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DiscussionBoard.docx

Discussion Board

You will be required to participate in the eight discussion prompts posted on the Canvas Discussion Board throughout the course of the semester. These will relate to assigned course materials. Your responses should incorporate course content assigned during that week and should be approximately 250 words (total, for both prompts).

Please select and reply to two of the prompts below, additionally respond to two of your colleague's comments:

1. At the customs gate of your country’s busiest international airport, two people are arriving as landed immigrants. As an immigrant support worker, you are tasked with determining how best to allocate resources in helping different immigrants. To do that, you must first determine how successfully each person will be at acculturating. Looking at the files for the landed immigrants, you see that Grace is coming from the United States, a country that is very similar to your country. On the other hand, Cecilia is coming from Mongolia, a country that is very dissimilar to your country. Based on the concept of cultural distance, draw the expected acculturation pattern (feelings toward host culture over time) for each person, assuming that both people do acculturate. For the purpose of this question, the heterogeneity/homogeneity of the host culture is irrelevant.

2. Mike and Steph are a married couple who will soon be moving to a new country. This new country has a culture in which the population is generally pretty low on extraversion. Mike is very high on extraversion; Steph is very low in extraversion. Based on the concept of cultural fit, draw the expected acculturation pattern (feelings toward host culture over time) associated with each person, assuming that both people do acculturate. For the purpose of this question, the heterogeneity/homogeneity of the host culture is irrelevant.

3. Your new research project is studying cultural differences between European-Canadians and Japanese-Canadians in terms of self-awareness. Your research partner decides to give all your participants an English questionnaire, thinking that the language of the questionnaire does not affect how the Japanese-Canadians would think. According to research about frame-switching, do you agree with your research partner’s perspective? Why or why not?

4. As a CEO of a multinational graphics design company, you are tasked with looking for the most creative applicant. Before you are three equally qualified applicants with one important difference regarding their travel history: Michael has lived for several years in each of two different countries; Stephanie has lived in one country and has only visited four others as a tourist (each visit was for one week); and Robert has only ever lived in one country. You give them a creative task by giving the following instructions: “Here is a brick. Write down as many uses for this brick as you can think of.” Higher numbers of responses mean greater creativity. Draw a graph to depict what results you would expect from each applicant.

5. Your father wants to encourage you to travel to as many places as possible and stay in each place as long as possible. It does not matter what cultures you live in—it will all benefit your creativity. Based on research on culture and creativity, do you agree with his assertions? Why or why not?

CULTPSY3_Chapter6_PDFHandout.pdf

Lecture PowerPoint Slides

By Benjamin Cheung

Cultural Psychology Third Edition

Steven J. Heine

Chapter 6—Self and Personality

Chapter Objectives

 In this chapter, you will:

• Understand how self-descriptors tend to vary across different cultures

• Differentiate between independent and interdependent views of self

• Explain interpersonal consequences for independent and interdependent views of self

• Differentiate between individualism and collectivism

• Relate individualism/collectivism to independent/interdependent views of self

• Understand how to reconcile cultural differences with individual variability

• Understand how various cultural variables explain cultural differences in gender equality

• Define gender essentialism

• Understand how one’s self-concept may differ across different contexts

Chapter Objectives

 In this chapter, you will:

• Explain the relationship between cognitive dissonance and cultural differences in self-consistency

• Differentiate between subjective and objective self-awareness

• Differentiate between incremental and entity theories of self

• Understand the Five Factor Model of personality

• Differentiate between the five factors of the Five Factor Model of personality

• Reconcile the difference between cultural variability and universality of personality structures

• Explain cultural differences in concepts related to self-concepts

• Discuss general cultural differences in self-concepts

• Understand how cultural differences in self-concepts are associated with cultural differences in observable behaviors

Overriding Themes in This Chapter

 There are aspects of self-concept that are universal and others that are culturally variable.

 Such differences have important implications for our social interactions and perceptions of them.

 Something as basic as “how we view ourselves” differs greatly across cultures.

