ArticlePDF Available

Individualism-CollectivismA Study of Cross-Cultural Researchers

June 1986
Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 17(2):225-248

DOI:10.1177/0022002186017002006

Authors:

C. Harry Hui

The University of Hong Kong

Harry Triandis

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Individualism and collectivism are terms used by both social scientists and the public, but there are few systematic studies of this dimension. A sample of psychologists and anthropologists from all parts of the world was asked to respond to a questionnaire the way they believe an individualist and a collectivist would respond. The questionnaire described 10 target persons in seven situations. The responses converged, suggesting that there is consensus about the meaning of the dimension. Accordingly, collectivism can be defined as (1) concern by a person about the effects of actions or decisions on others, (2) sharing of material benefits, (3) sharing of nonmaterial resources, (4) willingness of the person to accept the opinions and views of others, (5) concern about self-presentation and loss of face, (6) belief in the correspondence of own outcomes with the outcomes of others, and (7) feeling of involvement in and contribution to the lives of others. Individualists show less concern, sharing, and so on than collectivists. The approach can be used with other relatively unstudied constructs to establish whether there is consensus among researchers about the meaning of a construct.

Content uploaded by C. Harry Hui

Content may be subject to copyright.

http://jcc.sagepub.com/

Psychology

Journal of Cross-Cultural

http://jcc.sagepub.com/content/17/2/225

The online version of this article can be found at:

DOI: 10.1177/0022002186017002006

1986 17: 225Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology

C. Harry Hui and Harry C. Triandis

Individualism-Collectivism : A Study of Cross-Cultural Researchers

Published by:

http://www.sagepublications.com

On behalf of:

International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology

at:

can be foundJournal of Cross-Cultural PsychologyAdditional services and information for

http://jcc.sagepub.com/cgi/alertsEmail Alerts:

http://jcc.sagepub.com/subscriptionsSubscriptions:

http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.navReprints:

http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.navPermissions:

http://jcc.sagepub.com/content/17/2/225.refs.htmlCitations:

What is This?

- Jun 1, 1986Version of Record >>

at University of Hong Kong Libraries on November 15, 2011jcc.sagepub.comDownloaded from

INSIGHTS INTO WHITE COLLAR WOMEN’S WORKPLACE EXPERIENCES DURING MENOPAUSE-A HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVE

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2025

Ela burcu Ucel

Menopause has been studied widely in medicine and health sciences, but research on management, especially in Türkiye seems to be extremely limited. This creates a data gap which leads to corporate and managerial ignorance of menopausal women’s experiences at the workplace. The current study focused on white collar menopausal women’s workplace experiences. Due to the exploratory nature of the study, a qualitative design and in-depth interview method were used. Nine participants volunteered for the study and as the data analysis showed saturation, no more interviews were conducted. Findings indicate that women have multiple hardships at the office during menopause and flexible working conditions and support of female colleagues and managers may facilitate their experiences. Furthermore, organizations should provide flexible working alternatives, trainings, adjusted offices and policy change especially in performance and compensation management in support of mid-life menopausal working women.

Skin Deep: A Relational-Cultural Approach to Colorism for Black Women in Psychotherapy

Article

Full-text available

Mar 2025

Appearance is a key target in Black women’s devaluation. Yet relatively little attention has been paid to this in the literature of psychotherapy with Black women, particularly with skin tone and hair texture. Colorism, a form of phenotypical discrimination, is rarely addressed or excluded in psychotherapy despite studies that document it as a stressor for Black women. Relatedly, few therapeutic frameworks offer strategies to address colorist marginalization. Guided by relational-cultural therapy, we contextualize colorism in psychological research, offer strategies to address colorism, and honor Black women’s identities as well as resistance within psychotherapy. In short, it is imperative that psychotherapists validate Black women’s worldview shaped by colorism, explore earliest messages about their appearance from family and community members, and seek to educate themselves about colorism. We offer future directions to expand knowledge on the impact of colorist stigmatization faced by Black women in the United States.

