Chapter 4.
When individuals rely on mental shortcuts to interpret social situations quickly and automatically, often without conscious awareness, they are using this form of cognition?
Type 1 cognition
The CuPS model argues that behavior can only be explained by the joint interaction of these three elements.
Culture × Person × Situation
What is the difference between schemas and scripts?
a, Schemas refer to the mental frameworks that we develop based on our past knowledge, whereas scripts refer to the behavioral sequences.
b, Schemas refer to the process of storage and application of information about others, whereas scripts refer to the behavioral sequences.
c, Scripts refer to the process of storage and application of information about others, whereas schemas refer to the mental frameworks developed from knowledge of past experiences.
d, There is no difference between schemas and scripts.
Helene Wong’s experience balancing her Chinese heritage and New Zealand upbringing demonstrates this blended form of cultural belonging.
Bicultural identity
What did Leung & Cohen mean when they said “individuals are always within a cultural system, but not always of it”?
People may reject cultural ideals but still act within the behavioral clusters those ideals organize
In Chapter 4 (How Culture works) it is examined how people think – their social cognition – when they work with others from different cultures. Which of the following best represents a schema?
a, an organized category called "Italian art."
b, a detailed understanding of Italian cultural norms.
c, attending multiple Italian opera performances.
d, the specific features of famous Italian artists.
What bias leads individuals to overemphasize personal characteristics and underestimate situational factors when judging others?
Fundamental attribution error
Discuss how legal institutions shape dignity cultures but not honor cultures.
Dignity depends on impartial law and contracts; honor arises where the state is weak and self-defense is required.
In Chapter 4 (How Culture works) it is examined how people think – their social cognition – when they work with others from different cultures. How do cultural differences in scripts influence cross-cultural negotiations?
a, require individuals to rely on Type 1 cognition to make quick and intuitive decisions.
b, allow individuals to rely equally on quick intuitive judgments (Type 1 cognition) and deliberate analytical thinking (Type 2 cognition).
c, require individuals to rely on Type 2 cognition for deliberate and analytical thinking.
d, lead to automatic understanding of behaviour across cultures, like a rule of thumb.
When a manager learns to automatically respond appropriately in another culture without consciously analyzing every interaction, it shows they’ve developed this kind of cultural thinking?
Culturally internalized schema
Explain how the CuPS approach predicts that the same individual trait (e.g., aggressiveness or helpfulness) can lead to opposite behaviors across cultures.
Because cultural logics cluster behaviors differently; e.g., aggression aligns with virtue in honor cultures but signals immaturity in dignity cultures.
In Chapter 4 (How Culture works) it is discussed how culturally based attributions affect the way people draw conclusions. Why is understanding the concept of attribution critical for international managers?
a, Attribution leads managers to biases that help them make quicker and better decisions in cross-cultural interactions.
b, Attribution helps managers analyse the underlying causes behind an individual or group’s behaviour.
c, Attribution allows managers to identify external influences as the main factor in behaviour.
d, Attribution focuses on internal characteristics, such as personality or motivation, helping the manager in motivating her team.
An American manager publicly corrects a Japanese employee for missing a deadline. The employee becomes distant, takes unexpected sick days, and avoids eye contact.
Cross-cultural misunderstanding rooted in differences in cultural scripts, attribution bias, and interdependent self-schema
Apply the CuPS framework: predict how a person high in self-construal independence would interpret an insult differently in honor vs. dignity settings.
In dignity settings, they dismiss it as irrelevant to worth; in honor contexts, they interpret it as a public challenge to status requiring retaliation.
In Chapter 4 (How Culture works) it is discussed how national stereotypes can also be explained by social dominance theory. Which of the following scenarios best illustrates an effective use of a stereotype, as informed by social dominance theory?
a, A team leader believes that workers from lower-income countries will perform better in manual labour jobs, assuming that these individuals have less formal education, without considering personal capabilities or aspirations.
b, A company only hires employees from countries known for their progressive social policies, assuming they are more likely to embrace diversity and inclusivity, based on the global reputation of their nation's political system.
c, A hiring manager thinks that all employees from culturally rich nations (like France or Italy) will be more creative, basing this on their nation's historical contributions to the arts and assuming these attributes reflect individual creativity in the workplace.
d, A manager assumes that all employees from high-power countries (such as the U.S. or Germany) prefer direct communication and thus treats them with an assertive approach, assuming they are comfortable with this style due to their country’s economic and military dominance.