Culture and Cultural Norms

1. Culture and Cultural Norms

2. Learning Outcomes • SC.4.A. Define the terms “culture” and “cultural norms”.

3. Warm-Up • Give a definition of culture in your own words. • What aspects does it include? • Give a definition of cultural norms in your own words. • What cultural norms are present in your life?

4. Your Task 1. Read the excerpt from the I.B. Psychology Text. 2. Provide definitions for culture from… • Kuschel (2004) • Lonner (1995) • Hofstede (2002) • Matsumoto (2004) 3. Define Cultural Norm

5. Questions to Consider about Culture • What new ideas about culture do these definitions give you? Do you agree with them? • What similarities do you see between the different definitions? What differences? • Which definition of culture is most accurate?

6. Cultural Dimensions

7. Learning Outcomes • SC.4.B. Examine the role of two cultural dimensions on behavior.

8. Cultural Dimensions • The perspectives of a culture based on values and cultural norms.

9. Hoefstede (1973) • Conducted a massive survey about morale in the workplace at IBM (Multinational Corporation). • Examined responses from 40 different countries. • Theorized that six main cultural dimensions exist.

10. 2/24/2014 Homework • Read the following summaries and charts of Hoefstede’s cultural dimensions. • For each dimension, try to determine where you think your culture belongs on a value-line. • (Collectivism or Individualism)

11. Individualism/CollectivismKashima and Triandis (1986) • Aim: To see if errors of attribution were universal. • Procedures: Asked students from different cultures to try to remember information from slides of unfamiliar countries. Asked for reports on their performance. • Findings: • American Students (Individualism): Success attributed to ability. • Japanese Students (Collectivism): Failure Attributed to ability. • Conclusion: Self-Serving Bias is culturally based.

12. Individualism/CollectivismBond & Smith (1996) • Aim: To investigate the cultural impact on conformity. • Procedure: Conducted a Meta-Analysis (Looked at other studies) of Asch replications in different cultures. • Findings: Collectivist Cultures generally display higher rates of conformity than individualist cultures.

13. Long-Term/Short-TermChen et al. (2005) • Aim: Discover if cultural dimensions impact patience. • Procedure: 147 “bicultural” Singaporeans were either shown a collage of images of Singaporean or American Photos. Asked to purchase a book online and choose delivery method. • Finding: • US-Primed: Immediate consumption (next day delivery for a fee) • Singaporean Primed: Patience (4-day delivery for free) • Conclusion: US-Primed (short-term) valued immediate consumption more than Singaporean-Primed participants (long-term). • Evaluation?

14. Emic & Etic Research

15. Learning Outcome • SC.4.C. Using one or more examples, explain “emic” and “etic” concepts.

16. Cross Cultural Psychology • Cross Cultural Psychology is a branch of Psychology that looks at how cultural factors influence human behavior. • Goal: Test the validity of psychological theories in different culture. (Is psychology universal?) • Two Concepts: Emic vs. Etic

17. Emic • Studies one culture alone to understand culture-specific behavior. • Study behavior through the eyes of the people who live in the culture. • How behavior is linked to the culture and the meaning it has in the culture is emphasized.

18. Emic Study Example • Bartlett (1932) – Swazi Tribesman’s Memory • Described the ability for Swazi Tribesmen to remember huge amounts of information about his current and past cattle. • Emic because this information was pertinent and essential to the culture that the man was living in….Specific to a single culture.

19. Etic • Etic research compares psychological phenomena across cultures with the goal of finding out if they are universal or culture-specific. • Compares and contrasts behaviors in a culture. • What studies classify as etic that we have looked at so far?

20. Etic Example- Berry (1967) • Used variation of Asch study to study conformity in two separate communities • Communal Farmers from Temne Sierra Leone • Inuit Hunters from Baffin Island Canada • Famers showed more conformity because they needed to rely on one another and cooperation was essential. Hunters needed to think for themselves.

21. Emic vs. Etic Emic Etic Compares psychological theories across cultures. Looking for “Universal Behaviors” Emphasizes similarities and differences between culture. Brings outside perspective • Focuses on one culture and looks for culturally specific behaviors. • Looking for “Culturally Specific Behavior” • Emphasizes uniqueness of cultures. • Seeks an inside perspective.

22. Our Task • Identify studies from this year (Sociocultural and Cognitive Unit) that are either emic or etic. • For example, is Mead (1935) (Textbook Reading) an example of emic or etic concepts? Why? • What challenges could exist with emic and etic studies of culture?

23. “Babies” • As we watch this documentary, you will watch for emic and etic concepts related to the behaviors associated with child rearing in different cultures. • What etic comparisons can we make? • What emic conclusions about these cultures can we make? Can we make them?