Individualism and Collectivism as Moderators of Relations between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Adolescent Aggressive Behavior

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2025

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are generally associated with impaired life functioning, including mental health. Prevalent globally, ACEs’ effects vary across cultural settings and groups. The present study assessed horizontal and vertical individualism and collectivism – key cultural dimensions – as moderators of ACEs’ relations to adolescent aggressive behavior. The study was conducted in Vietnam, a Southeast Asian nation with high levels of collectivism but with levels of individualism increasing with globalization. The cross-sectional study included 644 high-school students (mean age = 16.6 years; 54% female). Self-report measures assessed ACEs, adolescent aggressive behavior, and individualism and collectivism. Given collectivism’s focus on supporting one’s social communities, it was hypothesized that collectivism would serve as a protective factor for statistical effects of ACEs on aggression. All four moderator analyses involving collectivism supported this hypothesis; i.e., at high levels of collectivism, relations between ACEs and aggression were significantly smaller than at low levels of collectivism. Statistical effects were largest for vertical (endorsing hierarchical power structures) collectivism. In the one significant individualism moderator analysis, individualism served as a risk factor for (i.e., increased) statistical effects of ACEs on proactive aggression. Results highlight the importance of the horizontal-vertical sub-dimensions, as they may provide for more precise theoretical explanatory and intervention models. For instance, concern for the power hierarchy’s reactions (vertical collectivism) to one’s aggression vs. concern for harm to one’s groups (horizontal collectivism) by one’s aggression have different implications for prevention and treatment that may be useful for maximizing interventions’ effectiveness.

Relationships Among Components of Critical Thinking Disposition in Primary School Students: An Investigation Based on Hungarian Context

Article

Feb 2025
PSYCHOL SCHOOLS

Critical thinking disposition (CTD) is regarded as a personal trait within critical thinking (CT), representing an individual's tendency and attitude toward actively employing CT skills (CTS). Previous research has predominantly focused on the external influencing factors of CTD, with limited exploration into CTD itself and the interactions among its internal components. Additionally, most studies have concentrated on higher education, while insufficient attention has been given to the CTD of students in basic education. This study surveyed 900 Hungarian primary school students (Mage = 13.82; SD = 1.04) using the Employer–Employee Supported CTD Inventory (2ES-CTDI) and employed Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and Importance-Performance Map Analysis (IPMA) to examine the predictive relationships among the components of CTD, as well as the performance and priorities of different components. This study provides a novel perspective in the field of CTD, contributing to a deeper understanding of the CTD framework and the interactions among its components, and offering empirical support and priority areas for basic education practitioners to better foster students' CTD.

El “colectivismo agrario” y las manifestaciones funerarias de los pueblos vacceos: una nueva perspectiva sobre su relación

Chapter

Jan 2020

Roberto Matesanz Gascón

La publicación recoge, entre otras, los frutos de una reunión científica realizada en Palencia en 2019. En ella se actualiza desde distintos puntos de vista el conocimiento referente a los ritos funerarios y las creencias en la Hispania prerromana, en general, y en el ámbito vacceo en particular. Además, cuenta con una aportación relativa al monetario romano en la meseta Norte.

Digital Dilemmas: The Complex Interplay of Online Experience and Health Pharmaceutical Purchases Among Vietnamese Women

Article

Jan 2025
Howard J Comm

This research delves into the intricacies of Vietnamese women's intentions to purchase women's health pharmaceutical products, exploring the nuanced interplay between cultural norms, digital information sources, and social influences within a collectivist society. This research employs a survey-based approach to understand Vietnamese women's purchase intentions regarding health pharmaceutical products. By examining the multifaceted interplay between social norms, digital information sources, and the perceived credibility of various channels, this research sheds light on the nuanced decision-making processes for purchasing products associated with intimate health concerns. Despite the growing digital landscape in Vietnam, findings reveal a complex picture where traditional social endorsements and collective values significantly sway individual choices, while the credibility and reliability concerns of online information sources, including Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and healthcare professionals, present notable challenges. This manuscript not only bridges a critical gap in understanding consumer behavior within collectivist societies but also highlights the evolving role of digital platforms in sensitive health-related decision-making, underscoring the selective trust placed in different information channels.

