The Impact of the Parameter <i>Individualism — Collectivism</i> on the Formation of Behavioral Characteristics in People of Various National Cultures

Abstract

Different theories of cross-cultural communication developed by researchers in the field of humanities including cultural anthropology, social psychology, cognitive science, etc., offer a variety of ways to classify national cultures. At the same time, many agree that there is a need for finding clear and measurable fundamental parameters underlying any national culture. The article substantiates the use of the parameter of individualism vs. collectivism, already tested in the framework of anthropology and philosophy of culture with regard to both Western and non-Western cultures, as an effective way for cultural comparison. The article aims to give an overview of various theories of cross-cultural interaction and their elements; to examine where they overlap or diverge; to look into the correlation between individualist/collectivist value orientations and behavior; and to study this parameter realization on a number of cases. The study is based on philosophical, anthropological, and cultural psychological theories, including the theory of guilt and shame cultures by R. Benedict, theory of self–presentations by R. Baumeister and D. Hutton, theory of personality’s self-construction by H. Marcus and S. Kitayama, as well as theory of cultural logics by A. Leung and D. Cohen. As an empirical confirmation of the above theoretical approaches, the article provides real-life examples, collected by the author. Literature was subject to categorical analysis. Empirical data was collected and analyzed using methods such as participant observation and discourse analysis. The comparative approach and hermeneutics techniques served as a general methodological prism. The study shows that, at least since the 1960s, specialists in the field of cultural studies have been increasingly discovering limitations and inconsistencies in theories that previously claimed to be universal: many of the models which originated in the West do not adequately represent non-Western cultures. The study proves the workability of the parameter of individualism vs. collectivism for interpretation of behavioral inconsistencies between people of different cultures. This parameter is compatible with a wide range of frameworks and shows a clear correlation between behavioral characteristics in different cultures and allows to interpret phenomena that were previously uninterpretable.