Who Am I?

 If someone asked you to complete the sentence, “I am…,” how would you complete it? How would you describe yourself?

 Researchers have found cultural differences in such self-descriptors.

Who Am I?

 Researchers have suggested the existence of a fundamental difference in how the self is subjectively organized.

 Markus and Kitayama (1991) argue that this difference is based on people having either an independent or interdependent view of self.

Why I Am Who I am

Why I Am Who I Am

Independent view of the self

Why I Am Who I Am

Interdependent view of the self

Why I Am Who I Am

 A neural basis exists for this distinction

Individualism and Collectivism

 Another underlying difference between many cultures is individualism/collectivism.

 Individualistic cultures tend to emphasize independent aspects of the self. • Values distinctiveness and self-reliance

 Collectivistic cultures tend to emphasize interdependent aspects of the self (e.g. close relationships, group memberships).

Individualism and Collectivism

What areas have higher levels of individualism and collectivism?

Individualism and Collectivism

Regional differences:

 Within the United States, Hawaii and the states of the Confederate South score the highest in collectivism.

 On the other hand, the Mountain West and Great Plains states, the Northeast, and the Midwest are the least collectivistic.

Individualism and Collectivism

Socioeconomic status differences within same country:

 There is evidence that in Iceland, those with higher socioeconomic status versus lower socioeconomic status tend to place differently: higher SES predicts higher individualism scores, whereas lower SES predicts higher collectivism scores.

Individualism and Collectivism

Socioeconomic status differences within same country:

 This pattern holds within the United States as well, with people in the middle class acting in ways that are more individualistic than people in the working class, which instead acts in ways that are more collectivistic.

Individualism and Collectivism

 Other than individualism/collectivism: • Power distance

• Uncertainty avoidance

• Vertical-horizontal social structure

• Social cynicism

• Social complexity

Caution with Individualism/Collectivism

 Individualism/collectivism is not meant to be a dichotomy.

 In reality, people embody varying degrees of both. • The same dynamic applies to a given culture

as well (e.g. while Americans are generally individualistic, some are collectivistic, and some are more/less individualistic than others).

Culture and Gender

 Unsurprisingly, research has shown that independence, as measured by assertiveness and agency, and interdependence, as measured by collectivism and relatedness, have cultural differences.

 In terms of gender, however, few differences emerge—in fact, the only reliable difference is in terms of relatedness.

Culture and Gender

 Cultures around the world have widely different views on whether roles, obligations, and rights of men and women should be different. • High on gender egalitarianism are countries

like Finland and Germany.

• Low on gender egalitarianism are countries like Pakistan and Nigeria.

 Males and females in a given culture share similar gender attitudes.

Culture and Gender

 Males generally have more traditional gender views than females.

 Some predictors of higher gender egalitarianism include: • Religion

• Greater individualism

• Urbanization

 Note that these are correlations not causes of gender egalitarianism.

Culture and Gender

Origins of Gender (In)equality

 Bosterup (1970) argued that culture differences in gender norms may result from type of agricultural method. • In particular, cultures that rely primarily on

ploughs are expected to be associated with more gender inequality.

» Children often stay with women due to dangers of being around ploughs (and large animals that pull ploughs).

» Strong division of labor is thus established.

Origins of Gender (In)equality

 Alesina, Giuliano, and Nunn (2011) investigated cultures that primarily used ploughs during and before nineteenth century versus those that did not • Those that relied on ploughs before were

currently still low on gender egalitarianism and less female labor force participation.

• The same was found in the United States with immigrants’ cultures of origin as a predictor.

Gender and Essentialism

 Essentialized = reflecting some underlying, unchangeable essence

Gender and Essentialism

 In the United States, the male gender is seen as being more essentialized and people are more accepting of women engaging in “masculine” activities; but this is not the same for men engaging in “feminine” activities.