The Family’s Role in Mental Health Care: Perceptions of Bay Area Muslims

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2025

This qualitative study examines perceptions of Muslims living in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, United States, regarding the family’s role in mental health help-seeking and well-being. This study employed a community-based participatory research approach through content analysis of three focus group (n = 37) discussions conducted with the help of a community advisory board comprised San Francisco Bay Area Muslim community members. Four main themes were generated. (1) Participants stated that Muslim American families play a unique role, via socioreligious norms and cultural expectations, in mental health quality and help-seeking. (2) The types of familial mental wellness support depend on the capacity of family members relative to their roles and influence in the family. (3) Families are responsible for referring individuals to external support, especially when the problem is beyond familial capacity. (4) The family is a potential source of mental health-related challenges. Participants noted the need for family-wide interventions led by mental health professionals or religious/community leaders. These findings stress the need for increased attention to and engagement of families in providing psychiatric care for Muslim Americans, specifically those living in the Bay Area, California, United States. Special attention should be placed on mental health barriers and challenges the family may create for an individual.

Personal Values as a Proponent of Intention for Socially Responsible Investment

Article

Mar 2025

Historically, investors have only viewed investments conventionally without looking at their behaviors. The intention formed by an individual will occur through attitude. As in the investment world, investors will intend to invest when there is a drive. The encouragement is formed through the values held by the investor. The evolution of the investment world makes investors not only see an investment conventionally, namely by looking at profit and loss, but also in terms of investors' financial behavior. Therefore, this study will explore the relationship between collectivism, materialism, and environmental attitude towards socially responsible investment (SRI). In addition, this study will also look at the relationship between attitude towards SRI and investor’s intention to invest in SRI. This research uses the PLS-SEM method with five latent variables mentioned earlier. The result of this study indicates a positive effect of attitude towards SRI on investment intention in SRI. In addition, environmental attitude shows a significant influence on attitude towards SRI. These findings suggest that companies can increase awareness of environmental issues to gain investor interest and build investor confidence to invest in the company.

Examining the Hindering Effects of Receiving Help on Internal Reporting of Unethical Behavior

Article

Mar 2025
J ORGAN BEHAV

Despite the well‐documented positive individual and interpersonal benefits of receiving help, we argue that it can also lead to potentially damaging moral consequences for the organization. The purpose of this study is to add to our understanding of the moral consequences of receiving help and the inhibitors of reporting unethical behavior in organizations. Drawing from social exchange theory and the moral psychology of obligation, we argue that employees will be less likely to report a wrongdoer internally when they have received help from that person in the past due to feelings of obligation, or feeling that “I don't want to, but I have to.” Using laboratory experiments, we found that participants significantly reduced their internal reporting behavior after receiving a small favor, even when they had no prior relationship with the wrongdoer, due to feelings of obligation. We replicated the effect in a multi‐wave survey study. This effect was strengthened by positive reciprocity beliefs and help solicitation. We conclude by discussing the theoretical and practical implications of our research.

‘Regrets become a lasting source of pain’: A qualitative study on family caregivers’ experiences leading up to a relative’s death

