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Absolutism
Abstract
From an absolutist perspective, psychological constructs are the same across cultures, and measurements of constructs reflect quantitative, not qualitative, differences. Thus, depression in one culture would be the same as depression in all cultures. According to this perspective, cross-cultural issues play a very small role in the interpretation of research or in the discussion of constructs. This viewpoint contrasts with the perspectives of relativism, which posits that any given construct is particular to a single culture, and universalism, which asserts that constructs have universal underpinnings but are displayed differently depending on cultural context.
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This article gives a brief history of the emergence of Chinese indigenous psychology from the background of Westernized social psychology in Taiwan, and reviews the various debates that have surrounded the first decade of its progress from the perspectives of ontology, epistemology, and methodology. Careful analysis of these debates indicates that their themes are similar to dilemmas encountered by indigenous psychologists in other regions of the world. It is argued that breakthroughs need to be made on three levels for the development of indigenous psychology, namely, philosophical reflection, theoretical construction, and empirical research. There are three philosophical assumptions in cross-cultural psychology - absolutism, universalism, and relativism - which correspond to three research orientations - imposed etic, derived etic, and emic. In order to achieve the goal of establishing a global psychology, then indigenous psychologists in non-Western societies must change their thinking from anticolonialism to postcolonialism; switch their philosophical assumption from relativism to universalism; assimilate the Western academic tradition; adopt a multiparadigm approach to construct formal theories on the functioning and mechanisms of the universal mind; use these to analyse the specific mentalities of a given culture; and use the results of this theoretical construction as a frame of reference for empirical research.
1. Introduction Part I. Similarities and Differences in Behavior across Cultures: 2. Individual development: infancy and early childhood 3. Individual development: childhood, adolescence and adulthood 4. Social behavior 5. Personality 6. Cognition 7. Emotion 8. Language 9. Perception Part II. Relationships between Behavior, Culture and Biology: 10. Contributions of cultural anthropology 11. Contributions of evolutionary biology 12. Methodology and theory Part III. Applying Research Findings across Cultures: 13. Acculturation 14. Intercultural relations 15. Intercultural communication and training 16. Work and organizations 17. Health 18. Culturally informed and appropriate psychology Epilogue Glossary of key terms.
A history of cross-cultural psychology shows it to be an increasingly important part of modern psychology. Despite widespread agreement that culture is an indispensable component in the understanding of human behavior, there are noteworthy conceptual differences regarding the ways in which culture and behavior interrelate. Perspectives include absolutism and relativism, each with methodological consequences for such contemporary research concerns as values (including individualism-collectivism), gender differences, cognition, aggression, intergroup relations, and psychological acculturation. Societal concerns relating to these topics are briefly described. When all of psychology finally takes into account the effects of culture on human behavior (and vice versa), terms like cross-cultural and cultural psychology will become unnecessary. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Presents 12 articles devoted to cross-cultural Piagetian psychology written by Western and non-Western psychologists. The cognitive development of children in 11 countries, including New Guinea, Thailand, Iraq, and French Canada, is described. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
California State Law §288(a) defines any sexual contact between a person 18 or older with someone under the age of 14 as illegal
and punishable by incarceration. Data from the State Department of Justice shows that Young, Unassimilated Hispanic Offenders
(YUHO) are arrested for these crimes at rates disproportionately greater than their numbers in the population. Through a review
of the pertinent literature and clinical archives, we argue that YUHOs have been acculturated into a sexual morality that
violates legally codified American sexual standards. While their sexual behavior is deemed morally deviant and illegal in
the United States, this same behavior is not considered morally deviant or illegal within their internalized, home culture.
This contrasts with the typical §288(a) offender who is motivated by a sexual perversion. Should the criminal justice system
regard YUHOs differently from typical §288(a) offenders? “relativists” suggest that cultural considerations should be taken
in the adjudication of these cases. Our preliminary work is to inform and articulate this debate at the crossroads of psychology,
anthropology and criminal justice, without advocating either of the above perspectives. We suggest that legislatures did not
anticipate the population of YUHO sexual offenders when these laws were written, and argue that YUHOs differ significantly
from the typical pedophile for which these statutes were intended.
Culture and depression
- S. Manson
- J. Shore
- J. Bloom