Gender and Essentialism

 In India, the reverse is true. One study found that people believe that if you replaced a woman’s brain with a man’s brain, the woman would act like a woman; but if you replaced a man’s brain with a woman’s brain, the man would then like a woman, suggestive of greater essentialism in being a woman.

Self-Consistency

 Researchers have noted cultural differences in the level of self-consistency shown by participants.

 In one study, participants were asked to sit in different contexts (e.g. professor’s office, with another student) and describe themselves. • Japanese participants varied in their self-descriptors

depending on the context.

• American participants responded similarly across contexts.

Questions for Consideration

 How can this difference be explained using the independent/interdependent views of self that were discussed earlier?

 What challenge(s) does this pose for cross-cultural studies?

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Cognitive dissonance: We have strong motivations to be consistent, therefore:

Seeing own inconsistency  Feeling distress

Feeling distress  Compelled to resolve dissonance

Compulsion  Change attitudes or change behaviors

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Dissonance is especially salient after making a choice between equally desirable options. • After choosing between two equally desirable

alternatives, we tend to rationalize why we made our choice:

» We often emphasize what made the chosen option desirable and downplay that which made it undesirable.

» We do the opposite for the option not chosen.

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Some research suggests, that East Asians are also motivated to be consistent, but in different ways.

 Accordingly, East Asians don’t rationalize after making a choice…for themselves. • When making a choice for someone else, they do

rationalize their choice.

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 In terms of consistency with past behavior:

Why Be Consistent?

 Suh (2002): cultures differ in the benefits derived from self-consistency.

Self-Awareness

 People can have subjective or objective self- awareness. • Subjective self-awareness = taking on

perspective of a subject—an “I” perspective » Attention focused on outside world, not with the self.

• Objective self-awareness = people experience themselves as an object—a “me” perspective

» Attention directed inward, as though an audience were evaluating subject.

Self-Awareness

Less concerned with others’ assessments of them

Often have subjective self- awareness

Independent view of the self

Self-Awareness

Often have objective self- awareness

More concerned with others’ assessments of them

Interdependent view of the self

Implicit Theories of the Self

 Two implicit theories of the self

• Incremental theories = belief that abilities are malleable and are capable of being changed, with efforts

• Entity theories = belief that abilities are largely fixed, reflecting innate features of the self

Implicit Theories of the Self

 When encountering failure: • Those with incremental theories of self respond by

redoubling efforts

• Those with entity theories of self likely respond by blaming their own innate lack of ability

 In general, incremental theories of the self are characteristic of people with an interdependent view of the self

 Entity theories of the self are characteristic of people with an independent view of the self.

Personality

Personality Across Cultures

 English has about 18,000 personality trait words

 Factor analysis: five underlying personality factors as measured by NEO-PI-R

O penness to experience

C onscientiousness

E xtraversion

A greeableness

N euroticism

Personality Across Cultures

 Use of NEO-PI-R in different 50 cultures reveals universality in the structure of five factors

 However, the NEO-PI-R was created using English terms. • Thus, it may not capture culture-specific personality

traits.

 Indeed, investigations in a number of cultures including Spain, Greece, the Philippines, and China have yielded additional factors.

Personality Across Cultures

Dependability

Interpersonal relatedness

Social potency

Individualism

Dependability ≈ Neuroticism

Social potency ≈ Extraversion

Individualism ≈ Agreeableness

Personality Across Cultures

Summary

 There are cultural differences in motivations for self-consistency and in how people view themselves, socially organize themselves, and describe themselves.

 While some personality factors are universal, some cultures also appear to have culture-specific personality factors.

