scholarly journals Cross-Cultural Variations in Extreme Rejecting and Extreme Affirming Response Styles

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (8) ◽  
pp. 955-971 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tieyuan Guo ◽  
Roy Spina
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Response Style ◽  
Response Styles ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Cultural Variations ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Country Level ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Individual

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.

A cross-cultural perspective on consumer perceptions of service failures’ severity: a pilot study

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 238-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haithem Zourrig ◽  
Kamel Hedhli ◽  
Jean Charles Chebat
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Service Failure ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Service Failures ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
The Individual

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the cultural variability in assessing the severity of a service failure. Design/methodology/approach – Two separate studies were conducted. The first investigates differences in the perception of service failures across two cultural pools of subjects (allocentrics versus idiocentrics) and within a same country. The second contrasts two levels of comparisons: a cross-cultural values’ level and a cross-country level, to assess differences in the perception service failures’ severity. Findings – Results showed that cultural values differences, when investigated at the individual level (i.e. idiocentrism versus allocentrism) are more significant to understand the influence of culture on the perception of severity, that is, allocentrics perceive more severity in the service failure than idiocentrics. However, a cross-country comparison (i.e. USA versus Puerto Rico) does not show significant differences. Research limitations/implications – Customers may assess, with different sensitivities, the severity of a service failure. These differences are mainly explained by differences in cultural values’ orientations but not differences across countries. Even originating from a same country, customers could perceive with different degrees the seriousness of a same service failure as they may cling to different cultural values. Hence, it is increasingly important to examine the cultural differences at the individual-level rather than a country level. Practical implications – Firms serving international markets as well as multiethnic ones would have advantage to understand cultural differences in the perception of the severity at the individual level rather than at the societal or country level. This is more helpful to direct appropriate service recovery strategies to customers who may have higher sensitivity to the service failure. Originality/value – Little is known about the effect of culture on the severity evaluation, although investigating cross-cultural differences in the assessment of severity is relevant to understand whether offenses are perceived more seriously in one culture than another and then if these offenses will potentially arise confrontational behaviors or not.

Origins of values differences: A multi-level test of economic, climatic and parasite stress explanations in the value domain

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Differences ◽  
National Level ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Cross Cultural Differences ◽  
National Wealth ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Self Transcendence ◽  
The Individual

What variables explain cross-cultural differences in values? In this study, plausible origins of cultural differences in self-rated values are investigated in two independent samples with multi-level modeling to test the robustness and replicability of effects. Differences in wealth and the interaction between wealth by climate showed strongest correlations with value ratings in nationally representative data (Ns = 71,916 & 74,042). The effects of wealth on openness values were convergent across levels (higher wealth is associated with more openness values), but operated in opposing directions for self-transcendence values (national wealth is associated with self-transcendent values, individual wealth is associated with self-enhancing values). Extending climate-economic theory of culture to the individual level, higher education as a cognitive resource of individuals buffered climatic demands in relation to openness to change values. Therefore, education may act as an important individual level that can explain and unpackage previously reported nation-level results. Parasite stress at the national level did not significantly predict values, after controlling for other variables.

Cultural Differences in Careless Responding

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 336-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ina Grau ◽  
Christine Ebbeler ◽  
Rainer Banse
Keyword(s):  
Social Desirability ◽  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Response Style ◽  
Response Styles ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Careless Responding ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Big 5 Personality

Careless responding (CR) in surveys has been identified as a serious threat for the validity of survey data. It occurs when participants respond without following the instructions or reading the content of items. The purpose of this article is to assess and explain the amount of CR at the individual and country level. In our study, individual CR (measured by indices using a short Big 5 personality questionnaire) correlated with education level and personality traits. In addition, using a sample of 8,320 participants from 34 countries, CR at the country level was investigated and it was strongly correlated with the cultural dimensions: human development, individualism, gender inequality, and power distance. CR can be seen as a powerful predictor of differences between countries. Finally, a comparison between CR and response styles (extreme and midpoint answers, acquiescence, and socially desirable responses) was conducted. CR and response styles showed some overlap, but loaded on different factors. CR is compatible with extreme answers, midpoint answers, and acquiescence, but different from social desirability. Social desirability is the only response style which requires careful reading of items.

scholarly journals A Mixture IRTree Model for Extreme Response Style: Accounting for Response Process Uncertainty

2020 ◽  
pp. 001316442091391
Author(s):  
Nana Kim ◽  
Daniel M. Bolt
Keyword(s):  
Real Data ◽  
Response Style ◽  
Response Styles ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Process Uncertainty ◽  
Extreme Response Style ◽  
Learning Mathematics ◽  
Extreme Response ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Mathematics And Science

This paper presents a mixture item response tree (IRTree) model for extreme response style. Unlike traditional applications of single IRTree models, a mixture approach provides a way of representing the mixture of respondents following different underlying response processes (between individuals), as well as the uncertainty present at the individual level (within an individual). Simulation analyses reveal the potential of the mixture approach in identifying subgroups of respondents exhibiting response behavior reflective of different underlying response processes. Application to real data from the Students Like Learning Mathematics (SLM) scale of Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2015 demonstrates the superior comparative fit of the mixture representation, as well as the consequences of applying the mixture on the estimation of content and response style traits. We argue that methodology applied to investigate response styles should attend to the inherent uncertainty of response style influence due to the likely influence of both response styles and the content trait on the selection of extreme response categories.

Cognitive Organization of Cultural Values: Cross-Cultural Analysis of Data from Sweden and the usa

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 235-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kateryna Maltseva
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Traditional Approach ◽  
Cultural Analysis ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Quantitative Methodology ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Cross Cultural Differences

A considerable body of data has been amassed to explain values structure and transmission. Values dimensions have been extracted and compared across societies in a number of values studies, many of which use quantitative methodology. However, there is little quantitative evidence of significant cross-cultural variation in values. This counterintuitive outcome has given rise to a doubt if an effective quantified comparison of values across societies is possible. The major reason for this objection to use quantitative techniques in cross-cultural values research is the loss of culture-specific meaning in quantitative procedures. Using ratings data from two American and Swedish samples the present research demonstrates that it is possible to compare values data and detect meaningful cross-cultural differences in values across societies, provided that several conceptual alterations in the instrument are made. Namely, it is proposed that collective- and individual level constructs should be separated when the informants are asked about their values. The traditional approach to values as implicitly individual construct is critiqued. The paper proposes to distinguish formulations of individual-level values items (that are more closely associated with personal projects and conative aspects) from formulations of cultural-identity relevant collective-level values items (which are acquired in more uniform processes of social learning and institutionalization). When elicitation of values considers this distinction during data collection, the depression of cross-cultural differences in values disappears.

Conflict Mediation and Culture: Lessons from the Gambia

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Davidheiser
Keyword(s):  
Theory Development ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
The Gambia ◽  
Mediation Process ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Conflict Mediation ◽  
The Individual

The issue of cultural variation in conflict mediation has attracted considerable interest, probably because of wide-ranging theoretical, methodological, and ethical implications. Scholars are raising increasing questions about both generic theories of the mediation process and past conceptualizations of the culture construct. This article reviews theoretical perspectives on culture and conflict mediation and discusses them in relation to fieldwork conducted in the Gambia among three ethnolinguistic groups. Some local and cross-cultural patterns in the mediation process were found. These patterns are associated with variables such as ethnicity, gender, and social status. However, comparative analysis on the individual level revealed considerable diversity in praxis, suggesting that cross-cultural studies should go beyond descriptions of group tendencies. Indeed, the amount of variation in the data implies a need to reconsider aspects of prevailing approaches to conflict mediation. The conclusion includes recommendations for further theory development and research on this vital topic.

