PSY3009 Week 6 - Assignment: Evaluate the Impact of Culture on Self and Identity
Culture, Self, and Identity Worksheet
Exercise 1:
1. Read each statement below and write the degree to which you agree or disagree with the statement by using seven-point scale.
I strongly disagree I strongly agree
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1. ( ) I sometimes feel guilty.
2. ( ) I sometimes feel ashamed.
3. ( ) I know more about myself than I do about others.
4. ( ) I know more about others than I do about myself.
5. ( ) Silence is embarrassing.
6. ( ) Silence is comfortable.
7. ( ) Success depends on my abilities.
8. ( ) Success depends on help we receive from others.
9. ( ) Friendships are fairly easy to establish, but often not very intimate.
10. ( ) Friendships are difficult to establish, but are generally very intimate.
11. ( ) Being dependent on others would be very hard on me.
12. ( ) Being excluded from my group would be very hard on me.
13. ( ) I generally socialize in pairs.
14. ( ) I generally socialize in groups.
15. ( ) It is important that my behavior and attitudes correspond.
16. ( ) It is important that my behavior is appropriate for the situation.
2. When you finish, add your scores in the statements of odd numbers, which indicates a total score of your tendency of “independent” self. Add your scores in the statements of even numbers, which indicates a total score of your tendency of “interdependent” self. Your total score for each tendency ranges from 8 to 56, and a more score indicates your stronger tendency of either type of self-construal.
Your score of independent self:
Your score of interdependent self:
Exercise 2:
Reflection Question 1: Based on the results, do you think your self-construal is more independent or interdependent?
Reflection Question 2: It goes without saying that Markus and Kitayama’s concept increased our awareness of the influence of culture on self and individual behaviors. However, some scholars, such as Triandis (1994) and Matsumoto (1999) argue that it is possible for one individual to hold both aspects of self. Here, they point out the importance of taking contextual variables, such as individual’s experience and cultural situation into consideration in assessing self-construal.
To what degree can you accurately answer the questions above without taking your experience and cultural situation into consideration? For example, considering reflection question 1, are there certain cultural situations, or experiences in which you might feel more guilty, or less? Or, are there certain situations in which it would be easier or even more desirable to be dependent on others? Based on these considerations, do you think that it is possible to make a determination of the degree of influence in general that culture has on self, or does this always have to be considered based on the context and situation?
Reflection Question 3: Describe two situations in which you have acted based on independent construal of self.
Reflection Question 4: Describe two situations in which you have acted based on interdependent construal of self.
Exercise 3:
Write twenty different statements in answering the question, “Who am
I?” Do not spend too much time to write each statement. There is no right or
wrong answers. After that, answer the questions which appear later.
1. I am
2. I am
3. I am
4. I am
5. I am
6. I am
7. I am
8. I am
9. I am
10. I am
11. I am
12. I am
13. I am
14. I am
15. I am
16. I am
17. I am
18. I am
19. I am
20. I am
Question 1: Which statements do you think are associated with the dimension of “independent construal of self?” Write the numbers of the statements.
Question 2: Which statements do you think are associated with the dimension of “interdependent construal of self?” Write the numbers of the statements.
Reflection Question 1: Based on your results to questions 1 and 2, do you think you are more independent or more interdependent? What other factors could be considered to give a more accurate assessment?
Reference: Markus, H., & Kitayama, S. (1991). Culture and self: Implications for cognition, emotion and motivation. Psychological Review, 98, 224-253.
Matsumoto, D. (1999). Culture and self: An empirical assessment of Markus and Kitayama’s theory of independent and interdependent self-construal. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 2(3), 289-310.
Triandis, H. (1994). Culture and social behavior. New York: McGraw-Hill.