scholarly journals Experiential cartography and the significance of “untranslatable” words

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 476-495 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Lomas
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
The World ◽  
Ways Of Thinking ◽  
Mainstream Psychology

Mainstream psychology can be regarded as largely Western-centric, with its concepts and priorities biased towards Western ways of thinking and understanding. Consequently, the field would benefit from greater cross-cultural awareness and engagement. To that end, this article offers one means of engagement, the study of “untranslatable” words (i.e., terms without an exact equivalent in another language, in our case English). A key function of language is that it offers a “map” that allows us to understand and navigate the world. In that respect, such words point to cultural variation in the maps we use, and even to variation in the actual territory mapped. The paper concludes with suggestions for why and how psychology could benefit from engaging with such words.

The (Un)translatability of Well-Being

2020 ◽  
pp. 377-394
Author(s):  
Tim Lomas
Keyword(s):  
Positive Psychology ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Scientific Study ◽  
Ways Of Thinking ◽  
Mainstream Psychology

Positive psychology—the scientific study of well-being—has made considerable strides in understanding its subject matter since emerging in the late 1990s. However, like mainstream psychology more broadly, it can be deemed relatively Western-centric, with its concepts and priorities influenced by ways of thinking and understanding that are prominent in Western cultures. Consequently, the field would benefit from greater cross-cultural awareness, engagement, and understanding. One such means of doing so is through the study of “untranslatable” words (i.e., those lacking an exact equivalent in another language, in this case English). This chapter reflects on the nature of untranslatable words, considers their significance to positive psychology (and psychology more broadly), and offers suggestions for why and how the field should engage with them.

How Universal Is Media Entertainment, Really? On the Enriching Potential of Cross-Cultural Approaches for Existing Entertainment Scholarship

2021 ◽  
pp. 101-122
Author(s):  
Özen Odağ
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Psychology ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Thinking Styles ◽  
Western World ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
The World ◽  
Central Argument ◽  
Behavior And Cognition

The current chapter focuses on the (cross-)cultural appeal of existing entertainment theories, showcasing the meager evidence that exists with respect to their universality. The central argument throughout the chapter is that most entertainment theories have originated in the Western world and little has so far been done to apply them to the much larger rest of the world. The rest of the world has shown to be profoundly different, however, with respect to various dimensions of human behavior and cognition, including self-concepts, emotion appraisal and display, valued affect, thinking styles, values, and well-being maxims. The chapter scrutinizes five pertinent entertainment theories for their ability to explain this cultural variation. It suggests the inclusion of fruitful macro- and micro-level concepts from cross-cultural psychology and intercultural communication to increase their global explanatory power. The main aim of the current chapter is to spark an overdue (cross-)cultural evolution of media entertainment scholarship.

scholarly journals Kripkeans of the world, unite!

2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 297-309
Author(s):  
Farjana Islam ◽  
Giosuè Baggio
Keyword(s):  
East Asian ◽  
Proper Names ◽  
Definite Descriptions ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Native Languages ◽  
New Approach ◽  
The World ◽  
Basic Distinction ◽  
Semantic Reference

Abstract This paper revisits a study by Machery et al. (2004), suggesting that, in experimental versions of Kripke’s (1980) fictional cases on the use of proper names, Westerners are more likely than East Asian participants to show intuitions compatible with Kripke’s causal-historical (CH) theory of reference. We conducted two experiments, recruting participants from Norway and Bangladesh, either in English (experiment 1; N = 75) or in the participants’ native languages (experiment 2; N = 60), using modified cases and a new approach to data analysis. We replicated the results of Machery et al. (2004), but we show that the residual finding—i.e., that participants who are not aligned with CH produce responses consistent with a definite descriptions (DD) theory of reference—does not hold. Most participants in our experiments, and nearly all those who do not provide CH answers, respond as predicted by a theory that accommodates speaker’s reference in reasoning about uses of proper names, not according to DD. We suggest that cross-cultural variation in this task is real. However, explanations of variation within or across cultures need not invoke competing theories of reference (CH vs DD), and can be unified within a single, broadly Kripkean analysis that honors the basic distinction between semantic reference and speaker’s reference.

scholarly journals The Austronesian Game Taxonomy: A cross-cultural dataset of historical games

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah M. Leisterer-Peoples ◽  
Susanne Hardecker ◽  
Joseph Watts ◽  
Simon J. Greenhill ◽  
Cody T. Ross ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Competitive Interactions ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Goal Structure ◽  
Language Family ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Rule Based ◽  
Austronesian Language ◽  
The World ◽  
Research Findings

AbstractHumans in most cultures around the world play rule-based games, yet research on the content and structure of these games is limited. Previous studies investigating rule-based games across cultures have either focused on a small handful of cultures, thus limiting the generalizability of findings, or used cross-cultural databases from which the raw data are not accessible, thus limiting the transparency, applicability, and replicability of research findings. Furthermore, games have long been defined as competitive interactions, thereby blinding researchers to the cross-cultural variation in the cooperativeness of rule-based games. The current dataset provides ethnographic, historic information on games played in cultural groups in the Austronesian language family. These game descriptions (Ngames = 907) are available and codeable for researchers interested in games. We also develop a unique typology of the cooperativeness of the goal structure of games and apply this typology to the dataset. Researchers are encouraged to use this dataset to examine cross-cultural variation in the cooperativeness of games and further our understanding of human cultural behaviour on a larger scale.

