WEEK 1: CULTURAL PSYCHOLOGY
WHAT ARE WEIRDOS?
WHITE, EDUCATED, INDUSTRIALISED, RICH, DEMOCRATIC CULTURES
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN INDIVIDUAL + ECOLOGICAL CROSS-CULTURAL RESEARCH?
1. INDIVIDUAL = INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPANTS PROVIDE DATA + ARE A UNIT OF ANALYSIS
2. ECOLOGICAL = COUNTRIES OR CULTURES ARE UNITS OF ANALYSIS
DEFINE ENCULTURATION?
PROCESS OF LEARNING ABOUT ONE'S CULTURE BEGINNING AT BIRTH (DYNAMIC PROCESS)
Define Self-Concept?
Cognitive representations of one's own self, idea or images one has about oneself, + how + why one behaves.
Define Personality?
Aspects of an individual’s unique characteristics. Enduring behavioural and cognitive characteristics, traits, or predispositions.
WHAT ARE THE 2 GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGY?
1. BUILD A BODY OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT PEOPLE
2. TAKE BODY OF KNOWLEDGE + APPLY IT TO INTERVENE IN PEOPLE'S LIVES
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STRUCTURAL + LEVEL-ORIENTED CROSS-CULTURAL RESEARCH?
1. STRUCTURE = FOCUSES ON RELATIONSHIPS AMONG VARIABLES (ATTEMPTS TO DEFINE SIMILARITIES + DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM)
2. LEVEL = COMPARISON OF SCORES (DIFFERENT MEAN VARIABLES OF DIFFERENT VARIABLES BETWEEN CULTURES)
DEFINE TEMPERAMENT?
BIOLOGICALLY-BASED STYLE OF INTERACTING WITH THE WORLD THAT EXISTS FROM BIRTH
List + describe where Self-Concepts come from?
1. Cultural practices: Discrete, observable, objective + behavioural aspects of human activities in which people engage related to culture
2. Cultural worldviews: Belief systems about one's culture
Define + give an example of National Character?
Definition: Perception that each culture has a modal personality type, and people in that culture share aspects of it.
Example (in lecture): Australian traveller overseas
WHAT IS THE FUNCTION OF CULTURE?
PROVIDES GUIDELINES ON WHAT TO DO, HOW TO THINK AND WHAT TO FEEL (WAYS OF LIVING TO MEET BASIC HUMAN NEEDS)
WHAT IS A LINKAGE STUDY + LIST THE 2 TYPES?
LINKAGE STUDY = MEASURE AN ASPECT OF CULTURE THEORETICALLY HYPOTHESIZED TO PRODUCE CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
TYPES:
1. UNPACKAGING STUDIES
2. EXPERIMENTS
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOCIALISATION + ENCULTURATION?
SOCIALISATION = PROCESS BY WHICH WE LEARN, INTERNALISE RULES + PATTERNS OF SOCIETY
ENCULTURATION = PROCESS OF LEARNING + ADOPTING WAYS + MANNERS OF A CULTURE
What are Hofestede's 5 cultural dimensions?
1. POWER DISTANCE
2. UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE
3. INDIVIDUALISM-COLLECTIVISM
4. MASCULINITY-FEMININITY
5. LONG-VERSUS SHORT-TERM ORIENTATION
Define O.C.E.A.N + what it represents?
Openness to Experience
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Neuroticism
Represents? The Big Five of Personality or Five-Factor Personality Model
WHERE DOES CULTURE COME FROM?
1. GROUP LIFE: DIVISION OF LABOUR, EFFICIENCY + INCREASE SURVIVAL PROBABILITY
2. ENVIRONMENTS: CLIMATE, POPULATION DENSITY, ARABLE LAND, DISEASES, PREVIOUS CULTURES, CONTACT WITH OTHER CULTURES
3. RESOURCES: FOOD, MONEY, WATER
4. THE EVOLVED HUMAN MIND: HUMAN BASIC NEEDS + MOTIVES
WHAT ARE 3 TYPES OF METHOD VALIDATION STUDIES + DEFINE THEM?
