour and mental health.

• Less useful for understanding rare.abnormal behaviour → crucial in clinical psychology

Define universality

The aim to develop theories that apply to all people, which may include real differences. Any underlying characteristic of human beings that is capable of being applied To all, despite differences of experience and upbringing. Gender bias and culture bias threaten the universality of findings in psychology 

Define gender, alpha and beta bias

Gender bias - bias is the tendency to treat one a different way from others. The different treatment or representation of men or women based on stereotypes rather than real differences, shown in research or theories

Alpha bias - research that focuses on, or  the tendency to exaggerate differences between men and women. The consequence is that theories devalue one gender in comparison to the other. Could heighten the value of men, and devalue women. E.g. Freud’s psychodynamic theory suggests women are inferior and have penis envy 

Beta bias - the tendency to ignore or minimise the differences between men and women. Such theories tend to either ignore questions about the lives of women, or assume that insights derived from studies of men will apply equally well to women. Research focuses on similarities between men and women, ignoring differences, what is true for one gender is true for the other

Define androcentrism

Possible content:

• male-centred view of the world

• male behaviour judged to be the norm

• female behaviour judged to be abnormal/less desirable

Evaluation for gender bias

Limitation of gender bias: It is often treated as biologically fixed when it may be shaped by stereotypes

• Maccoby & Jacklin claimed boys are better at spatial tasks and girls at verbal ones – said to be ‘hardwired’.

• But brain scans showed no real biological difference, suggesting findings were shaped by social expectations.

• Their ideas may have been accepted because they fit existing gender stereotypes, not because of strong evidence.

• → We must be cautious about treating opinions or weak evidence as biological facts.

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Limitation of gender bias: It can promote sexism in the research process

• Women are underrepresented in senior academic roles, especially in science (Murphy et al).

• Psychology degrees may have more female students, but more male lecturers – leading to male-dominated research agendas.

• Research is often designed and interpreted by men, meaning findings may reflect male assumptions and disadvantage women.

• Nicolson suggested male researchers may expect women to underperform, which can influence women’s performance in studies.

• This can result in gender-biased data, not due to real differences but due to bias in expectations or study environment.

• → Gender bias in institutions and methods can skew findings and reduce their generalisability to both genders

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✅ Psychologists today are trying to reduce gender bias

• To challenge the dominance of one gender in psych theory, equal representation of researchers can be fitted

• 🧠 Cornwell et al said girls are better at learning because they’re more focused and organised. This challenges old negative stereotypes.

• 👩‍🎓 Feminist psychology tries to fix the imbalance by focusing more on women’s experiences.

• ⚖ Pretending there are no differences at all can also be a problem (beta bias), as it ignores real issues.

• 💬 Overall, gender bias is still around, but psychology is trying to be more fair and balanced

• Strength because it shows psychology is self correcting and this leads to practical solutions

What is culture bias?

tendency to interpret all phenomena through the lens of one’s own culture, ignoring effects culture might have on behaviour

alpha and beta bias in cultural bias

alpha - when a theory assumes cultural groups are different and this recognition should always inform psych research

beta - real cultural differences are minimised - ppl assumed to be the same

What is ethnocentrism?

judging a culture by standards and values of one’s own culture. belief in the superiority of your own culture → prejudice/ discrimination

Whats cultural relativism?

idea that norms, values, ethics and morals can only be meaningful ad understood in specific cultures

imposed etic and emic

etic - when a researcher imposes their own cultural understanding or norms onto another culture and assumes it is universal

• e.g. ainsworth studied attachment within america and assumed this could be applied universally

emic - functions from inside a culture, identifies behaviours specific to that culture, not applying outside behaviours

Evaluation of cultural bias

One way to reduce it is is to recognise when it occurs

Smith and Bond survey of eu textbooks on social psych - 66% of studies from US, 32% Eur, 2% rest of world

Psych research = severely unrepresentative

Improved by selecting diff cultural groups to study

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Real-world issues: e.g. validating damaging stereotypes.

US Army IQ test before WWI (culturally biased to white maj)

Test showed African-Americans w bottom of scale → neg effect on attitudes of Americans’

toward this group of people → neg impact of CB research

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Challenge one-cultural perspective in psych theory achieved thru equal rep of researchers → supporting indigenous psychology → research is conducted by ppl native to the culture → diverse samples for universality → or findings in one culture compared to replications across many cultures e.g. van ijz ma of SS. researcher can also actively reflect on their own beliefs → adapt methods / identify stereotypes → reduce bias

What are ethical issues and ethical implications?