scholarly journals A Global Perspective on Testing Infants Online: Introducing ManyBabies-AtHome

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorijn Zaadnoordijk ◽  
Helen Buckler ◽  
Rhodri Cusack ◽  
Sho Tsuji ◽  
Christina Bergmann
Keyword(s):  
Data Storage ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Available P ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Online Testing ◽  
Technical Aspects ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
The World

Online testing holds great promise for infant scientists. It could increase participant diversity, improve reproducibility and collaborative possibilities, and reduce costs for researchers and participants. However, despite the rise of platforms and participant databases, little work has been done to overcome the challenges of making this approach available to researchers across the world. In this paper, we elaborate on the benefits of online infant testing from a global perspective and identify challenges for the international community that have been outside of the scope of previous literature. Furthermore, we introduce ManyBabies-AtHome, an international, multi-lab collaboration that is actively working to facilitate practical and technical aspects of online testing as well as address ethical concerns regarding data storage and protection, and cross-cultural variation. The ultimate goal of this collaboration is to improve the method of testing infants online and make it globally available.

scholarly journals Walking together: Artistic collaboration across cultures in Australia and New Zealand

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 32-51
Author(s):  
Tracey M. Benson
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experience ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Home Country ◽  
World View ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Truth Telling ◽  
Artistic Collaboration ◽  
The World

As an artist and writer who often works across disciplines and cultures, my education into effective and respectful engagement has been built on my experience working with First Nations friends, collaborators, and Elders.  The aim of this paper is to explore teachings from a number of these leading thinkers, writers, and Elders on the topic of knowledge sharing, cross-cultural awareness, and ethical engagement through practice-led research.  Drawing from personal experience, it will incorporate learnings that have informed a world view that has been evolving since childhood. The paper highlights the importance of giving rightful recognition to knowledge keepers and provides some guidance for readers interested in developing productive and respectful partnerships with First Nations collaborators. Here knowledge can be safely shared and celebrated as ways to understand the world around us that are restorative and regenerative. I speak as a woman of mixed European background raised in Australia on Gubbi Gubbi Country of South East Queensland, and Larrakia Country of Darwin. Culturally, I am descended from Norse, Celt, Saxon, and Druid ancestors. Through this lived experience I hope to share learnings that support the goals of reconciliation, truth telling, and First Nations determination in my home country, as well as facilitating greater awareness for people seeking to respectfully engage with Indigenous knowledge.

Improving Cross-Cultural Awareness and Communication through Mobile Technologies

2011 ◽  
pp. 308-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adele Botha ◽  
Steve Vosloo ◽  
John Kuner ◽  
Madelein van den Berg
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Mobile Communication ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Intercultural Competencies ◽  
The World ◽  
Different Cultures

Increasingly, technology is mediating the way in which the youth around the world communicate, consume content and create meaning. As mobile communication media and the internet become more pervasive, young people from different cultures and communities are afforded more opportunities for collaboration across previously unbridgeable distances. The need for cross-cultural awareness and communication is thus more important than ever. The initiative described in this article, successfully demonstrated the role of mobile phones and the web as mediating technologies in the development of intercultural competencies and communication skills among a group of teenagers scattered across two countries.[Article copies are available for purchase from InfoSci-on-Demand.com]

scholarly journals A Global Perspective on Testing Infants Online: Introducing ManyBabies-AtHome

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorijn Zaadnoordijk ◽  
Helen Buckler ◽  
Rhodri Cusack ◽  
Sho Tsuji ◽  
Christina Bergmann
Keyword(s):  
Data Storage ◽  
International Community ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Online Testing ◽  
Technical Aspects ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
The World

Online testing holds great promise for infant scientists. It could increase participant diversity, improve reproducibility and collaborative possibilities, and reduce costs for researchers and participants. However, despite the rise of platforms and participant databases, little work has been done to overcome the challenges of making this approach available to researchers across the world. In this paper, we elaborate on the benefits of online infant testing from a global perspective and identify challenges for the international community that have been outside of the scope of previous literature. Furthermore, we introduce ManyBabies-AtHome, an international, multi-lab collaboration that is actively working to facilitate practical and technical aspects of online testing and address ethical concerns regarding data storage and protection, and cross-cultural variation. The ultimate goal of this collaboration is to improve the method of testing infants online and make it globally available.

scholarly journals Cultural Variations and Socio-Ecocultural Understanding on Cross-Cultural Adaptation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Awang Rozaimie
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Cultural Adaptation ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Cultural Adjustment ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Behavioral Difficulties ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Cross Cultural Adaptation ◽  
Cultural Variations ◽  
Cultural Adaptability

Cross-cultural adaptation is a challenging process while sojourning abroad. The inability to understand cultural variation triggers psychological, physical or behavioral difficulties and maladjustment or misunderstanding. Socio-ecocultural underestimation is the root of intercultural resistance, stereotyping, ethnocentrism and racist sentiments among sojourners. Most of the cross-cultural adjustment studies have quantitatively demonstrated factors and predictors of adaptation success. However, the specific forms of cultural variation that impacted sojourning adaptability is blindly explained. Hence, this phenomenological paper autoethnographically observed the socio-ecocultural environment while sojourning in New Zealand. The findings highlighted that cultural awareness and sensitivity assist sojourner’s cross-cultural adaptability due to the socio-ecocultural variation.

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