1. CROSS-CULTURAL VALIDATION STUDIES: DETERMINE IF A MEASURE IN 1 CULTURE CAN MEASURE THE SAME THING IN ANOTHER.
2. INDIGENOUS CULTURAL STUDIES: HOW PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES + BEHAVIOUR CAN BE UNDERSTOOD IN A CULTURAL SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT
3. CROSS-CULTURAL COMPARISONS: COMPARE COUNTRIES ON SOME PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLE OF INTEREST
LIST + DEFINE THE 3 CHILD TEMPERAMENTS IN THE THOMAS + CHESS STUDY?
1. EASY: ADAPTABLE, MILD, POSITIVE, RESPONSIVE
2. DIFFICULT: INTENSE, IRREGULAR, WITHDRAWING STYLE, NEGATIVE MOOD
3. SLOW-TO-WARM-UP: NEEDS TIME TO MAKE TRANSITIONS
Define Terror Management Theory + why it's a psychological phenomena?
Humans are aware of and terrified of inevitable death.
Cultural meaningfulness and self-worth arise because humans balance propensity for life with awareness of inevitable death.
Psychological phenomena = buffer terror of dying.
What are 5 Cultural Bases of the Five-Factor Personality model?
1. Personal strivings
2. Attitudes
3. Skills
4. Roles
5. Relationships
WHAT ARE 6 GROUPS THAT HAVE DIFFERENT CULTURES?
1. NATIONALITY
2. LANGUAGE
3. EHTNICITY
4. GENDER
5. DISABILITY
6. SEXUAL ORIENTATION
DEFINE THE 5 TYPES OF BIAS?
1. CONCEPTUAL: EQUIVALENCE OF THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK + HYPOTHESIS BEING TESTED
2. METHOD: (3 TYPES) SAMPLING, LINGUISTIC OR PROCEDURAL
3. MEASUREMENT: DEGREE WITH WHICH MEASURES USED TO COLLECT DATA IN DIFFERENT CULTURES ARE EQUALLY VALID + RELIABLE
4. RESPONSE: SYSTEMATIC TENDENCY TO RESPOND IN CERTAIN WAYS TO ITEMS OR SCALES. 4 TYPES = SOCIALLY-DESIRABLE, ACQUIESCENCE, EXTREME RESPONSE + REFERENCE GROUP
5. INTERPRETATIONAL: CULTURE CAN BIAS WAYS RESEARCHERS INTERPRET THEIR FINDINGS
DEFINE BOWLBY'S THEORY OF ATTACHMENT + 3 CLASSIFICATIONS?
DEFINITION: INFANTS MUST HAVE A PREPROGRAMMED, BIOLOGICAL BASIS FOR BECOMING ATTACHED TO CAREGIVERS
CLASSIFICATIONS:
1. SECURE = INFANT DISTRESSED WHEN CAREGIVER LEAVES, BUT EASILY COMFORTED ON RETURN
2. AMBIVALENT = INFANT DISTRESSED WHEN CAREGIVER LEAVES, BUT SENDS MIXED MESSAGES ON RETURN (INSECURE ATTACHMENT)
3. AVOIDANT = NOT DISTRESSED WHEN CAREGIVER LEAVES + RETURNS; AVOIDS REUNITING (INSECURE ATTACHMENT)
Define + describe the difference between Independent + Interdependent Construal of Self?
1. Independent construal of self: individuals focus on personal, internal attributes.
2. Interdependent construal of self: self is unbounded, flexible, and contingent on context.
Define Internal + External Locus of Control, + list the 4 types of control across cultures?
1. Internal: behaviour and relationships are dependent on one’s own behaviour
2. External: behaviour and relationships contingent on forces beyond one’s control
3. Types: Direct, indirect, Proxy, Collective