DiscussionBoard.docx

Discussion Board

Please select and reply to two of the prompts below, additionally respond to two of your colleague's comments:

CULTPSY3_Chapter6_PDFHandout.pdf

Lecture PowerPoint Slides

By Benjamin Cheung

Cultural Psychology Third Edition

Steven J. Heine

Chapter 6—Self and Personality

Chapter Objectives

 In this chapter, you will:

• Understand how self-descriptors tend to vary across different cultures

• Differentiate between independent and interdependent views of self

• Explain interpersonal consequences for independent and interdependent views of self

• Differentiate between individualism and collectivism

• Relate individualism/collectivism to independent/interdependent views of self

• Understand how to reconcile cultural differences with individual variability

• Understand how various cultural variables explain cultural differences in gender equality

• Define gender essentialism

• Understand how one’s self-concept may differ across different contexts

Chapter Objectives

 In this chapter, you will:

• Explain the relationship between cognitive dissonance and cultural differences in self-consistency

• Differentiate between subjective and objective self-awareness

• Differentiate between incremental and entity theories of self

• Understand the Five Factor Model of personality

• Differentiate between the five factors of the Five Factor Model of personality

• Reconcile the difference between cultural variability and universality of personality structures

• Explain cultural differences in concepts related to self-concepts

• Discuss general cultural differences in self-concepts

• Understand how cultural differences in self-concepts are associated with cultural differences in observable behaviors

Overriding Themes in This Chapter

 There are aspects of self-concept that are universal and others that are culturally variable.

 Such differences have important implications for our social interactions and perceptions of them.

 Something as basic as “how we view ourselves” differs greatly across cultures.

Who Am I?

 If someone asked you to complete the sentence, “I am…,” how would you complete it? How would you describe yourself?

 Researchers have found cultural differences in such self-descriptors.

Who Am I?

 Researchers have suggested the existence of a fundamental difference in how the self is subjectively organized.

 Markus and Kitayama (1991) argue that this difference is based on people having either an independent or interdependent view of self.

Why I Am Who I am

Why I Am Who I Am

Independent view of the self

Why I Am Who I Am

Interdependent view of the self

Why I Am Who I Am

 A neural basis exists for this distinction

Individualism and Collectivism

 Another underlying difference between many cultures is individualism/collectivism.

 Individualistic cultures tend to emphasize independent aspects of the self. • Values distinctiveness and self-reliance

 Collectivistic cultures tend to emphasize interdependent aspects of the self (e.g. close relationships, group memberships).

Individualism and Collectivism

What areas have higher levels of individualism and collectivism?

Individualism and Collectivism

Regional differences:

 Within the United States, Hawaii and the states of the Confederate South score the highest in collectivism.

 On the other hand, the Mountain West and Great Plains states, the Northeast, and the Midwest are the least collectivistic.

Individualism and Collectivism

Socioeconomic status differences within same country:

Individualism and Collectivism

Socioeconomic status differences within same country:

Individualism and Collectivism

 Other than individualism/collectivism: • Power distance

• Uncertainty avoidance

• Vertical-horizontal social structure

• Social cynicism

• Social complexity

Caution with Individualism/Collectivism

 Individualism/collectivism is not meant to be a dichotomy.

 In reality, people embody varying degrees of both. • The same dynamic applies to a given culture

as well (e.g. while Americans are generally individualistic, some are collectivistic, and some are more/less individualistic than others).

Culture and Gender

 Unsurprisingly, research has shown that independence, as measured by assertiveness and agency, and interdependence, as measured by collectivism and relatedness, have cultural differences.

 In terms of gender, however, few differences emerge—in fact, the only reliable difference is in terms of relatedness.

Culture and Gender

 Cultures around the world have widely different views on whether roles, obligations, and rights of men and women should be different. • High on gender egalitarianism are countries

like Finland and Germany.

• Low on gender egalitarianism are countries like Pakistan and Nigeria.

 Males and females in a given culture share similar gender attitudes.

Culture and Gender

 Males generally have more traditional gender views than females.

 Some predictors of higher gender egalitarianism include: • Religion

• Greater individualism

• Urbanization

 Note that these are correlations not causes of gender egalitarianism.

Culture and Gender

Origins of Gender (In)equality

 Bosterup (1970) argued that culture differences in gender norms may result from type of agricultural method. • In particular, cultures that rely primarily on

ploughs are expected to be associated with more gender inequality.

