cross cultural psychology 2nd by [email protected]

Cross Cultural Psychology:Introduction

Course Outline

• Introduction• Cross-Cultural research methods• Culture and:– Development– Cognition– Perception– Language– Social Interactions, Gender, and Emotions

• Intercultural Relations

Psychology

• Psychology: Scientific study of human behavior and mental functions– Scientific Study: Systematic, objective methods of

observing behavior and mental functioning– Behavior: Activity that can be observed, recorded,

and measured– Mental Functions: Infer from observable behavior

• Areas of Study: Perception, Cognition, Development, Emotion, Personality, Motivation, Interpersonal relationships

Dr. K. A. KorbUniversity of Jos

Psychology• Psychology: Study of behavior and mental processes

– Assumption: People are similar across cultures• Hypothesize factors within cultures that influence mental processes

• Anthropology: Study of human beings in all places and at all times– Cultural Anthropology: Systematic comparison of different

cultures– Assumption: People are different across cultures

• Needs Assessment: Studies that determine and address gaps between current conditions and desired conditions– Assess local opinions about development and aid projects


Research Studies

– In cross-cultural psychology studies, the culture of a participant may be an independent variable


Cross-Cultural Psychology

• Cross-Cultural Psychology: Systematic comparison of psychological variables under different cultural conditions in order to:– Identify universal aspects of human thought and

behavior– Identify how culture influences human thought

and behavior

• Key Question: How does culture influence human behavior and mental processes?


Cross-Cultural Psychology (Berry, Poortinga, Segall, & Dasen, 2002)

• Cross-cultural psychology is the study of:– Similarities and differences in individual

psychological functioning in various cultural and ethnocultural groups

– The relationships between psychological variables and socio-cultural, ecological, and biological variables

– The ongoing changes in psychological, socio-cultural, ecological, and biological variables


Goals of Cross-Cultural Psychology

• Test the generality of psychological knowledge and theories

• Discover cultural and psychological variations in non-Western cultures

• Integrate results of general and specific psychological findings to a universal psychology that is valid for a broad range of cultures


Perspectives in Cross-Cultural Psychology

• Absolutism: All psychological variables are the same in all cultures– Assess constructs using the same methods and instruments

across cultures• Relativism: All psychological constructs are culturally

influenced– No comparisons can be made between cultures

• Universalism: All psychological variables are common between cultures but culture influences the development and manifestation of psychological characteristics– Comparisons can be made cautiously, but with modifications to

methods and instruments to make them culturally meaningful.


Contributions of Cross-Cultural Research to Psychology

• Knowledge: Findings of similarities and differences of behavior and mental functioning have added to the body of psychological knowledge

• Critical Thinking: Psychological findings are now analyzed to determine whether similar results will be found in different cultures



• Because of cross-cultural research, the following assumptions now must be made:– All behavior is learned and occurs in a cultural

context– Culture must be accounted for in psychological

theories– More understanding of cultural influences on

behavior is necessary, which may change the way behavior is studied



Modern Psychology• Mental processes and

behavior are independent from the context

• Purpose of psychology is to isolate mental processes from the context through controlled experiments

Cultural-Historical Psychology• Context influences mental

processes and behavior• Purpose of psychology is to

understand how the mind and culture mutually influence each other


Progression of Cross-Cultural Research

• Beginning: Document differences between cultures

• Currently: Determine the cultural variables that produce the differences– Culture is replaced with specific, measurable

psychological variables hypothesized to account for cultural differences

• Future: Universal theories of psychological processes


cross cultural psychology 2nd by [email protected]

Education

cultural research

cultural psychology

cultures dr

psychological variables

psychology psychology

korb university

systematic comparison

cultural