Can human behavior be usefully classified and categorized? Can it be classified within a
culture? Across cultures? Can patterns of behavior be identified as human behavior? Within a culture? Across cultures
Statistics.
- In statistics, there are bias that can cause conclusions to be invalid.
- Statisticians can take sample that misrepresent the target population, and use that information as truth for the population.
- Or the sample corresponds with population, but the conclusion drawn from it is misleading.
Might the beliefs and interests of mathematicians influence their conclusions?
Cultural Norms and Social Deviance
Human behavior can be classified within a culture through cultural norms and deviance.
However, it would be more difficult to categorize human behavior across cultures because of differences in values and traditions.
Ex: Cannibalism in the Korowai tribe of south-eastern Papua New Guinea
Ethnocentrism/Cultural Relativism will affect how prejudiced a person's method of classifying human behavior across cultures is.
Human behavior cannot be classified because it is a very complex topic
Differences in Cultural Backgrounds
- Humans have unique personalities made up of various different emotions that is difficult to be studied let alone classify into categories
- There are about sixteen distinct personality types
- Although culture is a factor that effects human behavior it cannot be a category of its own to classify human behavior.
Ex:
Every society has rules and regulations that are considered "norms", but every individual in the society has his/her own view on how to carry his/her life.
- What beliefs or prejudices might be involved in our answer to questions of Human Sciences?
- In what ways might the beliefs and interests of human scientists influence their conclusions?
Emic and Etic Concepts
Scientists' conclusions can be influenced by their cultural backgrounds, especially in the human sciences.
Human sciences: Humans study other humans, therefore bias in inevitable
Bias can result from widely-held beliefs by the scientists' own culture/country/race/gender/etc. and can affect how they reach a conclusion and what methods they use.
Ex: The Bell Curve (race affects intelligence)
-It was criticized because the results were manipulated and shows scientific racism
-Correlation does not equal causation
Emic- description of a belief or behavior that is within the culture.
Etic-description of a belief or behavior that can be applied to all cultures.
The Case Study of David Reimer
- Aim was to test the hypothesis that facial expressions corresponding to emotions are universal
- Participants from South Fore, no Western Influences
- Results " for both adults and children clearly support the hypothesis that particular facial behaviors are universally associated withparticular emotions"
Bartlett (1932) Swazi Herdmen
- Born as Bruce Reimer, Bruce had to get a circumcision at 6 months, but the procedure went horribly wrong.
- Dr. Money convinced the Reimer family to raise Bruce as Brenda and to withhold any information about his past gender.
- Dr.Money wanted to prove that gender identities can be learned, that it's not innate.
- Brenda did not prove that theory, but he still insisted it was true.
- Psychologists often perform emic studies in order to gain insight on cultures. In order to get a full understanding, psychologists must immerse themselves in that culture.
- Bartlett observed the Swazi Herdmen and noted they have developed the extraordinary ability to recognize each individual characteristic of cattle that they own.
- Bartlett later concluded that cattle was the source of their wealth, which is why they needed to do so.
Beliefs, Religion and Science
Francis Collins says, "...In surveys I have seen, indicate about 40% of scientists believe in a God to whom one may pray in expectation of an answer. That’s not a God who went off after creating a universe and did something else. That’s a God who is interested in human beings. Forty percent would adhere to that statement."
Einstein says
“My feeling is insofar religious as I am imbued with the Consciousness of the insufficiency of the human mind.To understand deeply the harmony of the Universe.Which we try to formulate as laws of nature.”
Conformation Bias
- Einstein synthesized both religion and science
- Einstein understood that his ability to even notice the laws of nature was a given to him as a gift from the same being or power that created the laws in the first place.
- Religion affects the scientists, science itself also affects religion
- The belief of Adam and Eve is constantly being cross-checked by various scientists and theories to further formulate and clearer understanding of the beginning of life
- The tendency for people to favor information that conforms to their perceptions or Hypotheses regardless of whether the information is true or not.
Scientific Studies
- Selective search and interpretation
- Omissions
Human Sciences and Values