Affective Interpersonal Touch in Close Relationships: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

2021 ◽  
pp. 014616722098837
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Sorokowska ◽  
Supreet Saluja ◽  
Piotr Sorokowski ◽  
Tomasz Frąckowiak ◽  
Maciej Karwowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Close Relationships ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Interpersonal Distance ◽  
Cultural Perspective ◽  
Affective Touch ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Interpersonal Touch ◽  
Regional Temperature

Interpersonal touch behavior differs across cultures, yet no study to date has systematically tested for cultural variation in affective touch, nor examined the factors that might account for this variability. Here, over 14,000 individuals from 45 countries were asked whether they embraced, stroked, kissed, or hugged their partner, friends, and youngest child during the week preceding the study. We then examined a range of hypothesized individual-level factors (sex, age, parasitic history, conservatism, religiosity, and preferred interpersonal distance) and cultural-level factors (regional temperature, parasite stress, regional conservatism, collectivism, and religiosity) in predicting these affective-touching behaviors. Our results indicate that affective touch was most prevalent in relationships with partners and children, and its diversity was relatively higher in warmer, less conservative, and religious countries, and among younger, female, and liberal people. This research allows for a broad and integrated view of the bases of cross-cultural variability in affective touch.

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

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 541-567 ◽  
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.

Culture’s Constraints

2018 ◽  
pp. 61-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele J. Gelfand ◽  
Nava Caluori ◽  
Sarah Gordon ◽  
Jana Raver ◽  
Lisa Nishii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Psychological Processes ◽  
Social Situations ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Societal Factors ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Cultural Processes ◽  
The Individual

Research on culture has generally ignored social situations, and research on social situations has generally ignored culture. In bringing together these two traditions, we show that nations vary considerably in the strength of social situations, and this is a key conceptual and empirical bridge between macro and distal cultural processes and micro and proximal psychological processes. The model thus illustrates some of the intervening mechanisms through which distal societal factors affect individual processes. It also helps to illuminate why cultural differences persist at the individual level, as they are adaptive to chronic differences in the strength of social situations. The strength of situations across cultures can provide new insights into cultural differences in a wide range of psychological processes.

scholarly journals Migration, acculturation, and the maintenance of between-group cultural variation

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Mesoudi
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Cultural Values ◽  
Cultural Evolution ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Cultural Variation ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
And Migration ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Social Learning Processes

AbstractHow do migration and acculturation (i.e. psychological or behavioral change resulting from migration) affect within- and between-group cultural variation? Here I answer this question by drawing analogies between genetic and cultural evolution. Population genetic models show that migration rapidly breaks down between-group genetic structure. In cultural evolution, however, migrants or their descendants can acculturate to local behaviors via social learning processes such as conformity, potentially preventing migration from eliminating between-group cultural variation. An analysis of the empirical literature on migration suggests that acculturation is common, with second and subsequent migrant generations shifting, sometimes substantially, towards the cultural values of the adopted society. Yet there is little understanding of the individual-level dynamics that underlie these population-level shifts. To explore this formally, I present models quantifying the effect of migration and acculturation on between-group cultural variation, for both neutral and costly cooperative traits. In the models, between-group cultural variation, measured using F statistics, is eliminated by migration and maintained by conformist acculturation. The extent of acculturation is determined by the strength of conformist bias and the number of demonstrators from whom individuals learn. Acculturation is countered by assortation, the tendency for individuals to preferentially interact with culturally-similar others. Unlike neutral traits, cooperative traits can additionally be maintained by payoff-biased social learning, but only in the presence of strong sanctioning institutions. Overall, the models show that surprisingly little conformist acculturation is required to maintain realistic amounts of between-group cultural diversity. While these models provide insight into the potential dynamics of acculturation and migration in cultural evolution, they also highlight the need for more empirical research into the individual-level learning biases that underlie migrant acculturation.

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