» Children often stay with women due to dangers of being around ploughs (and large animals that pull ploughs).

» Strong division of labor is thus established.

Origins of Gender (In)equality

 Alesina, Giuliano, and Nunn (2011) investigated cultures that primarily used ploughs during and before nineteenth century versus those that did not • Those that relied on ploughs before were

currently still low on gender egalitarianism and less female labor force participation.

• The same was found in the United States with immigrants’ cultures of origin as a predictor.

Gender and Essentialism

 Essentialized = reflecting some underlying, unchangeable essence

Gender and Essentialism

Self-Consistency

 Researchers have noted cultural differences in the level of self-consistency shown by participants.

depending on the context.

• American participants responded similarly across contexts.

Questions for Consideration

 How can this difference be explained using the independent/interdependent views of self that were discussed earlier?

 What challenge(s) does this pose for cross-cultural studies?

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Cognitive dissonance: We have strong motivations to be consistent, therefore:

Seeing own inconsistency  Feeling distress

Feeling distress  Compelled to resolve dissonance

Compulsion  Change attitudes or change behaviors

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Dissonance is especially salient after making a choice between equally desirable options. • After choosing between two equally desirable

alternatives, we tend to rationalize why we made our choice:

» We often emphasize what made the chosen option desirable and downplay that which made it undesirable.

» We do the opposite for the option not chosen.

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Some research suggests, that East Asians are also motivated to be consistent, but in different ways.

 Accordingly, East Asians don’t rationalize after making a choice…for themselves. • When making a choice for someone else, they do

rationalize their choice.

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 In terms of consistency with past behavior:

Why Be Consistent?

 Suh (2002): cultures differ in the benefits derived from self-consistency.

Self-Awareness

 People can have subjective or objective self- awareness. • Subjective self-awareness = taking on

perspective of a subject—an “I” perspective » Attention focused on outside world, not with the self.

• Objective self-awareness = people experience themselves as an object—a “me” perspective

» Attention directed inward, as though an audience were evaluating subject.

Self-Awareness

Less concerned with others’ assessments of them

Often have subjective self- awareness

Independent view of the self

Self-Awareness

Often have objective self- awareness

More concerned with others’ assessments of them

Interdependent view of the self

Implicit Theories of the Self

 Two implicit theories of the self

• Incremental theories = belief that abilities are malleable and are capable of being changed, with efforts

• Entity theories = belief that abilities are largely fixed, reflecting innate features of the self

Implicit Theories of the Self

 When encountering failure: • Those with incremental theories of self respond by

redoubling efforts

• Those with entity theories of self likely respond by blaming their own innate lack of ability

 In general, incremental theories of the self are characteristic of people with an interdependent view of the self

 Entity theories of the self are characteristic of people with an independent view of the self.

Personality

Personality Across Cultures

 English has about 18,000 personality trait words

 Factor analysis: five underlying personality factors as measured by NEO-PI-R

O penness to experience

C onscientiousness

E xtraversion

A greeableness

N euroticism

Personality Across Cultures

 Use of NEO-PI-R in different 50 cultures reveals universality in the structure of five factors

 However, the NEO-PI-R was created using English terms. • Thus, it may not capture culture-specific personality

traits.

 Indeed, investigations in a number of cultures including Spain, Greece, the Philippines, and China have yielded additional factors.

Personality Across Cultures

Dependability

Interpersonal relatedness

Social potency

Individualism

Dependability ≈ Neuroticism

Social potency ≈ Extraversion

Individualism ≈ Agreeableness

Personality Across Cultures

Summary

 There are cultural differences in motivations for self-consistency and in how people view themselves, socially organize themselves, and describe themselves.

 While some personality factors are universal, some cultures also appear to have culture-specific personality factors.

