Baumeister & Tice Chapter 4
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Baumeister & Tice Chapter 4 Nature v. Nurture Essentialists v. Social constructivists Moral & legal implications Excuses, no responsibility Punishment (unfair & futile, rehabilitation & deterrent?) No cultural variation = nature Cultural variation = nurture Cultural Influences Restrictive laws against female sexuality Adultery punishable by death Sex on TV, nude beaches & pornography Variation (porn illegal in some states) Impacts strongly on morals, attitudes, preferences & choices Morris (1996) Female circumcision or female genital mutilation (FGM) Ancient practice from all continents Greek papyrus from 163 BC references FGM Decreed by no religion (some think it is) Wide variation in practice 5% in Uganda & Zaire 98% in Somali 6,000 girls/day Morris (1996) 3 types of FGM (done at 4-8 years of age) Type I: Excision of clitoral hood (leaves clitoris intact) Type II: Clitoridectomy involving removal of clitoris and portions of labia minoria Type III: Infibulation involving removal of clitoris and portions of labia majora/minor & vulva stitched together Morris (1996) Attitudes towards FGM Western world: Barbaric & abusive Favorable in most African countries Onadeko (1985) Nigerian women (N = 453) 67% in favor 64.3% of 28 men not in favor Numerous other studies find similar results Somalian refugees in US favor FGM Morris (1996) Reasons for Culture Tradition Ensures virginity & marriage w/ large dowry Ensure fidelity Reasons against Barbaric tradition Violates human rights Child abuse Health problems Widmer et al. (1998) Examined sexual attitudes in 24 countries Sex before marriage Sex before age 16 Extramarital sex Homosexual sex Asked if these types of sex were Always wrong Almost always wrong Only sometimes wrong Not at all wrong Widmer et al. (1998) Premarital sex, sex before 16 & extramarital sex showed large agreement across countries Most (61%) view premarital sex ‘not wrong at all’ Most (58%) view sex before 16 as ‘always wrong’ Most (66%) view extramarital sex as ‘always wrong’ 59% overall said ‘always wrong’ Hungary 83%, USA 70%, Bulgaria 80% 24% overall said ‘not wrong at all’ Netherlends 65%, Canada 46%, Slovenia 42% Widmer et al. (1998) 4 clusters of countries identified (see article) Cluster 2. Sexual conservatives Cluster 3. Homosexual permissives Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Canada, Czech Republic Widmer et al. (1998) Important data because it provides way to test nature v. cultural explanations Netherlands (65% homosexuality not wrong at all) Rate of homosexuality higher than less permissive countries suggests cultural influence Desirability bias absent (likely to tell truth in permissive culture) Same rate supports nature (& validates earlier data) Class Data 03 (N = 102, Female = 73) Wrong ? Always Almost Sometime Not at all Pre 11.7% 9.7% 35% 43.7% < 16 36/71 32 28 3.9 Extra 81/80 11.9 4 3 Homo 19.4/70 8.7 19.4 52.4/19 Bold = Widmer USA data Why the difference? Widmer et al. (1998) US conservative attitudes but not behavior Extramarital affairs estimated at 50% 80% Americans view this as ‘always wrong’ Attitudes Attitudes contain 3 components: Cognitions, beliefs (cheating is wrong!) Emotions (Anger, disgust) Behavior tendencies (I intend never to cheat) Attitudes can predict behavior: No cheating! Attitudes Attitudes don’t predict behavior when Components inconsistent (cognition v emotion) Believe pornography is wrong but feel excited Levels of analysis mixed (broad-> specific) Sex is good (broad) v. masturbating to Victoria Secret Desirability bias impacts Rs (homosexuality) Gain by behaving in ways inconsistent with attitudes Reaction Paper II: Cultural Morality Upon learning of the great variability in sexual attitudes across cultures many take a moral absolutist stance, arguing that cultures that disagree with our own are simply morally WRONG. Do you take this view with regards to sexual behaviors like homosexuality? Or do you take a moral relativistic stance, believing that moral absolutes don’t exist & each culture defines what is and is not right for them? Explain your position. Nature Influences Hormones prenatally impact brain development & sexual behavior later in life Masculinizing hormones masculinize behavior Feminizing hormones feminize behavior Nature Influences Sex Hormones (androgens) impact sexual behavior Erotica increases T levels Sex offenders treated by chemically reducing T & erectile dysfunction by increasing T Follicular stage of menstrual cycle +rd w/ arousal Nature Influences How did early exposure to testosterone impact female rat behavior? How did early exposure to estrogen impact male rat behavior? Can this happen with humans? Nature Influences Cross-cultural consistencies suggest nature Sexual behavior - little variation Kamasutra, medieval times, 2002 We have been doing same things for millennia Love & jealousy - ubiquitous in human culture Nature impacts sexual development & behavior Nature Influences Jealousy (expect no cultural variation) Males: Sexual Females: Emotional Males have uncertainty of paternity Males preventing sexual infidelity pass > genes Males > power in all known societies Statistical Significance t = inferential statistic indicating difference between groups in population p = significance level (how likely difference would occur if TRUE, population difference = 0.0) < .05 traditional significance level (1/20)2/1000 if true difference = 0.0 Assume difference is real Class Data 03 (N = 102, Female = 73) Upset over partner having sex with another? Mean Male 4.76 Female 4.76 t (101) < 1, ns Upset over partner falling in love with another? Mean Male 3.72 Female 4.31 t (101) = 3.01, p < .003 Nature Influences More costs for females than males Selection pressures lead females to be less promiscuous Men more interested in causal sex Women want to know their partner longer Class Data 03 (N = 102, Female = 73) Frequency of viewing & purchasing pornography/year VIDEOFREQ 45.39 4.05 4.38 .000 BOOKFREQ 80.44 12.43 2.99 .01BUYFREQ 2.39 .41 2.95 .004Nature Influences Evolutionary theory is a biological account Connections between humans, mammals, primates Emphasizes biological processes like reproduction Evolution theory is a functional account Behaviors, characteristics that served an adaptive function were passed on via natural selection Many present day behaviors evolutionary artifacts Not necessarily conscious, willful behavior Distal not proximal cause Nature & Culture Guttentag & Secord (1983) Culture changes as a result of ratio of males:females Sexual morality reflects minority gender Male surplus/female scarcity = women highly valued & sexually restrictive/prudish morals Female surplus/male scarcity = women devalued & sexually permissive morals Guttentag & Secord (1983) Supply & demand: Scarcity confers power Women/men are precious, valuable and powerful when rare Suggests that: Men desire promiscuous, commitment free sex Women desire stable , committed relationships Conclusion Nature impacts development, behaviors Nurture/culture impacts attitudes, morals Combine to impact all aspects of sexuality Dostları ilə paylaş:
