Acquiescence response styles: A multilevel model explaining individual-level and country-level differences

Previous research has discussed cultural differences in moderacy vs extremity response styles. The present research found that cultural differences in response styles were more complex than previously speculated. We investigated cross-cultural variations in extreme rejecting versus affirming response biases. Although research has indicated that overall Chinese have less extreme responses than Westerners, the difference may be mainly driven by extreme rejecting responses because respondents consider answering survey questions as a way of interacting with researchers, and extreme rejecting responses may disrupt harmony in relationships, which is valued more in Chinese collectivistic culture than in Western individualistic cultures. Studies 1 and 2 revealed that Chinese had less extreme rejecting response style than did British, whereas they did not differ in extreme affirming response style. Study 2 further revealed that the cross-cultural asymmetry in extreme rejecting versus affirming response styles was partially accounted for by individualism orientation at the individual level. Consistently, Study 3 revealed that at the country level, individualism was positively associated with extreme rejecting response style, but was not associated with extreme affirming response style, suggesting that individualism accounted for the asymmetric cultural variation in extreme rejecting versus affirming response styles.

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Parents, Television, and Children’s Emotional Expressions: A Cross-Cultural Multilevel Model

Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology ◽

10.1177/0022022118806585 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 50 (1) ◽

pp. 22-46 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sebastian Scherr ◽

Marie-Louise Mares ◽

Anne Bartsch ◽

Maya Goetz

Keyword(s):

Multilevel Model ◽

Middle Eastern ◽

Self Report ◽

Parental Socialization ◽

Grade Point ◽

Individual Level ◽

Country Level ◽

Model Combining ◽

Emotion Displays ◽

Parental Approval

Parents and media both play an important role in the socialization of children’s emotions, yet it remains unclear whether these socializing influences vary by culture. We studied the joint influences of parents and television on children’s expression of four basic emotions (happiness, anger, sadness, and fear) using self-report survey data from 3570 six- to 15-year-olds from 13 Asian, European, Middle Eastern, and South American countries. Perceived parental approval positively predicted self-reported expression of all four emotions. In addition, children’s approval of TV characters’ expression of happiness and anger (but not sadness and fear) positively predicted self-reported expressions of these emotions. A multilevel model combining cultural indicators (individualism, indulgence, assertiveness, humane orientation) and sociopolitical variables (Human Development Index, Gender Inequality Index, Grade Point Average) at the country level with individual-level variables (age, gender, media use) suggested that parental socialization of sadness, and media socialization of anger, varied as a function of some cultural indicators (assertiveness and humane orientation). Overall, though, despite theorizing about cultural differences, parental approval and (to a lesser extent) children’s approval of media models tended to predict children’s emotion displays rather consistently across a wide array of countries.

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Egalitarian Values and Sexual Behavior—The Role of Country Level Values in Shaping Individual Level Behaviors in Africa, South America and Asia

International Journal of Sexual Health ◽

10.1080/19317611.2021.1919952 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-14

Author(s):

Anna Valverius ◽

Linda Arnell ◽

Mattias Strandh

Keyword(s):

Sexual Behavior ◽

South America ◽

Individual Level ◽

Country Level

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A Multilevel Model of Environmentally Specific Social Identity in Predicting Environmental Strategies: Evidence from Technology Manufacturing Businesses

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13084567 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (8) ◽

pp. 4567

Author(s):

Stanley Y. B. Huang ◽

Chih-Wen Ting ◽

Yu-Ming Fei

Keyword(s):

Transformational Leadership ◽

Social Identity ◽

Social Identity Theory ◽

Multilevel Model ◽

Hierarchical Linear Model ◽

Chief Executive ◽

Individual Level ◽

Upper Echelons Theory ◽

Environmental Strategies ◽

Identity Based

This study proposed a multilevel model of environmentally specific social identity based on upper echelons theory and examined how environmentally specific transformational leadership influenced the environmentally specific social identity of the top management team (TMT), which consequently influenced a corporation’s choices of proactive environmental strategies. Besides, the environmentally specific transformational leadership atmosphere at the TMT level also influenced the environmentally specific social identity atmosphere at the TMT level, which consequently influenced a corporation’s choices of proactive environmental strategies at the same time. In particular, this study proposed a novel concept–environmentally specific social identity based on social identity theory, including environmentally specific self-categorization, environmentally specific affective commitment, environmentally specific self-esteem. This study employed a hierarchical linear model and collected longitudinal data of 210 chief executive officers with their 840 members of TMTs at technology manufacturing businesses of Greater China at three waves over six months to analyze the theoretical model. This study found that individual-level environmentally specific transformational leadership and TMT-level environmentally specific transformational leadership (atmosphere) influenced individual-level environmentally specific social identity and TMT-level environmentally specific social identity (atmosphere), which consequently influenced proactive environmental strategies. These findings provide theoretical insights for the field of sustainable development that can advance the literature on proactive environmental strategies.

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Environmental Behavior in Cross-National Perspective

Environment and Behavior ◽

10.1177/0013916515600494 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 49 (1) ◽

pp. 31-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

Ignacio Pisano ◽

Mark Lubell

Keyword(s):

Environmental Behavior ◽

National Level ◽

Developed Countries ◽

Education Development ◽

Proenvironmental Behavior ◽

Individual Level ◽

Country Level ◽

National Differences ◽

Cultural Research ◽

Cross National

This article seeks to explain cross-national differences on environmental behavior. After controlling for a series of sociodemographic and psychosocial factors, it was predicted that national levels of wealth, postmaterialism, education development, and environmental problems are positively related to environmental behavior. The national-level variance is to a substantial degree explained by individual-level variables, capturing compositional effects. The remaining variance is explained by the contextual-level variables. All of the country-level variables are predictors in the expected direction, with the exception of environmental degradation, which is negatively related to behavior, and education development, which has no impact on private environmental behavior. More importantly, cross-level interactions show that in more developed countries, there are stronger relationships between proecological attitudes and reported proenvironmental behavior. These findings contribute to the growing cross-cultural research on environmental behavior pointing out the necessity of simultaneously assessing the effects of both individual and contextual-level forces affecting behavior across nations.

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Emergence of cultural intelligence and global mindset capital: a multilevel model

Multinational Business Review ◽

10.1108/mbr-12-2015-0062 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 24 (2) ◽

pp. 106-122 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Jase R. Ramsey ◽

Amine Abi Aad ◽

Chuandi Jiang ◽

Livia Barakat ◽

Virginia Drummond

Keyword(s):

Multilevel Model ◽

Cultural Intelligence ◽

The Other ◽

Global Mindset ◽

Firm Level ◽

Content Type ◽

Individual Level ◽

Other Hand ◽

Underlying Mechanisms ◽

Conceptual Study

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to establish under which conditions researchers should use the constructs cultural intelligence (CQ) and global mindset (GM). The authors further seek to understand the process through which these constructs emerge to a higher level and link unit-level knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) capital to pertinent firm-level outcomes. Design/methodology/approach This paper is a conceptual study with a multilevel model. Findings This paper differentiates two similar lines of research occurring concordantly on the CQ and GM constructs. Next, the authors develop a multilevel model to better understand the process through which CQ and GM emerge at higher levels and their underlying mechanisms. Finally, this paper adds meaning to the firm-level KSAs by linking firm-level KSAs capital to pertinent firm-level outcomes. Research limitations/implications The conclusion implies that researchers should use CQ when the context is focused on interpersonal outcomes and GM when focused on strategic outcomes. The multilevel model is a useful tool for scholars to select which rubric to use in future studies that have international managers as the subjects. The authors argue that if the scholar is interested in an individual’s ability to craft policy and implement strategy, then GM may be more parsimonious than CQ. On the other hand, if the focus is on leadership, human resources or any other relationship dependent outcome, then CQ will provide a more robust measure. Practical implications For practitioners, this study provides a useful tool for managers to improve individual-level commitment by selecting and training individuals high in CQ. On the other hand, if the desired outcome is firm-level sales or performance, the focus should be on targeting individuals high in GM. Originality/value This is the first theoretical paper to examine how CQ and GM emerge to the firm level and describe when to use each measure.

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Inequality in active ageing: evidence from a new individual-level index for European countries

Ageing and Society ◽

10.1017/s0144686x17001052 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 39 (3) ◽

pp. 541-567 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

MIKKEL BARSLUND ◽

MARTEN VON WERDER ◽

ASGHAR ZAIDI

Keyword(s):

Age Groups ◽

Positive Association ◽

European Countries ◽

Active Ageing ◽

Unequal Distribution ◽

Individual Level ◽

Country Level ◽

Challenges And Opportunities ◽

Share Data ◽

The Individual

ABSTRACTIn the context of emerging challenges and opportunities associated with population ageing, the study of inequality in active-ageing outcomes is critical to the design of appropriate and effective social policies. While there is much discussion about active ageing at the aggregate country level, little is known about inequality in active-ageing experiences within countries. Based on the existing literature on active ageing, this paper proposes an individual-level composite active ageing index based on Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) data. The individual-level nature of the index allows us to analyse inequality in experiences of active ageing within selected European countries. One important motivation behind measuring active ageing at the individual level is that it allows for a better understanding of unequal experiences of ageing, which may otherwise be masked in aggregate-level measures of active ageing. Results show large differences in the distribution of individual-level active ageing across the 13 European countries covered and across age groups. Furthermore, there is a positive association between the country-level active ageing index and the equality of its distribution within a country. Hence, countries with the lowest average active ageing index tend to have the most unequal distribution in active-ageing experiences. For nine European countries, where temporal data are also available, we find that inequality in active-ageing outcomes decreased in the period 2004 to 2013.

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Social Capital and Self-Perceived Health in Lone Mothers: A Multilevel Cross-Sectional Study across Europe

Journal of Family Issues ◽

10.1177/0192513x21994163 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 0192513X2199416

Author(s):

Sara Trujillo-Alemán ◽

Åsa Tjulin ◽

Glòria Pérez ◽

Emma Hagqvist

Keyword(s):

Social Capital ◽

Family Policy ◽

Social Activity ◽

Perceived Health ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Policy Model ◽

Individual Level ◽

Country Level ◽

Lone Mothers

This study aimed to explore the distribution of social capital and its relation to self-perceived health in lone mothers across Europe. Data were drawn from the European Social Survey Round 5. The sample was restricted to women (15–64 years), not cohabiting with a partner, and with children (≤ 18 years) living in the household. Social capital was measured using variables, representing both structural (political engagement, social support, and social activity) and cognitive (generalized trust, institutionalized trust, reciprocity, and a feeling of safety) components. Individual-level measurements: age, educational attainment, employment status, income level, and household economy. Country-level measurements: family policy model and collective social capital. A multilevel analysis was conducted. The results revealed cross-country variance in the level of lone mothers’ social capital. After adjustment for individual-level and country-level measurements, only reciprocity and a feeling of safety were related to good self-perceived health among lone mothers in Europe.

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COVID-19 Vaccination: Concerns About Its Accessibility, Affordability, and Acceptability

Frontiers in Medicine ◽

10.3389/fmed.2021.647294 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Inayat Ali ◽

Shahbaz Ali ◽

Sehar Iqbal

Keyword(s):

Current Literature ◽

Cultural Factors ◽

The Body ◽

Vaccine Hesitancy ◽

Individual Level ◽

Country Level ◽

The World ◽

The Face ◽

Media Reports ◽

Current Risk

By the mid of June 2021, after an almost 1.5-year-long COVID-19 pandemic that has significantly affected the world in multiple ways, various vaccines against COVID-19 have arrived and started worldwide. Yet, economic, (geo)political, and socio-cultural factors may influence its uptake at individual and country levels. Several issues will (and already have been reported in media) revolve around this vaccination regarding its accessibility, affordability, and acceptability at an individual level and a country level. Given that in this commentary, we provoke a discussion: Who—a country as well as the individuals—would have access to it, and who would economically afford it, and who would accept it? Centering these intriguing questions, we revisit the body of literature that explicates vaccine hesitancy, refusal, and resistance, and we also draw on the current literature and media reports about vaccination against COVID-19. We suggest that these backdrops need essential attention so that everyone can afford, accept, and have access to it. Otherwise, the current risk in the face of a year-old pandemic will continue.

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Trust predicts COVID-19 prescribed and discretionary behavioral intentions in 23 countries

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0248334 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (3) ◽

pp. e0248334

Author(s):

Stefano Pagliaro ◽

Simona Sacchi ◽

Maria Giuseppina Pacilli ◽

Marco Brambilla ◽

Francesca Lionetti ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Intentions ◽

Well Being ◽

Behavioral Changes ◽

Individual Level ◽

Moral Principles ◽

Country Level ◽

Psychological Differences ◽

Discretionary Behaviors ◽

Health Experts ◽

Do So

The worldwide spread of a new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) since December 2019 has posed a severe threat to individuals’ well-being. While the world at large is waiting that the released vaccines immunize most citizens, public health experts suggest that, in the meantime, it is only through behavior change that the spread of COVID-19 can be controlled. Importantly, the required behaviors are aimed not only at safeguarding one’s own health. Instead, individuals are asked to adapt their behaviors to protect the community at large. This raises the question of which social concerns and moral principles make people willing to do so. We considered in 23 countries (N = 6948) individuals’ willingness to engage in prescribed and discretionary behaviors, as well as country-level and individual-level factors that might drive such behavioral intentions. Results from multilevel multiple regressions, with country as the nesting variable, showed that publicized number of infections were not significantly related to individual intentions to comply with the prescribed measures and intentions to engage in discretionary prosocial behaviors. Instead, psychological differences in terms of trust in government, citizens, and in particular toward science predicted individuals’ behavioral intentions across countries. The more people endorsed moral principles of fairness and care (vs. loyalty and authority), the more they were inclined to report trust in science, which, in turn, statistically predicted prescribed and discretionary behavioral intentions. Results have implications for the type of intervention and public communication strategies that should be most effective to induce the behavioral changes that are needed to control the COVID-19 outbreak.

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