Collectivistic and Individualistic Cultures
The main goal of the science of psychology is to discover andgenerate knowledge about people and their behavior. Studying thecultural aspect of the science adds yet another piece to the puzzle ofpsychology. By definition, cultural psychology includes cultural similaritiesand differences in behavior with its main theories. The research pertainingto the study of crossing cultures in a psychological aspect is done byexamining the behaviors, beliefs and reactions of people from differentcultural backgrounds. To simplify the study of cultural psychology, cultureshave been initially divided into two types. The types included arecollectivistic cultures and individualistic cultures and the two areseemingly at opposite ends of the spectrum of psychology. However,there are also etics, that is aspects that are universal across cultures,present in the comparison of the two types of cultures. Aspects thatdiffer from one culture to another are known as emics, and a major goalof scientists engaged in the study of cultures is to determine which aspectsof human behavior should be classified as etics and which as emics.
Not surprisingly, egalitarian cultures have ahigh percentage of women who are employed outside of the home andoccurs in cultures that are also high in socioeconomic developing. Reactions to explicit angerare also common in different cultures. Egalitarian cultures tend to have characteristicssuch a less differention between genders with reference to certainpsychological characteristics. In business or workenvironments, there is a high dependence on the expectation that theorganization or institution will take care of the individual and employeeshave a strong emotional trust in their jobs. They also differ from collectivistic cultures in their perceptions on love andits relativity to marriage. They also possess stronger family ties than individuals inindividualistic cultures. Examples of these reactionsinclude animosity and antagonism. On the contrary, members of a collectivistic view themselvesas being essentially connected with the other people in their culture. Self-effacing humor is also a tool used to preserve social harmony. Highly individualistic cultures encourage people to take care ofthemselves and make life decisions based on their individual needs. In order to communicate and be acceptedsuccessfully, one would probably have to present themselves moremodestly. This explains the fact that individualists are morelikely to prejudge people based on the obvious personal attributes. People who belong to individualistic cultures, such as the UnitesStates, see themselves as individuals, separate from the societal group. Unlike individualistic cultures, they are encouraged to conform to primaryloyalty to the group. Due tothe importance of harmony, collectivists have lower occurrences ofconflict.
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