Variation of Individualism and Collectivism within and between 20 Countries

Abstract

With data from a 20-nation study (N = 2,533), the authors investigated how individual patterns of endorsement of individualist and collectivist attitudes are distributed within and across national contexts. A cluster analysis performed on individual scores of self-reliance (individualist dimension), group-oriented interdependence (collectivist dimension), and competitiveness (individualist or collectivist dimension) yielded a typology of four constrained combinations of these dimensions. Despite the prevalence of a typology group within a given country, variability was observed in all countries. Self-reliant non-competitors and interdependent non-competitors were prevalent among participants from Western nations, whereas self-reliant competitors and interdependent competitors were more common in non-Western countries. These findings emphasize the benefits for cross-cultural research of a typological approach based on combinations of individualist and collectivist dimensions.