Cultural Psychology –Developmental Perspective

1. Cultural Psychology –Developmental Perspective SenizCelimli 10.26.09

2. Cultural Psychology • All social and emotional development occurs in a cultural context • Culture involves shared beliefs and practices which unite communities and differentiate them from other communities • What may appear to be a universal feature of development, is often one of myriad, cultural solutions to a problem Messinger

3. What is cross-cultural psychology? • The critical and comparative study of cultural effects on human psychology • Comparative: at least two samples that represent at least two cultural groups • Critical: requires critical thinking • Cross-cultural psychology establishes psychological universals (Berry et al., 1992; Lonner, 1980). Shiraev & Levy, 2001 Celimli

4. Erickson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development Erikson, E. H. (1950). Childhood and Society • Each stage is driven by a developmental conflict, problem, or crisis. • Healthy and mature personality is defined as emerging from a positive resolution • at each stage. Celimli

5. Erikson’s theory has been criticized by… • mixing objective description with subjective prescription • an healthy individual is defined in accordance with Western cultural ethics, values, and social institutions • an ideal has been defined rather than the actual Celimli

6. Erickson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development – Universal across Cultures? • Erikson’s stages and their general sequence cannot always be observed in other cultures • In industrialized and economically developed cultures, freedom of choice can be relatively easily practiced • In developing or under-developed countries, choices could be very limited that most of which had been prescribed at birth *** In general, Erikson’s theory is more applicable to the developed societies (broad socialization), where freedom of choice is enabled and encouraged than societies have strict ways of living (narrow socialization) Celimli

7. Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development • Sensorimotor (0-2): learning to interact with the immediate environment • Preoperational (2-7): language acquisition • Concrete operation (7 to early adolescence): learning logic • Formal operations (adolescence): development of abstract thinking *** Do these stages apply to every culture? Celimli

8. Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development – Universal across Cultures? *** Do these stages apply to every culture? • Some argues …. the stage sequences are universal (Dasen, 1994) • Some have criticized Piaget’s and his followers’ methodology and procedure (Gardiner, Mutter, & Kosmitzki, 1998) • Formal operational stage – accomplished by all adolescents in all societies?? Celimli

9. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development • Preconventional Level • Obedience and Punishment • Individualism and Exchange • Conventional Level • Interpersonal relationships • Maintaining social order • Postconventional Level • Social contracts and individual rights • Universal ethical principles Celimli

10. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development – Universal across Cultures?? • Some skepticism about cross-cultural validity of Kohlberg’s theory: • whether the hypothetical stories would also be applicable to cultures other than Western cultures in terms of legal structures and moral principles *** In many cultures, moral judgments are based on pre-existing traditions (not on freedom of choice) Celimli

11. Current trend of human development • Emphasizing the meaning of both individual and cultural factors of socialization • Previously, individual autonomy, defined as independence from others: a requisite of healthy human development Celimli

12. Autonomy vs. Interdependence? • Value system, rules, and the structure of the family unit have been formed through the societal demands which show variances across time and cultures. • A model of family change (Kağıtçıbaşı, 1996a, 1996b) - analyzes the link between the self, family, and society in order to explain cultural differences Celimli

13. Family Interaction Patterns(Kagitcibasi, 1996, 2005) • Pattern of total interdependence: • The child: the economic value • Independence of the child: not valued and evaluated • Obedience is the essential of the childrearing • Pattern of dependence: • The child: the main source of economic costs • Independence of the child: highly valued • Autonomy is the basic childrearing orientation • The pattern of psychological interdependence: • The child: no longer the economic value • Psychological interdependence of the child: valued • Closeness and relatedness (not separateness) is the ultimate goal in childrearing practices Celimli

14. Mother’s reports: • More San Pedro mothers: • reported privileged treatment of toddler, expected that older sibling cooperate with toddler’s wishes • reported that toddlers do not yet understand social consequences of own actions • Reported that siblings (3 to 5 y.o.) are their own primary caregivers and have household responsibilities • Transitions and Continuity • Mayan families: abrupt transition at birth of next child • Salt Lake City families: continuity of treatment from toddlerhood through childhood (rules of sharing, compelled to behave) • Cultural Models: Responsible cooperation developed through freedom of choice v. sharing of rules and resources Nayfeld

15. Child’s play • Child’s development – should be evaluated within cultural context • Observation child’s play can help to reveal cultural influences on children’s development (Rogoff, 2003) • 2nd year-old – child’s play moves from exploratory to symbolic (pretend play) Celimli