Culture and Cognitive Culture and Cognitive Process Process

What are Basic Cognitive Processes?What are Basic Cognitive Processes?

Cognition includes all mental processes used by humans to transform sensory input into knowledge.

Sensation Perception

CULTURE AS COGNITIONCULTURE AS COGNITION

Most scholars view culture itself as cognition.

Hofstede (1980): culture is “mental programming” Berry et al. (1992): culture defined as norms,

opinions, beliefs, values and worldviews, which are all cognitive products

Matsumoto & Juang (2007): culture is a knowledge system

Bottom line: it is cognitive skills that allow humans to have culture.

CULTURE AND PERCEPTIONCULTURE AND PERCEPTION

Perception and Physical RealityPerception and Physical Reality

Our perceptions of the world do not necessarily match the physical realities of the world or of our senses.

Ex) Blind spot

Change in perception of lukewarm water

Primary vs. Secondary properties of “physical” objects

Cultural Influences on Visual PerceptionCultural Influences on Visual Perception

Optical illusions: perceptions involving apparent discrepancy between how an object looks and what it actually is

The Mueller-Lyer Illusion The Horizontal-Vertical Illusion

Cultural Influences on Visual PerceptionCultural Influences on Visual Perception

Theories on reasons for optical illusions: Carpentered world theory Front-horizontal foreshortening theory

According to both theories, what we see is affected by what we learn about how to see things (which is developed mostly through cultural experiences)

Cultural Influences on Visual PerceptionCultural Influences on Visual Perception

Cross-cultural studies have challenged traditional notions about optical illusion.

Rivers (1905): Compared English, Indians and New Guineans

English more fooled by Mueller-Lyer illusion Indians and New Guineans more fooled by

horizontal-vertical illusion

Segall et al (1963, 1966): Compared industrialized vs. nonindustrialized groups Same results as Rivers

Cultural Influences on Visual PerceptionCultural Influences on Visual Perception

Theory on cultural differences in visual perception Symbolizing three dimensions in to theory

Other studies also show that physiology, in addition to learning, can play a role in observed cultural differences. Stewart (1973)

Cultural differences also exist in depth perception .

Cultural Influences on Visual PerceptionCultural Influences on Visual Perception

The question of whether these study findings would generalize to three-dimensional world remains.

Cultural Influences on Visual PerceptionCultural Influences on Visual Perception

Attention: Masuda & Nisbett (2001)

When asked to recall objects in a scene, Americans and Japanese both recalled focal object of scene; Japanese remembered more background objects.

Japanese were more influenced by changes in background information in other recognition tasks as well.

These differences may be due to differences in environment

Culture and CategorizationCulture and Categorization

Universal: Process of categorization Universal categories: facial expressions, colors,

stereotypes, and shapes

Cultural differences: the way in which people categorize things Western adults categorize by function whereas

African adults categorize by color. American children categorize by shared function,

whereas Chinese children categorize by shared contextual relationships.

Culture and MemoryCulture and Memory

Universal: Memory decrease with age and hindsight bias

Cultural differences: memory as a function of oral tradition for meaningful material and serial position effect

Culture and Math AbilitiesCulture and Math Abilities

Universal: Ability to do math Everyday cognition

Cultural differences: overall math abilities and achievements (these differences probably due to differences in educational systems and practices)

Culture and Problem SolvingCulture and Problem Solving

Problem solving: process of discovering ways of achieving goals that are not readily attainable.

Solving of two-step problems depended on context for Liberians

Solving of syllogisms related to schooling

Culture and CreativityCulture and Creativity

Universal: Characteristics of creative individuals Across cultures, highly creative individuals

posses a high capacity for hard work, willingness to take risks and high tolerance for ambiguity and disorder.

Cultural differences: specific ways in which creativity fostered

Culture and Dialectical ThinkingCulture and Dialectical Thinking

Dialectical thinking: tendency to accept contradictions in thought or belief. Not good or bad but good and bad

Cultural differences: East Asians prefer dialectical thinking ,whereas Americans prefer logical determinism

Peng and Nisbett (1999)

Culture, Regret and Counterfactual ThinkingCulture, Regret and Counterfactual Thinking

Counterfactual thinking: hypothetical beliefs about the past that could have occurred to avoid or change negative outcome. Ex revisionist history.

