There are different personalities and cultures across the world. Each culture has different ways of handling day-to-day life challenges (Boer and Fischer, 2013). The two major culture presented in this case study are the Chinese and Australians. This paper analyzes the case study and defines cultural and cross-cultural psychology besides showing how people are very much the same even though they have different characteristics.
Overview of the Case
The case study of “ The Effects of Cognitive Appraisals of Communication Competence in Conflict Interactions: A study involving Western and Chinese Cultures” investigates the differences between the Chinese and Western people on perceived competence (Brew, Tan, Booth, and Malik, 2011). The researchers wanted to know how different cultures deal with conflict. The study focused on perceived effectiveness and appropriateness of each party’s communication during conflicts. The study involved a pilot study of 30 employees in Singapore. Their appraisals of communication competence in intercultural conflicts that they recalled were examined. Western expatriates judged the other party’s effective competence mainly on whether they had a direct and engaged communication. However, host nationals had a different way of judging appropriate competence. Their judgment hinged on cultural knowledge and interactional skills.
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A quasi-study followed the pilot study with 128 Australians and 180 Chinese students. The study showed that Australians discriminate between four types of conflict clearly with effectiveness than appropriateness judgments (Brew, Tan, Booth, and Malik, 2011). The Chinese result was vice versa. The result of the quasi-study supported that of the pilot study. The judgment of appropriateness and effectiveness in communication competence shows how much relationships between the two groups would improve in post conflicts. The evidence in the study supported the argument that people have different cultures, and they hold contradictory implicit cognitive theories of the true meaning of competent and incompetent communication in interpersonal conflict.
Definition Relationship and Example
Culture refers to similar traits and characteristics such as personalities, attitudes, and thought processes prevalent in a community or society. Different communities have common characteristics that define them. For instance, Chinese people have as a strong traditional culture that influences their belief systems. Western countries understand that factor; it is the reason for having Chinese restaurants where they can come together and share a meal to remind them of their heritage. The characteristics overlap between different cultures. People experience happiness, anger, and sadness in times of conflict regardless of their culture. However, the way they express emotions affects their communication effectiveness and appropriateness. It is important to understand the culture of different people in relation to their society.
Cross-cultural psychology is the connection between the body and mind. The body resides in an environment full of belief systems, norms, values, abilities, and relationships. Cross-cultural psychology tries to explain why Chinese in the Australian university would not communicate well with fellow students from Australia. It examines how different cultures influence behavior. In the case study, the researchers focused on the Chinese and Western cultures. The study shows how their perception of communication effectiveness and appropriateness differ because of the different influence of their cultures. The West has a culture where things are done in the best way possible. Westerners believe that they are the best, and they want people to accept their way of doing. They approve of each other but consider other cultures incompetent. Both the Chinese and Westerners have different cognitive theories on competent and incompetent communication.
Two different cultures interact in cross-cultural psychology. For example, every person feels a variety of emotions throughout their lifetime. Love is simple, but people make it complicated. Every culture experiences the same love and emotion but shows it differently. However, regardless of how different cultures show love, the feeling of emotion is still there (Milfont and Fischer, 2015). In the Chinese culture, a smile is a way to express joy and inner feeling of love. In the West, however, smiles are for professions such for public relation exercises even when it is not from deep within. Researchers could use such differences to analyze how cultures show love and why they do.
The Relationship between Cultural Psychology and Cross-cultural Psychology
Cultural psychology and cross-cultural psychology are related because psychologists need to understand a particular culture to research multiple cultures. It is important to understand different behaviors and interactions of people within their cultures and outside their cultures.
Methodology
The methodology associated with the cross-cultural psychology research understands people and the worldviews using case studies similar to the one between the Chinese and Western Cultures (de Wit, Greer, and Jehn, 2012). In the world, people are concerned with the way of handling conflicts. The psychological aspect of conflict is includes, emotions, power status and relational parts of the conflict. The cognitive theory of effective communication in the West varies from that of the Asian culture because of the way each of the cultures shows their psychological aspects. It is important to understand people and consider their worldview when conducting research on cross-cultural psychology research.
Understanding Race and World View
The case study has helped me understand how race, worldviews, and ethnicity are both separable and related. When considering race and ethnicity, Chinese and Australians have different race and ethnic backgrounds. They exhibit different behaviors and outward appearance. Chinese believes in their traditional values and hold to them with high nobility. Australians have a Westernized ideology, which affects their belief system.
Enculturation
Enculturation in the Chinese and Australian cultures is possible since each has different aspects in their culture that they can share with the other. The Asian and Western cultures can find a way to deal with conflicts by understanding one another. They can integrate their cultures to create a harmonized way of solving issues. Instead of taking and aggressive stance, the Asian and Western cultures should take a back seat and figure out a problem. The West believes that everything should be done immediately and at a fast speed. When Asians work in companies run by people from the West, they feel under pressure, and may not understand the need for pressure.
In conclusion, cognitive appraisal of competence in communication varies between the Chinese and Australians because they come from different cultures. The Western and Asian cultures have different ways of reacting to the same feelings, which explains the aspect of cross-cultural psychology. Psychologists need information on how people behave in culture outside theirs. Understanding cross-cultural psychology also involves studying different demographics and their belief systems. Although Chinese cultures differ with that of Australians, they could have common worldviews that make them inseparable.
References
Boer, D., & Fischer, R. (2013). How and when do personal values guide our attitudes and
sociality? Explaining cross-cultural variability in attitude–value linkages. Psychological Bulletin , 139 (5), 1113.
Brew, F. P., Tan, J., Booth, H., & Malik, I. (2011). The effects of cognitive appraisals of
communication competence in conflict interactions: A study involving Western and Chinese cultures. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology , 42 (5), 856-874.
de Wit, F. R., Greer, L. L., & Jehn, K. A. (2012). The paradox of intragroup conflict: a meta-
analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology , 97 (2), 360.
Milfont, T. L., & Fischer, R. (2015). Testing measurement invariance across groups:
Applications in cross-cultural research. International Journal of Psychological Research , 3 (1), 111-130.