The impact / consequences research has on the population presented in the research (society), or the effect on individual participants in the study.

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6 ethical issues: confidentiality, deception, consent, debrief, right to withdraw and protection from harm

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Arise because of the conflict between gaining valuable research and the rights and dignity of participants

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Ethical guidelines made to protect participants and guide researchers

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Ethical issues fall under ethical implications. Ethical implications include socially sensitive research  

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Ethical implications may highlight social issues, leading to certain groups being stigmatised, or even lead to laws being passed that put some people at a disadvantage. This sort of research is known as socially sensitive research and findings may have ethical implications. Some areas of research have greater social sensitivity than others

Must know ethical implications of a research study (imp on pps) and a theory (imp on ppl in society)

• Milgram.

  • Ethical implications include deception, pps didn’t know aims of study

  • Right to withdraw, not there as 4 prompts made pps continue as much as possible

  • Protection from harm not there, psychologically as thought were harming others, and physically as 3 pps had seizures

• Bowlby’s monotropic theory of attachment.

  • This theory could make mothers stressed if they don’t spend enough time with their kids

  • Pressured to stay home from work, or guilty if don’t

  • Pressure on dad if don’t make enough money to supply the fam if only one working

  • Reinforces patriarchal society

  • States child will develop abnormally as ‘maternally deprived’, but modern society suggests different as wider range of families (homosexual parents)

  • Stigmatise father only families

What is social sensitivity?

Studies in which there are potential consequences or implications, either directly for the participants or for the class of individuals represented by the research (Sieber & Stanley)

Ethical issues in socially sensitive research

• The research question. Must consider research question carefully. Whether its leading, how its phrased, language used, whether groups misrepresented in title. E.g. ‘there are racial differences in IQ’ may be damaging to particular groups 

• The methodology used. Must control ethical issues, e.g. participants aware of aims when consenting to the research. Includes confidentiality and anonymity 

• The institutional context. Who is funding the research and why, which institution/ organisation. E.g. the NHS versus an unreliable private organisation who’s more likely to be in it for the money 

• Interpretation and application of findings. How the research is interpreted by the public, misrepresentation by organisations, how findings used for public policy, legislation and law changes. E.g. in the 50s, the southern states of the US did research into racial differences in IQ. They found that black people had a lower IQ than white people, and this led to forced sterilisation of black people. Another example is in the 40s, immigrants came from Europe to Ellis Island NY and were given American IQ tests with questions like ‘what is crisco?’. If wrong, sent back to Europe as couldn’t contribute to the economy

Evaluation for socially sensitivity and ethical implications

A strength of socially sensitive research is that it promotes underrepresented groups in society.

• Promote greater sensitivity and understanding

• Reduce prejudice → communities become closer

• Sieber and Stanley - ignoring SS topics can be irresponsible, some topics are likely to become even more ‘taboo’

• SS research plays a valuable role in society

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🔻 Limitation of socially sensitive research: Biased framing of research questions

• Sieber and Stanley warned that how researchers phrase questions can influence how results are interpreted.

🧠 Example: Heterosexual bias in research

• Studies compared “alternative relationships” (e.g. homosexual ones) to “normal relationships” (heterosexual ones).

• This labels heterosexual relationships as the default or ideal — reinforcing bias.

🔍 Lack of true neutrality

• Researchers may think they’re being open-minded but still bring in personal or societal biases.

• These biases can influence the direction of the research and the interpretation of results.

🚫 Consequences

• Research may fail to challenge outdated or harmful views.

• Worse, it can reinforce stereotypes and stigmatise groups by presenting them as inferior or deviant

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Socially sensitive research can have real world issues:

• Some psychological studies have been used to justify discrimination.

• 🧠 Example: IQ testing at Ellis Island in the 1940s.
  European immigrants were given American-based IQ tests (e.g. “What is Crisco?”), which were biased.

• ❌ Unfair results led to serious consequences.
  Immigrants who “failed” were sent back to Europe — even during wartime — because they were seen as a burden on the economy.

• 🔍 Demonstrates the misuse of research.
  Biased methods reinforced prejudice and denied people safety and rights.

• 🚨 Conclusion: Socially sensitive research can have ethical risks.
  It can cause harm to already vulnerable groups and should be handled with extreme care — or possibly avoided altogether