PSY1PAC 2024 Semester 2 Lecture 1 PDF

latrobe.edu.au PSY1PAC Introductory Psychology: People and Culture Lecture 1:...

latrobe.edu.au PSY1PAC Introductory Psychology: People and Culture Lecture 1: A Psychology for a Cultural Species Prof Emi Kashima Department of Psychology, Counselling and Therapy [email protected] La Trobe University CRICOS Provider Code Number 00115M © 2023 by E Kashima Acknowledgement of country La Trobe University acknowledges that this event and our participants are located on the lands of many traditional custodians in Australia. We recognise that Indigenous Australians have a continuing connection to land, water and community, their living culture and their unique role in the life of these regions, and value their unique contribution to the University and wider Australian society. We are committed to providing opportunities for Indigenous Australians, both as individuals and communities through teaching and learning, research and community partnerships across all our campuses and online. We pay our respects to Indigenous Elders, past, present and emerging and extend this respect to any Indigenous participants joining us online today. The Approach Taken in This Subject The goal of this subject is to deepen your understanding of people in context. Psychological phenomena and processes take place not in a vacuum but in contexts filled with shared information—which we call culture. In this subject we recognise culture as an essential part of psychological phenomena and processes. We, therefore, discuss psychology and culture together for a better and more holistic understanding of people. We share our spirit with colleagues who advocate and promote decolonising psychology. 3 Lecture 1: Leaning Objectives – Part 1 1. Differentiate two definitions of culture 2. Discuss how human cognitive skills are unique compared to other primates 3. Explain the role of mentalising, joint attention and language in culture learning 4. Describe the ratchet effect and how that relates to cultural change 4 What is Culture? Two ways to define culture 1. Any kind of information, which is socially transmitted between species members, and can influence their behaviours. 2. A group who share a temporal, spatial and linguistic context, and therefore share socially transmitted information. 5 What is Culture? Discussion (1) What scene is this? Can you make sense of the scene? What ideas and emotions does it activate in you? Can you participate in this scene, appropriately? How? Why? “Shared information” 6 Cultural groups Shared spatial, temporal, and linguistic contexts provide people with opportunities to interact and share information, and thus also develop-- similar ideas, emotions, behaviours social norms –group consensus as to how to act in the relevant situation, and provide social pressures institutions –structured and formalised human interactions http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Jigokudani_hotspring_in_Nagano_Japan_001.jpg/250px-Jigokudani_hotspring_in_Nagano_Japan_001.jpg identity – the sense of who they are and Are these all are not, which derives from their group instances of cultural membership involving common fate. groups? 7 Is Culture Unique to Humans? In What Sense? Culture is not unique to humans in that: Chimpanzees in the wild have 39 distinct behaviours that are socially transmitted; orangutans have 19. Orcas in distinct regions ‘speak’ distinct dialects. Many other species of animals also transmit knowledge socially. Macaque monkeys were found to wash potatoes in the seawater; the behaviour spreads from one individual to others in the troop. It is not sustained as the transmission is NOT fast/robust enough. Human knowledge transmission is fast and robust, allowing the learner to reproduce the knowledge accurately and the group to accumulate and improve the knowledge over time. 8  The Mechanisms of Cumulative Culture Learning The sociality Motivation to bond, belong, interact, and fit in. Especially, when threatened, seek group support when uncertain, conform to the group Sensitivity to social information (since early days, but also throughout life), which allows selective knowledge transmission: Prefer models who are similar to you, popular, and prestigious. 9  The Mechanisms of Cumulative Culture Learning Social-cognitive skills, which enables-- Understanding other’s thought—theory of mind  More on next slides Sharing the attention to collaborate—joint attention Detailed understanding—miming and language use: explicit instructions increase communication accuracy. These skills permit gradual knowledge accumulation in human society—called the ratchet effect. 