19. Culture III - Beyond Subjective Culture Flashcards
(14 cards)
Behavioural norms
- Display rules for emotions: when others are present, USA people show disgust at gore but Japanese people do not (negative expressions = hostile). Both show disgust when alone
- Collectivism (Japan) predicts showing more positive (vs. negative) emotions to ingroups (vs. outgroups)
- Reading emotions:
Display rules for emotions
- When others are present, USA people show disgust at gore but Japanese people do not (negative expressions = hostile)
- Both show disgust when alone
- Collectivism (Japan) predicts showing more positive (vs. negative) emotions to ingroups (vs. outgroups)
Reading emotions
- US participants judged high intensity expressions as indicating less intense experience
- Japanese judged low intensity expressions as indicating more intense experience
- “Individualism-collectivism” measure accounted for individual but not cultural differences
(Matsumoto, Consolacion, et al., 2002)
Cultural tightness & looseness (regarding cultural norms)
Tight cultures
- “many strong norms and a low tolerance of deviant behaviour”
- more ecological and historical threats
- more controlling government/media
- more psychological adaptations: caution, duty, self-regulation
Loose cultures
- “weak social norms and a high tolerance of deviant behaviour”
Close relationships:
Family structures
- Nuclear family: prevalent in hunter-gatherer societies (North America & North Europe)
- Extended family: prevalent in agrarian societies (rest of world)
Close relationships:
Arranged marriages
- NOT forced
- 53.25% of relationships
- Marrying for love is less common
- Rational choice to preserve social harmony and create political & economic links between families
- Agreement with arranged marriages (as concept) correlates with collectivism
Characteristics of desirable mates
(Buss et al., 1990)
- Mutual attraction—love
- Dependable character
- Emotional stability and maturity
- Pleasing disposition
- Education and intelligence
- SOMETIMES - chastity (greatest cultural variation)
Schmitt & Buss (2005) factor analysis of mate preferences
- Love vs. Status & resources
- Dependability & stability vs. Health and good looks
- Education & intelligence vs. Desire home & children
- Sociability vs. Similar religion
What is love?
- Different for collectivist (companionate love) vs individualistic (romantic love)
Greek loves
Eros (romantic), Mania (possessive) and Agape (selfless) all have similar prevalence across cultures
Storge (friendship)
- Most common in Angola, Cape Verde & Mozambique
Pragma (pragmatic)
- Most common in Angola, Cape Verde, Mozambique & Brazil
Ludus (game-playing)
- Most common in Angola & Mozambique
Relational Mobility (RM)
(Thomson & Yuki, 2018)
- how much freedom / opportunity society allows individuals to choose / dispose of relationships
- lower RM in rice-farming cultures VS higher RM in herding cultures
- lower RM in harsh climates (higher pathogen prevalence, population density, historically poorer nations) VS higher in
The eco-cultural framework
Mapping cultural differences using culture-level, not aggregated indicators
- Ecological context
- Socio-political context
(Georgas et al., 2004)
- Key findings centred on affluence and religion
- Affluence associated with greater individualism and life satisfaction, and with lower power distance
- Different religious clusters differed especially in power distance, hierarchy and uncertainty avoidance
Cultural variation:
Means of subsistence
- Farmers and fishers vs. herders in Eastern Turkey (Uskul, Kitayama, & Nisbett, 2008, PNAS)
- Southern (rice) vs. Northern (wheat) China (Talhelm et al., 2014, Science)
Cultural variation:
Ecological Threats
- Pathogen prevalence (Fincher, Thornhill, Murray, & Schaller, 2008, PRS B)
- Climato-economic interactions
(Van de Vliert, 2009; Van de Vliert, Huang, & Parker, 2004)
