Subjective Culture

The definition of subjective culture is followed by a listing of the elements of subjective culture and an examination of the content of each element and the methodological problems in studying that element

When does group norm or group identity predict cooperation in a public goods dilemma? The moderating effects of idiocentrism and allocentrism

In this study we examined how perceived group norm and group identity influence individual cooperative behavior in a public goods dilemma across cultural settings. Six hundred and eight students in the United States and People's Republic of China participated in a laboratory experiment in which group norm and group identity were manipulated and the individual cultural orientations of idiocentrism and allocentrism were measured. We found that idiocentrism and allocentrism moderated the relationship between perceived group norm and cooperation but not between group identity and cooperation. In particular, members who endorsed allocentrism to a greater extent cooperated more when they perceived a more cooperative group norm than did members who endorsed lower levels of allocentrism. On the other hand, people scored high on idiocentrism cooperated less when perceiving a more cooperative norm than did people scored low on idiocentrism. The results suggest that allocentrics are not cooperative in every context but are rather highly sensitive to social cues whereas idiocentrics, while tending to behave in a way that maximizes personal outcomes at the expense of the group, are also somewhat aloof to the situation

Exploring positive adjustment in HIV positive African women living in the UK

This published version of this article has been made available through Open Access by the Brunel University Open Access Publishing Fund and can be accessed at the link below - Copyright @ 2011 Taylor & FrancisResearch into living with HIV/AIDS has to date mainly focused on quality of life and there is little on the adjustment process for this group. The numbers of African women living with HIV/AIDS in the UK is growing and yet little is known about the adjustment experience for these women. This study explored aspects of positive adjustment to living with HIV/AIDS among a sample of African women living in London, UK. Transcripts of semi-structured interviews with 12 women were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Two superordinate themes emerged inductively from the data: positive changes in coping (subthemes: positive interpretation of their situation and positive behavioural changes) and positive growth since the HIV diagnosis (subthemes: changes in the value of life and, changes in goals and opportunities). While these women acknowledged the negative impact of living with HIV/AIDS, all participants mentioned changes in health behaviours to help regain mastery of their lives and comparing with others better-off and worse-off was used to enhance self-esteem and view their situation positively. The data show evidence for Taylor's Cognitive Adaptation Theory

Role Perceptions In Peru 1

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/102211/1/ijop8247242.pd

Acculturation and Biculturalism Indices among Relatively Acculturated Hispanic Young Adults

Samples of Anglo and Hispanic male Navy recruits answered a series of questions relevant to acculturation and biculturalism. Three acculturation indices were identified: (a) Length of Residence in the U.S., (b) Media Acculturation and (c) Social Acculturation. Two biculturalism indices were identified: (1) Media Biculturalism and (2) Social Biculturalism. The subject\u27s generation in the U.S. (low score for being born outside the U.S., high score for grandfather born in the U.S.) was positively related to all indices of acculturation and negatively related to Media Biculturalism. It was unrelated to Social Biculturalism

Perfectionism and self-conscious emotions in British and Japanese students: Predicting pride and embarrassment after success and failure

Regarding self-conscious emotions, studies have shown that different forms of perfectionism show different relationships with pride, shame, and embarrassment depending on success and failure. What is unknown is whether these relationships also show cultural variations. Therefore, we conducted a study investigating how self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism predicted pride and embarrassment after success and failure comparing 363 British and 352 Japanese students. Students were asked to respond to a set of scenarios where they imagined achieving either perfect (success) or flawed results (failure). In both British and Japanese students, self-oriented perfectionism positively predicted pride after success and embarrassment after failure whereas socially prescribed perfectionism predicted embarrassment after success and failure. Moreover, in Japanese students, socially prescribed perfectionism positively predicted pride after success and self-oriented perfectionism negatively predicted pride after failure. The findings have implications for our understanding of perfectionism indicating that the perfectionism–pride relationship not only varies between perfectionism dimensions, but may also show cultural variations

Unequal relationships in high and low power distance societies: a comparative study of tutor - student role relations in Britain and China

This study investigated people's conceptions of an unequal role relationship in two different types of society: a high power distance society and a low power distance society. The study focuses on the role relationship of tutor and student. British and Chinese tutors and postgraduate students completed a questionnaire that probed their conceptions of degrees of power differential and social distance/closeness in this role relationship. ANOVA results yielded a significant nationality effect for both aspects. Chinese respondents judged the relationship to be closer and to have a greater power differential than did British respondents. Written comments on the questionnaire and interviews with 9 Chinese academics who had experienced both British and Chinese academic environments supported the statistical findings and indicated that there are fundamental ideological differences associated with the differing conceptions. The results are discussed in relation to Western and Asian concepts of leadership and differing perspectives on the compatibility/incompatibility of power and distance/closeness

Culture, social interdependence, and ostracism

Recent research has demonstrated that cultural groups differ in how they experience ostracism and in how they behave in the wake of being ostracized. We review this literature paying particular attention to the role that one key cultural variable, social interdependence, plays in moderating responses to ostracism. Although the data present a complex picture, a growing number of studies have suggested that collectivistic cultures and high levels of social interdependence are associated with less negative responses to ostracism. We review explanations for observed cultural and individual-level differences in responses to ostracism and make a series of suggestions for future research that, we hope, will disambiguate current findings and offer a more nuanced picture of ostracism and the significance of cultural variation inherent within it

In search of a pan-European culture: European values, beliefs and models of selfhood in global perspective

What, if any, are the common cultural characteristics that distinguish European societies and groups when viewed against a backdrop of global cultural variation? We sought to identify any shared features of European cultures through secondary multilevel analyses of two large datasets that together provided measures of cultural values, beliefs and models of selfhood from samples in all inhabited continents. Although heterogeneous in many respects—including the value dimension of autonomy versus embeddedness—European samples shared two distinctive features: a decontextualized representation of personhood and a cultural model of selfhood emphasizing difference from others. Compared to samples from other regions, European samples on average also emphasized egalitarianism and harmony values, commitment to others in their models of selfhood, and an immutable concept of personhood, but not uniformly so. We interpret these findings in relation to a Durkheimian model of individualism