10 Foundational Social-Cognitive Skills Theory of mind: see self and others as having mental states, e.g., goals, intentions, strategies, emotions. Mentalising: imagine another’s internal state Perspective-taking: perceiving a situation from another individual’s point of view. Joint attention: purposely coordinate your focus of attention with that of another person, allowing two people to transmit knowledge and coordinate. It emerges before 12 months. x A person who wants to impart the knowledge 11  Cognitive Skills: Human Toddlers vs. Great Apes Hermann et al. (2007) Cognitive skills General Cognitive Social Cognitive Learn a solution from a that enhance demonstration; safety & food a a watch objects acquisition, eg, a pointed by understanding b others; follow causality, tracking b b their gaze to read rewards, and their intention. sizing up quantity.c Mage= 2.5 years 10 years 6 years Results: Human tots were similar to adult chimpanzees' n = 105 106 36 general cognitive skills but significantly outperformed 12 adult apes' social-cognitive skills. Gradual knowledge Accumulation in Human Society 2.5Ma 700-300Ka 50Ka Social-cognitive skills permit knowledge transmission, accumulation of knowledge and improvement over time: the ratchet effect 16th Century 19th Century 20th Century 13  Cultural Accumulation and Human Interconnection According to Dunbar's Social Brain Hypothesis, the human’s large prefrontal cortex, relative to body size, is an adaptive outcome of community living, which was facilitated by the motivations to bond/share and social-cognitive skills. Cultural accumulation is accelerating, facilitated by the increasing volume of social interconnections on a global scale, due to: Growing world population Globalisation Internet & social media Spread of higher education Industrial the COVID pandemic. Revolution 14 in UK 1760 Interim Summary 1. A definition of culture is it is ‘any kind of information, socially transmitted, and can influence our behaviours’. 2. Culture is not unique to humans, but cumulative cultural learning is; this ability is essential for understanding human psychology. 3. Cultural learning is made possible by human sociality (motivation to interact; sensitivity to social information) and socio-cognitive skills (theory of mind, joint attention, language). 4. Due to greater interconnections among people, cultural accumulation is accelerating. 15 Lecture 1: Leaning Objectives – Part 2 1. Identify sources of cultural diversity, including ecology and geography. 2. Describe Diamond’s view as to how geography indirectly impacted the 16th-century Spaniards – native American encounter through their accumulated cultures. 3. Define cultural dimension by using individualism vs. collectivism 4. Identify the additional dimensions of culture: cultural tightness, honour culture, Confucian cultures, and relational mobility. 16 How Does Cultural Diversity Come About? Humanity shares a wide range of cultural information, but diversity in cultural traditions is also observed. Cultural tradition is a collection of cultural elements, such as ideas and practices, passed down over generations, accompanied by the group’s sense of cultural identity. The study of cross-cultural psychology tries to understand the differences in cultural traditions and the reasons behind them. Cultural psychology studies cultural phenomena broadly, including cultural change. 17 How Does Cultural Diversity Come About? Sources of cultural diversity include -- Ecologies: climate, population density, arable land, pathogens, recurrent natural disasters Environmental resources: minerals, water, sunlight, plants and animals… Geography: latitude, isolation, shape of the continent… Historical intergroup contacts (trades, wars, mixing) Institutions (e.g., religion, organisation, governments, laws) Infrastructures (irrigation systems, mines, forts, ports) 18  Out of Africa Hypothesis “Homo sapiens arose in Africa; the descendants migrated out of Africa 150K years ago and spread across the globe”. By about 20k years ago (late Pleistocene epoch), people spread in a more diverse range of the earth than any other species have done, 15,000 AD 200 adapting to diverse ecological conditions and began ratcheting their knowledge, both independently and influencing each other. 50,000 AD 850 13,000 35,000 19  Resources Found and Shared across Continent Different plants and animals, suitable for domestication, were available in different regions, and they were transported over time. ⚫ More plentiful resources in Eurasia than the Americas. ⚫ They were regionally more Cereals in S.America Cereals In transportable in Eurasia SE Asia Corn Rice Millet than the Americas, due to 4,000 2,500 the continental shapes. Fertile 6,000 4,000 8,000 3,500 Unfertile 8,000 8,000 2,500 Cereals in SW Asia Barley, Oats Rye, Wheats 20 Continental Shapes Diamond, J. (1997). Guns. Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies. 21 Ecological and Geographical Impacts According to Diamond, the power difference between Europeans and Native Americans observed in their 16th-century encounter was due to continental shapes that impacted the accumulation of cultural elements. "Why did Inca empire fall to Spaniards in 1532, when the troop of 168 led by Pizarro travelled to Peru to conquest Atahualpa, whom 80,000 men guarded?" “Why you white man have so much cargo (material goods), and we New Guineans have so little?" Similar narratives apply to some other indigenous populations. 22 “The conquest was caused directly (proximally) by the Spaniards’ possession of guns, germs and steel but indirectly (distally) by the earth’s geography.” Spaniards’ advantage at the encounter Indirect causes Direct causes Spaniards vs. Natives Ecology/Geography: Greater in Eurasia Cultural: Animals & plants than in Americas: Guns, ships, steel ꓫ locally available for  Population growth.  swords/armour, horses domestication Political organisation of Sharing of knowledge ꓫ Continental axis of wars (including inter- Eurasia & Americas Technological group negotiation skills) diversity. Germs (smallpox) and immunity against them ꓫ 23 Ecological impacts are also emphasised in cross-cultural psychology Certain environments evoke specific economic and social behaviours, forming a particular culture. Evoked cultures refer to cultural traits based directly on the local ecology & geography. Transmitted cultures are socially transmitted (e.g., from parents to kids). 