Article

Feb 2025
PALLIATIVE MED

Background Death preparations can benefit families both before and during bereavement. While these preparations are culturally influenced, evidence from non-Western cultures, like Eastern Asia, is limited. Aim To explore how family caregivers prepare for a relative’s death in Taiwan. Design A qualitative interview study analysed with reflexive thematic analysis. Setting/participants Twenty-two primary family caregivers following a death involving specialist palliative care were interviewed. Results An overarching theme was ‘getting everything right to have no regrets between the dead and the living’. Within this, two themes focussed upon improving the dying relative’s outcomes and the families’ subsequent bereavement: (1) ‘making the right end-of-life decisions is crucial but complex’, exploring preparations to involve (or not) the dying relative in making choices to minimise regrets. Participants often felt they understood the dying relative’s wishes so respected their preferences while maintaining family harmony through consensus-building and professional guidance. (2) ‘becoming a competent caregiver is the priority’, addressing preparations for fulfilling responsibilities, making sacrifices and developing caregiving competence to ensure the dying relative’s comfort. This would help reduce feelings of regret about not having done enough. Conclusion Preparing for end-of-life decisions and caregiving is important for participants to reduce regret, benefiting subsequent bereavement. Of particular importance is family involvement and consensus-building in end-of-life decisions, reflecting Taiwan’s family-led culture. These findings can inform clinical practices in family-centric decision-making cultures where healthcare workers should be aware of the need to build consensus, sometimes without involving the dying person. Future research should include patients’ and healthcare professionals’ perspectives.

Individualism and interdependence

Article

Full-text available

Jul 1981

Alan S. Waterman

The value system of individualism underlying many contemporary psychological theories has been criticized on grounds that it is antithetical to social interdependence. The critics have developed a philosophical analysis that links individualism to unscrupulous competition, atomistic self-containment, and alienation. In contrast, the principles espoused by the proponents of individualism in psychology are derived from a philosophical orientation defined by eudaimonism, freedom of choice, personal responsibility, and ethical universality. Within this framework, the holding of individualistic values is hypothesized by the present author to facilitate, not inhibit, helping, cooperation, and other prosocial behaviors. A review of the literature provides extensive support for this hypothesis. (83 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Individual models of social behavior

Article

Full-text available

Jun 1984

Presents a technique that extracts individual models of social behavior. Such models reflect each individual's ideas about what social behaviors are interrelated, and what aspects of social situations are linked to different levels of probability that particular patterns of social behavior will occur. The method was used in 2 studies, one with bicultural Ss (1 American, 6 Latin Americans, 2 Hong Kong Chinese, and 1 Greek) and the other with 22 monocultural Mexican and Chinese Ss and 8 of the bilinguals from the 1st study. For each S, factor analysis of the judgments concerning the probability of occurrence of specific social behaviors in specific social situations provided information of how the S linked social behaviors. ANOVA on the factor scores provided information about the S's beliefs concerning how attributes of social situations are linked to social behaviors. Inspection of the individual models of social behavior indicated that some common elements across models are probably linked to culture. The technique has wide applicability for social and personality psychology because it permits idiographic comparison of models of social behavior across individuals who share some attribute. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Adler's concept of Social Interest: Theory, measurement, and implications for adjustment

Article

Full-text available

Sep 1980

James E. Crandall

After summarizing the meaning of A. Adler's (1938) concept of social interest and his theorizing concerning its influence on adjustment, the author describes the development of a new, short measure of social interest (Social Interest Scale). Data concerning reliability and validity are presented. The results of a number of studies relating this measure to both self-report and more indirect measures of adjustment support Adler's and other contemporary theorists' beliefs that a concern for others contributes to the adjustment of the individual. Results also indicate that sex, age, and stress may be important moderators of the relation of social interest to adjustment. (67 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Perspectives on selfhood

Article

Full-text available

Dec 1978

M. Brewster Smith

Examines selfhood as the criterial features of the human condition from 3 perspectives: evolutionary or phylogenetic, cross-cultural and transhistorical, and developmental or ontogenetic. It is argued that to deal with the phenomena of selfhood, psychology has to be a historical and cultural science, as well as a biological one. The reflexiveness of selfhood makes theories about it important in partly constituting the selves that we are—an insight of the currently popular "attributional" approach. Yet the cognitive emphasis of the attributional approach requires balance from Jung's vision of dynamic archetypes. Indeed, if psychology is to begin to grasp the phenomena of selfhood, it needs to work in both the causal and the interpretative traditions, taken as complementary. (73 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Psychology and the American Ideal

