Psychology 307: Cultural Psychology Lecture 10

1. Psychology 307: Cultural PsychologyLecture 10

2. The Self-Concept and Motivation • Does cultural variation on the dimension of “individualism-collectivism” influence the way in which the self is conceptualized?

3. Does cultural variation on the dimension of “individualism-collectivism” influence the way in which the self is conceptualized? • Self-concept: A cognitive schema (i.e., organized knowledge structure) that contains beliefs about the self and controls the processing of self-relevant information. • Theorists have come to believe that cultural variation on IC has a profound influence on the self-concept.

4. Specifically, theorists have come to believe that the emphasis on independence and personal goals in individualistic cultures leads people to develop an “independent self-construal.” • In contrast, the emphasis on interdependence and collective goals in collectivistic cultures leads people to develop an “interdependent self- construal.”

5. The Independent Self-Construal MOTHER FATHER Out-Group X X X X X X X STRANGER X XX X SELFX X X X X SIBLING X X X FRIEND X X X X X CO-WORKER X STRANGER FRIEND In-Group

6. The Interdependent Self-Construal Out-Group FATHER MOTHER X X STRANGER X X X X X X SELF X X X SIBLING X X FRIEND X X X X X X X CO-WORKER X STRANGER FRIEND In-Group

7. Independent Versus Interdependent Self-Construals (Markus & Kitayama, 1991)

8. The distinctions between the self-construals promoted in individualistic cultures and collectivistic cultures are reflected in the following proverbs from North America and Japan, respectively: North American proverb: “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” Japanese proverb: “The nail that stands out gets pounded down.”

9. Independent and Interdependent Self Scale (IISS)(Lu and Gilmour, 2007) • Subscale 1: Independent Self-Construal Score 1 (sum of odd-numbered items) Cronbach’s alpha: .85 Assesses 7 facets: Being independent, unique and consistent; expressing oneself; realizing internal attributes; promoting one’s own goals; being direct; separation from in-group; self-reliance associated with hedonism. Minimum score = 21; maximum score = 147 Mean score (British sample): 101.4 (SD = 13.5)

10. Subscale 2: Interdependent Self-Construal Score 2 (sum of even-numbered items) Cronbach’s alpha: .82 Assesses 7 facets: Belonging and fitting in; occupying one’s proper place; engaging in appropriate action; promoting others’ goals; being indirect; family integration; interdependence and sociability. Minimum score = 21; maximum score = 147 Mean score (British sample): 91.7 (SD = 13.0) • Correlation between subscales: .28

11. A number of studies have provided support for the theory that individualistic cultures and collectivistic cultures promote distinct self-construals. • Among these studies are those that have compared: (a) the self-descriptions of people from different cultures, (b) the degree of self-consistency among people from different cultures, and (c) the degree of self-enhancement among people from different cultures.

12. (a) Self-descriptions: • Research has shown that people from individualistic cultures tend use abstract, global, and stable attributes (e.g., traits) to describe themselves, whereas people from collectivistic cultures tend to use social categories or affiliations (e.g., social roles) to describe themselves. • The differences in the self-descriptions of people from individualistic cultures and people from collectivistic cultures are exemplified in the following passages (Markus & Kitayama, 1998):

13. Instructions: Describe yourself briefly. Response of a student from the U.S.: I like to live life with a lot of positive energy. I feel like there is so much to do and see and experience. However, I also know the value of relaxation. I love the obscure. I play ultimate Frisbee, juggle, unicycle, and dabble on the recorder. I have a taste for the unique. I am very friendly and in most situations very self-confident. I’m almost always happy and when I am down, it is usually because of stress.

14. Response of a student from Japan: I cannot decide quickly what I should do, and am often swayed by other people’s opinions, and I cannot oppose the opinions of people who are supposed to be respected because of age or status. Even if I have displeasure, I compromise myself to the people around me without getting rid of the displeasure. When I cannot make a decision I often do it according to other people’s opinions. Also, I am concerned about how other people think about me and often decide on that consideration. I try to have a harmless life. I calm down be being the same as others.

15. Studies that have compared the self-descriptions of people from different cultures have primarily employed the Twenty Statements Test (TST; Kuhn & McPartland, 1954). • The TST is an unstructured measure that requires participants to write 20 statements in response to the question “Who am I?”

16. Examples: 1. Dhawan et al. (1995) • Administered the TST to participants from the U.S. and India. • Found that: (a) 65% of the statements generated by American participants referred to attributes, whereas 34% of the statements generated by Indian participants referred to attributes. (b) 26% of the statements generated by American participants referred to social categories, whereas 42% of the statements generated by Indian participants referred to social categories.

17. 2. Cousins, 1989 • Administered the TST to participants from the U.S. and Japan. • Using the TST, found that: (a) 58% of the statements generated by American participants referred to attributes, whereas 18% of the statements generated by Japanese participants referred to attributes. (b) 9% of the statements generated by American participants referred to social categories, whereas 27% of the statements generated by Japanese participants referred to social categories.

18. The Self-Concept and Motivation • Does cultural variation on the dimension of “individualism-collectivism” influence the way in which the self is conceptualized?