24  Examples of ecocultural hypotheses “Masculinity is stressed more as the goal of boys in harsher environments with scarcer resources” Gilmore (1990) “Group conformity is stronger in places with higher pathogen prevalence (higher risk of infection) (Murray et al., 2011). 25  The geography of thought: How Asians and Westerners think differently According to Nisbett, Asian vs. Western traditions involve distinct thinking styles, with respective roots in ancient Chinese and Greek philosophies, developed due to the ecology and adaptive social structure. Southern China – flat, plentiful water, suitable for rice growing Rice cultivation requires coordination for water irrigation and sharing of labour with family and neighbours; maintaining a large yet close-knit ingroup with a strong emphasis on group goals (collectivism) is adaptive. For successful social coordination, people must take others’ perspectives and monitor their relational concerns. This requires a holistic thinking style). 26 Greeks’ lands were less suitable for agriculture but suited for engagement in fishing, hunting herding, and trading with out-group tribes, which required less collaborative work. They developed smaller in-groups and acted relatively more autonomously (individualism). For successful inter-group relationships, skills to detect others’ traits, such as trustworthiness, were adaptive and promoted an analytic thinking style. We will look more closely into holistic and analytic thinking styles in Week 6. 27 Individualism and Collectivism Individualism and collectivism are collections of cultural elements. They are contrasted and form a cultural dimension. Cultural dimensions reveal the degrees to which cultural groups may differ from one another with respect to certain psychological attributes, such as values, beliefs, and patterns of behaviour. Individualism emphasises personal goals over group goals, the self-definition as distinct and unique, and independent actions. Collectivism emphasises group goals over personal goals, self- definitions reflective of roles and relationships, and ‘fitting in’ to the social norms and requirements. 28 Is Australia high in Individualism? Discussion (2) It is indeed one the highest in Individualism. When do you feel Australia is high in individualism? When do you feel otherwise? Is individualism getting stronger? 29 Other Dimensions of Culture (1) Cultural tightness: Tight cultures have clear rules and harsh penalties for non-compliance; loose cultures allow more freedom to choose how to behave as you like. Ecological threats such as natural and human disasters, pathogens and high population density are considered to increase tightness. Honour culture: Important to maintain reputation, dignity, and social standing; promotes the defence of family, community, and traditions. Honour cultures can be found in regions with traditional, tightly knit social structures and weak central control such as the police. 30 Other Dimensions of Culture (2) Confucian Culture: Confucian cultures reflect the influence of Confucius, a Chinese philosopher (551 – 479 B.C.E.) and emphasise moral values, social harmony, and the importance of family and social relationships. In Confucian cultures, filial piety—honouring and respecting one's parents and ancestors — is a fundamental virtue. High vs. Low Relational Mobility (RM) Cultures: High RM cultures provide greater freedom to choose friends and partners. High RM cultures promote expanding social networks to gain access to diverse perspectives, opportunities, and resources. Low RM cultures value long-lasting, deeply interdependent relationships and emphasise traditional norms and expectations regarding social relationships. 31  Cultural Change Culture is not stable but dynamic. Cultural traditions also change. 37 out of 51 countries lately showed increasing individualism or “becoming less socially engaged”. Cultural change is accelerating (again, due to population growth, interconnection, climate change, the pandemic, etc.), reducing differences across certain traditions. What sort of cultural information is more likely to change or spread? 32  Cultural Change Cultural ideas that are more likely to spread tend to be useful, emotional, easy to remember, and slightly surprising (but not necessarily correct or adaptive) The assumption that because of mutual influences, cultures have flexible boundaries and that each cultural tradition only influences individuals partially is called polyculturalism and contrasted to multiculturalism. 33 Next week Development of the self Reading: Heine, S. J. (2020). Cultural Psychology (4th ed.). Norton. Chapter 6 (Read pp. 204-219) 34 References Diamond, J. (1997). Guns. Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, Vintage. Gilmore, D. D. (1990). Manhood in the making: Cultural concepts of masculinity. Yale University Press. Murray, D. R., Trudeau, R., & Schaller, M. (2011). On the origins of cultural differences in conformity: Four tests of the pathogen prevalence hypothesis. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 37(3), 318-329. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167210394451 Nisbett, R. (2004). The geography of thought: How Asians and Westerners think differently... and why. Simon and Schuster. 35