Article

Full-text available

Nov 1977

Edward E. Sampson

Applies 3 recent criticisms of personality and social psychology—the historical, the dialectical, and the interdependence theses—to a critical examination of existing trends in theory and practice, in particular to concepts of androgyny, mental health, and moral development. The position is developed that existing conceptions in these and other areas emphasize a cultural and historical thesis of self-contained individualism; syntheses of opposing or desirable characteristics are located within the person rather than within an interdependent collectivity. By viewing these and other psychological concepts against this background, it can be better understood that (a) these (e.g., androgyny) are not fundamental psychological principles; (b) alternative conceptualizations are both possible and perhaps even more desirable; and (c) in an era in which collective problem solving is necessary, the perpetuation of self-contained, individualistic conceptions can stifle psychology's effort to contribute to resolving contemporary social issues. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Measurement of interpersonal orientation

Article

Full-text available

Jan 1983

The construct of interpersonal orientation (IO) is proposed as useful for understanding behavior in certain social situations. High IOs are interested in and reactive to other people; low IOs are less interested and responsive to others and more concerned with economic features of relationships. A self-report measure of IO was constructed; questionnaire and interview data generally supported the hypothesized parameters of the construct, with females scoring higher than males and high scorers (regardless of sex) indicating greater interest in and responsiveness to interpersonal features of their environments. Two experiments were conducted to assess the utility of IO in social situations. In Exp I (82 Ss), a factorial combination of sex and IO eliminated a previously demonstrated sex difference in favor of an IO difference: High IOs expressed greater liking than did low IOs for a partner who had self-disclosed to them. In Exp II (56 Ss), males and low IOs whose performance was either superior or inferior to a partner allocated rewards in accordance with equity theory; females and high IOs seemed more concerned with equality than with equity. (40 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Americans and Chinese, Passages to Differences

Article

Dec 1981

Francis L. K. Hsu

Comparative Need Patterns of Five Ancestry Groups in Hawaii

Article

Oct 1962

This study compared need patterns of male and female high school students of Caucasian, Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian, and Japanese descent as measured by the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule. The Caucasian profile proved to be singular—for many of the needs there seemed to be a Caucasian and a non-Caucasian level of expression. The profiles of the several female groups were more similar than those for the male groups. There was some suggestion of an acculturational process among the students of Japanese ancestry. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

A Comparative Study of Selected Attitudes, Values, and Personality Characteristics of American, Chinese, and Indian Students

Article

Jun 1962

37 American, 37 Chinese, and 37 Indian students attending an American university responded to the following questionnaires: the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey, Morris' Ways to Live, Sanford and Older's AE Scale, and Edwards' Personal Preference Schedule. The following differences were found: (a) American students were more self-centered while both Chinese and Indian students were more society-centered; (b) American students were more theoretical than the other groups; (c) Indian students were more politically and economically oriented than the other groups; (d) Indian and Chinese students were more authoritarian than American students; (e) American students were more religious than the other groups; and (f) Indian and Chinese students showed a greater preference for enjoying life through group participation, while American students preferred the many-sided, flexible approach to the good life. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

Cultural Determinants of Achievement, Aggression, and Psychological Distress

Article

May 1980
ARCH GEN PSYCHIAT

We present a cross-cultural exploration of the interrelationships among six concepts: achievement (ie, cultural attainment), aggression, psychological distress, competition, interpersonal intensity (strength of passionate attachments), and social synergy (patterned behavior that simultaneously benefits both individual and society). Of interest is the proposition that levels of achievement, aggression, and psychological distress are partly determined by corresponding levels of competition and interpersonal intensity; however, in the presence of high levels of social synergy, aggression and psychological distress are lowered without affecting the level of achievement. We have tested the implied linear relationships, using blind ratings (of five variables assessed from ethnographic extracts) obtained from ten cross-cultural scholars, and a Social Development Index (from Tatje and Naroll) to indicate achievement. A sample of 58 societies was employed in correlation and multivariate analysis of variance.