DiscussionBoard.docx

Discussion Board

Please select and reply to two of the prompts below, additionally respond to two of your colleague's comments:

CULTPSY3_Chapter6_PDFHandout.pdf

Lecture PowerPoint Slides

By Benjamin Cheung

Cultural Psychology Third Edition

Steven J. Heine

Chapter 6—Self and Personality

Chapter Objectives

 In this chapter, you will:

• Understand how self-descriptors tend to vary across different cultures

• Differentiate between independent and interdependent views of self

• Explain interpersonal consequences for independent and interdependent views of self

• Differentiate between individualism and collectivism

• Relate individualism/collectivism to independent/interdependent views of self

• Understand how to reconcile cultural differences with individual variability

• Understand how various cultural variables explain cultural differences in gender equality

• Define gender essentialism

• Understand how one’s self-concept may differ across different contexts

Chapter Objectives

 In this chapter, you will:

• Explain the relationship between cognitive dissonance and cultural differences in self-consistency

• Differentiate between subjective and objective self-awareness

• Differentiate between incremental and entity theories of self

• Understand the Five Factor Model of personality

• Differentiate between the five factors of the Five Factor Model of personality

• Reconcile the difference between cultural variability and universality of personality structures

• Explain cultural differences in concepts related to self-concepts

• Discuss general cultural differences in self-concepts

• Understand how cultural differences in self-concepts are associated with cultural differences in observable behaviors

Overriding Themes in This Chapter

 There are aspects of self-concept that are universal and others that are culturally variable.

 Such differences have important implications for our social interactions and perceptions of them.

 Something as basic as “how we view ourselves” differs greatly across cultures.

Who Am I?

 If someone asked you to complete the sentence, “I am…,” how would you complete it? How would you describe yourself?

 Researchers have found cultural differences in such self-descriptors.

Who Am I?

 Researchers have suggested the existence of a fundamental difference in how the self is subjectively organized.

 Markus and Kitayama (1991) argue that this difference is based on people having either an independent or interdependent view of self.

Why I Am Who I am

Why I Am Who I Am

Independent view of the self

Why I Am Who I Am

Interdependent view of the self

Why I Am Who I Am

 A neural basis exists for this distinction

Individualism and Collectivism

 Another underlying difference between many cultures is individualism/collectivism.

 Individualistic cultures tend to emphasize independent aspects of the self. • Values distinctiveness and self-reliance

 Collectivistic cultures tend to emphasize interdependent aspects of the self (e.g. close relationships, group memberships).

Individualism and Collectivism

What areas have higher levels of individualism and collectivism?

Individualism and Collectivism

Regional differences:

 Within the United States, Hawaii and the states of the Confederate South score the highest in collectivism.

 On the other hand, the Mountain West and Great Plains states, the Northeast, and the Midwest are the least collectivistic.

Individualism and Collectivism

Socioeconomic status differences within same country:

Individualism and Collectivism

Socioeconomic status differences within same country:

Individualism and Collectivism

 Other than individualism/collectivism: • Power distance

• Uncertainty avoidance

• Vertical-horizontal social structure

• Social cynicism

• Social complexity

Caution with Individualism/Collectivism

 Individualism/collectivism is not meant to be a dichotomy.

 In reality, people embody varying degrees of both. • The same dynamic applies to a given culture

as well (e.g. while Americans are generally individualistic, some are collectivistic, and some are more/less individualistic than others).

Culture and Gender

 Unsurprisingly, research has shown that independence, as measured by assertiveness and agency, and interdependence, as measured by collectivism and relatedness, have cultural differences.

 In terms of gender, however, few differences emerge—in fact, the only reliable difference is in terms of relatedness.

Culture and Gender

 Cultures around the world have widely different views on whether roles, obligations, and rights of men and women should be different. • High on gender egalitarianism are countries

like Finland and Germany.

• Low on gender egalitarianism are countries like Pakistan and Nigeria.

 Males and females in a given culture share similar gender attitudes.

Culture and Gender

 Males generally have more traditional gender views than females.

 Some predictors of higher gender egalitarianism include: • Religion

• Greater individualism

• Urbanization

 Note that these are correlations not causes of gender egalitarianism.

