scholarly journals Cross-Cultural Differences in Temperament Between the United States and the People’s Republic of China: A Longitudinal Comparison

Author(s):  
Victoria Jones ◽  
Zhengyan Wang ◽  
Shangqing Yuan ◽  
Christie Pham ◽  
Samuel P. Putnam ◽  
...  

Aims: The present study assessed cross-cultural differences in temperament and temperament stability between children from the United States (US) and the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Goals of the study include examining differences in three temperament factors (surgency, negative affectivity, and regulation/effortful control), conducting comparisons on fine-grained dimensions of factors demonstrating significant cross-cultural differences, and comparing temperament stability from infancy to toddlerhood. Methodology: The US sample (N = 147) and PRC sample (N = 128) consisted of children whose temperament was longitudinally assessed in infancy and toddlerhood using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised Short Form (IBQ-R SF) and the Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire Short Form (ECBQ SF). Primary analyses involved evaluating mean differences in the three temperament factors: surgency, negative affectivity, and regulation/effortful control, with additional statistical tests conducted to investigate fine-grained distinctions. Results: Findings revealed main effects of culture for each factor with culture x time interactions indicating negative affectivity significantly differed in toddlerhood, t(273) = -8.27, P < .001, d = 1.00, 98.75% CI [-0.70, -0.37], and regulation in infancy, t(273) = -5.17, P < .001, d = 0.62, 98.75% CI [-0.62, -0.22]. Specifically, the US sample exhibited higher surgency at both time points, lower negative affectivity in toddlerhood, and lower regulation in infancy. In addition, little difference was noted in temperament stability between the US and Chinese samples. Conclusion: Our findings support previous reports identifying cultural differences in temperament and highlight that differences are not constant across early childhood, but rather that as development unfolds, their nature is subject to change.

1994 ◽  
Vol 78 (3) ◽  
pp. 1027-1034 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank N. Willis ◽  
Vicki A. Rawdon

Women have been reported to be more positive about same-gender touch, but cross-cultural information about this touch is limited. Male and female students from Chile (n = 26), Spain (n = 61), Malaysia (n = 32), and the US (n = 77) completed a same-gender touch scale. As in past studies, US women had more positive scores than US men. Malaysians had more negative scores than the other three groups. Spanish and US students had more positive scores than Chilean students. National differences in attitudes toward particular types of touch were also noted. The need for new methods for examining cross-cultural differences in touch was discussed.


2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheng-Hong Liu ◽  
Yi-Hsing Claire Chiu ◽  
Jen-Ho Chang

Previous studies have shown that Easterners generally perceive themselves as having lower subjective well-being compared with Westerners, and several mechanisms causing such differences have been identified. However, few studies have analyzed the causes of such differences from the perspective of the cross-cultural differences in the meanings of important life events such as whether people receive approval from others. Specifically, events regarding others’ approval might have different meanings to and influences on Easterners and Westerners. Thus, the degree of fluctuation of people’s views of self-worth in response to these events (i.e., others’ approval contingencies of self-worth [CSW]) probably differs between Easterners and Westerners. This may be a reason for cross-cultural differences in subjective well-being. We investigated two samples of undergraduate students from Taiwan and the United States to examine the mediating role of others’ approval CSW in forming cross-cultural differences in subjective well-being. The results revealed that Taiwanese participants exhibited lower subjective well-being and higher others’ approval CSW than American participants. In addition, others’ approval CSW partially mediated the cross-cultural differences in subjective well-being. Thus, one reason for lower subjective well-being among Easterners was likely that their self-esteem was more prone to larger fluctuations depending on whether they receive approval from others in everyday life.


2018 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chenchen Li ◽  
Dongmei Li ◽  
Chi-Yue Chiu ◽  
Siqing Peng

The present research investigates cross-cultural differences in the characteristics associated with brand strength evaluation and the mechanism underlying these cultural differences. Using data from the United States and China, we found that American consumers judge brands with personal characteristics to be stronger than those with relational characteristics, while Chinese consumers show a reversed pattern. Furthermore, cultural differences in brand strength evaluation were salient only when consumers rated brands that were connected with their self-concepts, suggesting that cultural differences in brand strength evaluation ensue from consumers’ internalized preferences. Our findings have theoretical and practical implications for branding management and understanding the mechanism through which culture influences individual behaviors.


Autism ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 1993-2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen Gillespie-Lynch ◽  
Nidal Daou ◽  
Maria-Jose Sanchez-Ruiz ◽  
Steven K Kapp ◽  
Rita Obeid ◽  
...  

Although stigma negatively impacts autistic people globally, the degree of stigma varies across cultures. Prior research suggests that stigma may be higher in cultures with more collectivistic orientations. This study aimed to identify cultural values and other individual differences that contribute to cross-cultural differences in autism stigma (assessed with a social distance scale) between college students in Lebanon ( n = 556) and those in the United States ( n = 520). Replicating prior work, stigma was lower in women than men and in the United States relative to Lebanon. Heightened autism knowledge, quality of contact with autistic people, openness to experience, and reduced acceptance of inequality predicted lower stigma. Collectivism was not associated with heightened stigma. Findings highlight the need to address structural inequalities, combat harmful misconceptions, and foster positive contact to combat stigma.


2010 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
DOH CHULL SHIN

AbstractHow do contemporary publics understand happiness? What makes them experience it? Do conceptions and sources of their happiness vary across culturally different societies? This paper addresses these questions, utilizing the 2008 round of the AsiaBarometer surveys conducted in six countries scattered over four different continents. Analyses of these surveys, conducted in Japan, China, and India from the East; and the United States, Russia, and Australia from the West, reveal a number of interesting cross-cultural differences and similarities in the way the people of the East and West understand and experience happiness. Specifically, the former are much less multidimensional than the latter in their conceptions of happiness. Yet, they are alike in that their sense of relative achievement or deprivation is the most pervasive and powerful influence on happiness.


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