development across cultures

Question 1

broadly, what is culture?

Answer 1

knowledge, customs, beliefs, art, law, traditions, morals/values, memes

Question 2

what is a meme?

Answer 2

unit of cultural transmission, evolves organically, differs from internet memes

Question 3

what allowed the movement from hunter gatherer to agricultural

Answer 3

human migration caused people to live in different environments

settlement allowed a movement from hunter gatherer to agricultural

Question 4

in order to settle, farming is needed - what did intensive farming lead to

Answer 4

social changes - housing, markets, population growth, division of labour

towns developed, new jobs emerged

Answer 5

animals were domesticated, disease increased, immunities developed and passed to next generations

Question 6

birth of agriculture allowed people to find new roles in society

cities thrived, written language developed, cultural transmission occurred

Question 7

east versus west contrast - individualist/collectivist

Answer 7

eastern cultures = collectivist

western cultures = individualist

Question 8

why is there an individualist/collectivist divide?

Answer 8

western cultures may have had more fertile soil, allowing people to live more individually

eastern cultures may have had difficulty with irrigation, so people had to work together to feed their communities

Question 9

philosophy in the west vs east

Answer 9

Aristotle, for example, focused explanation of the world on objects

the chinese saw that actions occurred in a field of forces

Question 10

what is a culture shock

Answer 10

experiencing difficulty adjusting and understanding an unfamiliar culture

adaptation to some cultures is easier than others

Question 11

what does WEIRD stand for

Answer 11

western
education
industrialised
rich
democratic

Question 12

what is the issue with WEIRD

Answer 12

96% of samples in psychological studies came from countries comprising of 12% of world’s population

the overwhelming majority of psychology studies have been conducted on these samples

therefore, they produce weird results, as we’re trying to build theories based on people

Question 13

what kind of people comprise the samples in the west

Answer 13

university students, due to convenience sampling

Question 14

there are many differences across cultures, but what is something that is generally universal?

Answer 14

facial expressions

monkeys also produce similar facial expression

Question 15

cultural differences: visual perception

Answer 15

study using Muller-Lyer illusion, where lines are the same length but look different

found that some cultures did not perceive the illusion at all, while some saw a huge difference

Question 16

cultural differences: visual perception - Muller Lyre illusion, why?

Answer 16

argued that exposure to corners found so frequently in modern environments cause this illusion, which are not part of our illusionary history

Question 17

cultural differences: Kung infancy

Answer 17

foraging is frequent and efficient, so adults only need to work about 3 days a week

spend time together and engage in social contact

mobile lifestyle so cannot gather possessions

therefore, opinions are valued and shared, and children’s first words are usually “here take this” and “give it to me”

Question 18

cultural differences: sleeping arrangements

Answer 18

common in the west for a new baby to have their own room

however, in 90% of countries this is not practiced - mothers will lay with their infant

Question 19

cultural differences: motor development - Ainsworth

Answer 19

noticed that Ganda infants sit, crawl and walk earlier than western babies

due to certain practices that stimulate the muscles

ainswoth also reported earlier development of language, social behaviour and prehension (grasping)

Question 20

cultural differences: attachment (Ainsworth)

Answer 20

evidence of broad differences in attachment styles across cultures

germany: avoidant most common

Israeli Kibbutz: anxious most common

Japan and Dogon (West Africa): no children showed avoidant attachment

Question 21

cultural differences: colour perception

Answer 21

in a study, the Himba and Namibia do not distinguish between blue-green in colour terms. they do show discrimination between colour boundaries that English speakers do not

Question 22

cultural differences: positive self views and the above average effect

Answer 22

above average effect - belief that you are above average

Cross et al found that 94% of American academics rated themselves as better than the average academic

however studies in non western countries do not mimic these findings

Question 23

cultural differences: American outliers

Answer 23

educated Americans appear to be different to other Americans

Americans are highly individualistic, but students are even more so

conformity motivations are weaker among non college educated Americans

working class Americans are more interdependent and holistic than middle class people

Question 24

cultural differences: portraits

Answer 24

background more important in east