“People prefer situations in which they have choice and control to those in which they do not.”

a) True b) False

“People believe that the same rules should apply toeveryone—individuals should not be singled outfor special treatment because of their personalattributes or connections to important people.”

a) True b) False

Common adages in East and West

• “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.”• “If you’ve got it, flaunt it.”

• “The empty wagon makes the most noise.”• “The nail that stands up is pounded down.”

• “jibun,” self in Japanese = “shared life space”

Self Self

Mother Father

Friend

Friend

Sibling

Co-worker

Independent View of Self Interdependent View of Self

Mother Father

Sibling

Co-worker

Friend

Friend

Standing out or blending in?

• Ss at SFO fill out a questionnaire and then are allowed to choose a pen from a group of 5 as a gift. Either 1 of one color and 4 of another, or 2 of one and 3 of another. Data = % choosing less common color.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

1 and 4 2 and 3

AmericanAsian

(Kim & Markus, JPSP, 1999)

Similarity Assessments

• Is Scotland more similar to England, or

• Is England more similar to Scotland?

• Is your best friend more similar to you, or

• Are you more similar to your best friend?

Culture, Choice, and Intrinsic Motivationcontinued

Data = secs.

spent on task

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Pers.Choice

EChoice

MomChoice

Anglo-AmerAsian Amer

Iyengar & Lepper, JPSP, 1999)

Culture, Choice, and Intrinsic Motivation

• Anglo- and Asian American 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders solve sets of anagrams that: a) they chose, b) the E chose, or c) their mother chose. Performance monitored and subsequent “free choice” play assessed. (Data= number solved)

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1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Pers.Choice

EChoice

Momchoice

Anglo-AmerAsian-Amer

Iyengar & Lepper, JPSP, 1999

The Seven Cultures of Capitalism(Hampden-Turner & Trompennaars, 1993)

• Which job would you prefer? a) one in which personal initiatives are encouraged and individual initiatives are achieved, or b) one in which no one is singled out for personal honor but everyone works together?

• More than 90% of U.S., Canadian, Australian, British, Dutch, and Swedish respondents preferred “a”

• Fewer than 50% of Japanese and Singaporeans chose “a”

• Germans, Italians, Belgians, and French in between

The Seven Cultures of Capitalism(Hampden-Turner & Trompennaars, 1993)

• “If I apply for a job at a company, I: a) will almost certainly work there for the rest of my life, b) am almost certain that the relationship will have limited duration

• More than 90% of U.S., Canadian, Australian, British, and Dutch respondents chose “b”

• Only 40% of Japanese respondents chose “b”

• Again, French, German, Italian, and Belgian respondents were in between

The Seven Cultures of Capitalism(Hampden-Turner & Trompennaars, 1993)

• “Do you agree with the following: It is important for a manager to be older than his subordinates. Older people should be more respected than younger people”

• More than 60% of U.S., Canadian, Australian, British, and Swedish rejected this idea

• Only 40% of Japanese, Korean, and Singaporean respondents rejected this idea

• Again, the French, Italians, Germans, and Belgians were in between

The Seven Cultures of Capitalism(Hampden-Turner & Trompennaars, 1993)

• If a formerly productive employee becomes unproductive: a) he should be dismissed because performance is the proper criterion, regardless of age and previous record, b) it is wrong to disregard the years the employee has worked for the company.

• Americans and Canadians: 75% choose “a”

• British, Australians, Dutch, and Belgians: 40% choose “a”

• French, Italians, Germans, and Japanese : 30% choose “a”

• Koreans and Singaporeans: 20% choose “a”

• We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.-

A person of humanity wishingto establish his own characteralso established the charaterof others.

Japanese words for “I”

watashi (when talking to a colleague) tochan (when talking to one’s child) ore (when talking to old friends) boku (when talking to close female

friends)

Percentage of “Role and Group Membership” Responses and “Personal Characteristics” Responses on the “Who Am I?” Test

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40

50

60

70

Roles and GroupMembershipsPersonalCharacteristics

AmerUndrgrd

KenyanUndrgrd

NairobiOfficeWorkers

MasaiTribe

SamburaTribe

Individualistic Insults

Sexual Insults(segaiolo — wanker)

References to Excretia(stronzo — pile of shit)

Animal Analogies(porco — swine)

Ill Omens(che ti venga un cancro — I wish you a cancer))

Negative Physical Features(bruttone — you are incredibly ugly)