Culture and Gender

Origins of Gender (In)equality

 Bosterup (1970) argued that culture differences in gender norms may result from type of agricultural method. • In particular, cultures that rely primarily on

ploughs are expected to be associated with more gender inequality.

» Children often stay with women due to dangers of being around ploughs (and large animals that pull ploughs).

» Strong division of labor is thus established.

Origins of Gender (In)equality

 Alesina, Giuliano, and Nunn (2011) investigated cultures that primarily used ploughs during and before nineteenth century versus those that did not • Those that relied on ploughs before were

currently still low on gender egalitarianism and less female labor force participation.

• The same was found in the United States with immigrants’ cultures of origin as a predictor.

Gender and Essentialism

 Essentialized = reflecting some underlying, unchangeable essence

Gender and Essentialism

Self-Consistency

 Researchers have noted cultural differences in the level of self-consistency shown by participants.

depending on the context.

• American participants responded similarly across contexts.

Questions for Consideration

 How can this difference be explained using the independent/interdependent views of self that were discussed earlier?

 What challenge(s) does this pose for cross-cultural studies?

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Cognitive dissonance: We have strong motivations to be consistent, therefore:

Seeing own inconsistency  Feeling distress

Feeling distress  Compelled to resolve dissonance

Compulsion  Change attitudes or change behaviors

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Dissonance is especially salient after making a choice between equally desirable options. • After choosing between two equally desirable

alternatives, we tend to rationalize why we made our choice:

» We often emphasize what made the chosen option desirable and downplay that which made it undesirable.

» We do the opposite for the option not chosen.

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 Some research suggests, that East Asians are also motivated to be consistent, but in different ways.

 Accordingly, East Asians don’t rationalize after making a choice…for themselves. • When making a choice for someone else, they do

rationalize their choice.

Implications of Self-(In)consistency

 In terms of consistency with past behavior:

Why Be Consistent?

 Suh (2002): cultures differ in the benefits derived from self-consistency.

Self-Awareness

 People can have subjective or objective self- awareness. • Subjective self-awareness = taking on

perspective of a subject—an “I” perspective » Attention focused on outside world, not with the self.

• Objective self-awareness = people experience themselves as an object—a “me” perspective

» Attention directed inward, as though an audience were evaluating subject.

Self-Awareness

Less concerned with others’ assessments of them

Often have subjective self- awareness

Independent view of the self

Self-Awareness

Often have objective self- awareness

More concerned with others’ assessments of them

Interdependent view of the self

Implicit Theories of the Self

 Two implicit theories of the self

• Incremental theories = belief that abilities are malleable and are capable of being changed, with efforts

• Entity theories = belief that abilities are largely fixed, reflecting innate features of the self

Implicit Theories of the Self

 When encountering failure: • Those with incremental theories of self respond by

redoubling efforts

• Those with entity theories of self likely respond by blaming their own innate lack of ability

 In general, incremental theories of the self are characteristic of people with an interdependent view of the self

 Entity theories of the self are characteristic of people with an independent view of the self.

Personality

Personality Across Cultures

 English has about 18,000 personality trait words

 Factor analysis: five underlying personality factors as measured by NEO-PI-R

O penness to experience

C onscientiousness

E xtraversion

A greeableness

N euroticism

Personality Across Cultures

 Use of NEO-PI-R in different 50 cultures reveals universality in the structure of five factors

 However, the NEO-PI-R was created using English terms. • Thus, it may not capture culture-specific personality

traits.

 Indeed, investigations in a number of cultures including Spain, Greece, the Philippines, and China have yielded additional factors.

Personality Across Cultures

Dependability

Interpersonal relatedness

Social potency

Individualism

Dependability ≈ Neuroticism

Social potency ≈ Extraversion

Individualism ≈ Agreeableness

Personality Across Cultures

Summary

 There are cultural differences in motivations for self-consistency and in how people view themselves, socially organize themselves, and describe themselves.

 While some personality factors are universal, some cultures also appear to have culture-specific personality factors.

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