Cross-Cultural Psychology Exam 1 (Ch. 1-4)
| 100% Correct | Verified | 2024 Version
What is culture? - ✔✔Creating tradition, rituals, identifying with a race or community based on your
ancestors and the people you are around.
Dynamic groups of individuals that share a similar context, are exposed to many similar cultural
messages, and contain a broad range of individuals who are affected by those cultural messages in
divergent ways.
Any kind of information that is acquired from other members of one's species through social learning
that is capable of affecting an individual's behaviors
What is cultural psychology? - ✔✔Claims psychological processes are shaped by experiences, people
from different cultures have different experiences; not the first to claim people are different.
What are the two ways in which culture can be conceptualized? - ✔✔1.) Information acquired from
other members of our own species through social learning that is capable of affecting an individuals
behavior.
2.) Individuals who exist within some kind of a shared context.
What are the challenges of defining culture? - ✔✔- Cultural boundaries are not distinct and are often
unclear; cultures are dynamic and change over time.
- There are as many variations within cultures as there are between cultures (variability among the
individuals who belong to the same culture due to their collections of various social groups)
[Ex]: Italians may be compared with Germans, even though we know that not every member of the
Italian group was exposed to exclusively Italian cultural messages.
What does General Psychology focus on? - ✔✔The universals; believes that the mind is independent
from the context and attempts to find universal and natural laws that govern human thought.
,What does Cultural Psychology focus on? - ✔✔The cultural variations; it assumes thoughts are shaped by
context and studies the different meaning systems we create in our minds from living in different
environments.
Who is Richard Shweder? - ✔✔The father of modern incarnation of cultural psychology; Argues that
much of the field of general psychology inherently assumes mind operates under a set of natural and
universal laws that are independent from content or context.
[Example from song lyrics: "People are the same wherever you go"]
What are some examples of the Culturally Universal view? - ✔✔-Disgust over incest between parent and
child.
-The color "black"
- Smiling when happy
(opinions/views that are similar cross-culturally)
What are some examples of the Culturally Variable view? - ✔✔-Disgust over romantic relations between
cousins
-The color "blue"
-Biting tongue when embarrassed
(opinions/views that vary culturally)
What is the Figure-Link Task? - ✔✔A study that looked at both the left inferior parietal lobule and the
right inferior precentral gyrus (both associated with attentional control.
What do studies like the Figure-Link Task show? - ✔✔Activation of brain structures can be subject to
cultural influences; the mind is enmeshed with culture.
, What is an example of Abstract Definition vs. Concrete Definition? - ✔✔Marriage:
Abstract - one man, multiple women, same sex
Concrete- must be a man and women, must be in love, must have children
(How to define the variable.)
What are the different degrees of universality? - ✔✔Non-universal
Existential Universal
Functional Universal
Accessibility Universal
What is the Non-Universal degree of universality? - ✔✔A cognitive tool not found in all cultures; cultural
inventions.
[Ex]: Abacus reasoning. People who use this tool in the Middle East and Asia think about numbers
differently than those cultures who do not use an abacus.
What is the Existential Universal degree of universality? - ✔✔A cognitive tool found in all cultures, but
serves different functions.
Ex: Intrinsic Motivation (wanting to do your best) is used differently in all cultures. One culture may see
success as motivational while others may see failure as motivational.
What is the Functional Universal degree of universality? - ✔✔A cognitive tool found in all cultures that
serves the same function but is used to different degrees.
Ex: All cultures believe a behavior is punishable, but the punishment type/severity may vary.
| 100% Correct | Verified | 2024 Version
What is culture? - ✔✔Creating tradition, rituals, identifying with a race or community based on your
ancestors and the people you are around.
Dynamic groups of individuals that share a similar context, are exposed to many similar cultural
messages, and contain a broad range of individuals who are affected by those cultural messages in
divergent ways.
Any kind of information that is acquired from other members of one's species through social learning
that is capable of affecting an individual's behaviors
What is cultural psychology? - ✔✔Claims psychological processes are shaped by experiences, people
from different cultures have different experiences; not the first to claim people are different.
What are the two ways in which culture can be conceptualized? - ✔✔1.) Information acquired from
other members of our own species through social learning that is capable of affecting an individuals
behavior.
2.) Individuals who exist within some kind of a shared context.
What are the challenges of defining culture? - ✔✔- Cultural boundaries are not distinct and are often
unclear; cultures are dynamic and change over time.
- There are as many variations within cultures as there are between cultures (variability among the
individuals who belong to the same culture due to their collections of various social groups)
[Ex]: Italians may be compared with Germans, even though we know that not every member of the
Italian group was exposed to exclusively Italian cultural messages.
What does General Psychology focus on? - ✔✔The universals; believes that the mind is independent
from the context and attempts to find universal and natural laws that govern human thought.
,What does Cultural Psychology focus on? - ✔✔The cultural variations; it assumes thoughts are shaped by
context and studies the different meaning systems we create in our minds from living in different
environments.
Who is Richard Shweder? - ✔✔The father of modern incarnation of cultural psychology; Argues that
much of the field of general psychology inherently assumes mind operates under a set of natural and
universal laws that are independent from content or context.
[Example from song lyrics: "People are the same wherever you go"]
What are some examples of the Culturally Universal view? - ✔✔-Disgust over incest between parent and
child.
-The color "black"
- Smiling when happy
(opinions/views that are similar cross-culturally)
What are some examples of the Culturally Variable view? - ✔✔-Disgust over romantic relations between
cousins
-The color "blue"
-Biting tongue when embarrassed
(opinions/views that vary culturally)
What is the Figure-Link Task? - ✔✔A study that looked at both the left inferior parietal lobule and the
right inferior precentral gyrus (both associated with attentional control.
What do studies like the Figure-Link Task show? - ✔✔Activation of brain structures can be subject to
cultural influences; the mind is enmeshed with culture.
, What is an example of Abstract Definition vs. Concrete Definition? - ✔✔Marriage:
Abstract - one man, multiple women, same sex
Concrete- must be a man and women, must be in love, must have children
(How to define the variable.)
What are the different degrees of universality? - ✔✔Non-universal
Existential Universal
Functional Universal
Accessibility Universal
What is the Non-Universal degree of universality? - ✔✔A cognitive tool not found in all cultures; cultural
inventions.
[Ex]: Abacus reasoning. People who use this tool in the Middle East and Asia think about numbers
differently than those cultures who do not use an abacus.
What is the Existential Universal degree of universality? - ✔✔A cognitive tool found in all cultures, but
serves different functions.
Ex: Intrinsic Motivation (wanting to do your best) is used differently in all cultures. One culture may see
success as motivational while others may see failure as motivational.
What is the Functional Universal degree of universality? - ✔✔A cognitive tool found in all cultures that
serves the same function but is used to different degrees.
Ex: All cultures believe a behavior is punishable, but the punishment type/severity may vary.
