Modeling Impression Formation Processes Among Chinese and Americans

Abstract

This study offers the first investigation on the normative processes through which Chinese form impressions of others in social interaction. Using affect control theory and its archived sentiment data from China, I estimate the Chinese impression formation models with a new Bayesian method. I then compare the Chinese models to the impression formation dynamics in U.S. English. Results show cross-cultural commonality in the affective processing of cultural concepts, with determinants of impression formation processes being largely universal. Findings also reveal two cultural variations that align with patterns uncovered by comparative cross-cultural research: (1) the Chinese models show less rigidity in the definition of situation and (2) across two cultural models, the balance term has opposite effects on actor and behavior evaluation. To explore the implications of the impression models, I present a series of simulations, illustrating the predictive power of affect control theory as well as the impact of different cultural rules on social interaction.