Universal: Feeling of regret over inaction than action.

SummarySummary

Sources of cultural differences in cognition are unknown for the most part.

May be due to differences in ancient philosophies in Greece and China

Or it may be other cultural differences such as education

Or it may be noncultural factors

Culture and DreamsCulture and Dreams

Several cultural differences have been noted regarding manifest content of dreams, emotions associated with dreams and role of dreams in cultures.

Culture and ConsciousnessCulture and Consciousness Culture and Dreams

As noted in your text, cultural differences have been found between Finnish and Palestinian Children, as well as between Irish, Israeli and Bedouin children, as well as between Anglo-American, Mexican American, and African American women.

The role of dreams is also different across cultures, for instance Mayan Indians use dream sharing and interpretation in teaching.

Culture and TimeCulture and Time

Cultural differences have also been found on time perspective and orientation Hall (1973) Hofstede (2001): Long versus short-term

orientation There significant cultural variations on the

notion of “being on-time” Some research suggests cultural differences in

time orientation are related to weather, health and happiness.

CULTURE AND INTELLLIGENCECULTURE AND INTELLLIGENCE

Culture and IntelligenceCulture and Intelligence

The concept of Intelligence Technically speaking, from a Western

perspective, IQ is a conglomeration of numerous intellectual abilities centering around verbal and analytic tasks.

Historically, IQ is the most hotly debated psychological construct.

Is intelligence generalized (G) or situation specific (S)?

Traditional Definitions of IntelligenceTraditional Definitions of Intelligence

Intelligence: In American psychology, IQ is based on a conglomeration of numerous intellectual abilities centering around verbal and analytic tasks are purported to tap: Reflection of cognitive development Comprised of many subcomponents including

verbal and spatial comprehension Operation, content and product General intelligence (g)

Cross-Cultural and Multicultural Cross-Cultural and Multicultural Research on Intelligence Research on Intelligence

Cross-cultural and cross-ethnic group differences in intelligence

Great debate on sources of such differences. Is it biological or cultural? Is IQ biologically predetermined?

Twin studies, brain size, brain function Is IQ culturally determined?

Economic deprivation and social class Stereotype threat

Evaluation of both positions: Some problems with empirical evidence of both sides

Culture and Intelligence (cont.)Culture and Intelligence (cont.)

Is IQ biologically predetermined? Differences stem from heredity (are innate). See

Arthur Jensen. Twin studies indicate that identical twins raised in

separate environments are similar in IQ. Is IQ culturally or environmentally determined?

Ethnic and racial minorities score lower because they are economically deprived.

Culture and Intelligence (cont.)Culture and Intelligence (cont.)

Cultural differences may be the result of different beliefs about what intelligence is or due to the use of culturally inappropriate measures of intelligence.

Stereotype Threat (Claude Steele)-societal stereotypes about a group can actually influence the performance of individuals from that group (African Americans performed worse when asked to indicate their race before taking a test then afterwards.)

The Concept of Intelligence in Other CulturesThe Concept of Intelligence in Other Cultures

There are significant cultural differences in what intelligence is i.e., the concept and meaning of intelligence. Intelligence defined differently

This makes valid comparison of intelligence difficult if not impossible.

Intelligence tests require knowledge of culture, which also makes valid comparisons difficult

Culture and Intelligence (cont.)Culture and Intelligence (cont.)

Intelligence Tests The need for and use of IQ tests historically

was to help school personnel identify children in need of special education.

Not everyone benefited. Ellis Island-immigrants tested as mentally

defective. The average score of minorities continues to

be 12-15% lower than average European Americans.

Recent Developments in Theories about Recent Developments in Theories about Intelligence in Contemporary PsychologyIntelligence in Contemporary Psychology

To set the record straight, theoretical understanding of intelligence in American psychology are continually expanding. Creativity Emotional Quotient (EQ) Logical mathematical, linguistic, musical, spatial,

bodily kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal Contextual, experiential, componential

Intelligence maybe more aptly defined as “skills and abilities necessary to effectively accomplish cultural goals”