There are two primary cultural perspectives, namely: individualism and collectivism. These cultural views provide an essential basis for analyzing the social world and making appropriate judgments. Culture also has a significant impact on an individual’s social group membership. Cultural values in either collectivistic or individualistic cultures influence how individuals interact with each other in a social setting. The American culture provides an outstanding example of individualistic cultural values that might influence intergroup relations.
I have an American Nationality, and since childhood, the American individualistic culture has formed my cultural identity. Individualism is central to American culture, and it significantly influences politics, economics, and social interaction among the citizens. American culture emphasizes self-oriented values such as self-sufficiency, self-competence, and personal independence (Zhang, 2013). Among these cultural aspects, personal independence is the most emphasized. The individualistic perspective of individuals as independent persons emphasizes independent living (Zhang, 2013). For instance, children are taught to be self-dependent since their childhood. Children are given their own room at an early stage of development to encourage them to be independent. It becomes their responsibility to clean and maintain those rooms. Also, teenagers start to take part-time jobs at an early stage to become financially dependent. Another example is that of the elderly individuals who live alone away from their children. Despite their age, senior citizens prefer to stay away from their children to have personal space and self-independence.
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The personal independence emphasized in the American culture is an individualistic aspect of the culture. Living an independent life means that an individual has limited contact with other people in the social surroundings. The children are taught to be self-reliant at a tender age, which significantly influences their social relations in adulthood. Personal independence may threaten social interactions with other people in social groups. An individual becomes more concerned with personal achievement rather than collective attainment. Since group contribution requires personal sacrifice that derails personal achievement, individuals tend to alienate from group memberships (Bornstein, 2003). Personal independence also considerably impact intergroup relations. The desire to be independent creates competition among individuals for the available resources. Therefore, when the opportunities to acquire those resources are perceived to be under threat by out-group members, the in-group members protect themselves from the threat (Malloy, 2008). This can be done at an individual level or collectively by the in-group members. Often, this may result in undesired social behaviors such as racial profiling and prejudice towards the out-group members (Malloy, 2008). Consequently, intergroup relations are affected.
References
Bornstein, G. (2003). Intergroup conflict: Individual, group, and collective interests. Personality and social psychology review , 7 (2), 129-145.
Malloy, T. E. (2008). Intergroup relations and reconciliation: Theoretical analysis and methodological implications. The social psychology of intergroup reconciliation , 345-365.
Zhang, Y. (2013). The embodiment of individualistic values in american nationality. Studies in Sociology of Science , 4 (3), 36-42.
