Culture and attitudes toward psychological help-seeking influence clients’ self-disclosure

Cultural factors are known to influence aspects of psychotherapy. The influence of cultural values on self-disclosure was explored through surveys of Greek migrants to Australia (n?=?106), native Greek Cypriots (n?=?189), and Australians (n?=?35) on individualism–collectivism, attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, and measures of self-disclosure. It was hypothesized that more collectivist participants would have less positive attitudes regarding self-disclosure. Against our predictions, all three groups showed highly similar attitudes toward seeking help and self-disclosure that were not related to the predicted links with individualism–collectivism.     

The relationship between shame and guilt: cultural comparisons between Ireland and the United Arab Emirates

The current study examines whether proneness to shame and guilt is related to the cultural dimensions of collectivism and individualism. Two groups of participants from Ireland (n?=?120) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (n?=?115) completed measures assessing collectivism, individualism, and shame and guilt proneness. Results indicated that both samples displayed similar levels of individualism and collectivism. The UAE sample reported significantly higher levels of guilt proneness and shame proneness characterised by negative self-evaluation. In contrast, the Irish sample displayed significantly higher levels of shame characterised by withdrawal tendencies. Guilt was positively correlated with individualism, but shame was not correlated with either scores on collectivism or individualism. Young Arab women appear to experience higher levels of guilt and shame characterised by negative self-evaluation in comparison to their Irish counterparts who displayed higher levels of guilt proneness.     

Reconsidering the Role of Attitudes in Exercise Behavior: A Decision Theoretic Approach1

Two studies demonstrated that subjective expected utility (SEU) theory predicted interest in, but not adherence to, a weightlifting exercise program. The studies also showed that attitudes were related to adherence for certain individuals. Specifically, attitudes toward not weightlifting were related to the number of days experienced subjects weightlifted. In addition, in Study 1, experienced subjects had more positive attitudes toward weightlifting and more negative attitudes toward not weightlifting than did inexperienced subjects, and the two groups differed on a number of underlying beliefs. Similarly, in Study 2, experienced subjects had more positive attitudes toward weightlifting and differed from inexperienced subjects on a number of underlying beliefs. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for several issues: the usefulness of SEU theory in the exercise domain; the importance of considering attitudes toward alternative courses of action (including inaction) when attempting to predict exercis–or any other–behavior; the need to distinguish between exercise adoption (initiation) and maintenance (adherence); and the importance of Beach's (1982, 1985) distinction between deasion making and decision implementation.     

Understanding associations between negatively biased attention and depression and social anxiety: positively biased attention is key

ABSTRACT

Background and objectives: Although research supports the premise that depressed and socially anxious individuals direct attention preferentially toward negative emotional cues, little is known about how attention to positive emotional cues might modulate this negative attention bias risk process. The purpose of this study was to determine if associations between attention biases to sad and angry faces and depression and social anxiety symptoms, respectively, would be strongest in individuals who also show biased attention away from happy faces.

Methods: Young adults (N?=?151; 79% female; M?=?19.63 years) completed self-report measures of depression and social anxiety symptoms and a dot probe task to assess attention biases to happy, sad, and angry facial expressions.

Results: Attention bias to happy faces moderated associations between attention to negatively valenced faces and psychopathology symptoms. However, attention bias toward sad faces was positively and significantly related to depression symptoms only for individuals who also selectively attended toward happy faces. Similarly, attention bias toward angry faces was positively and significantly associated with social anxiety symptoms only for individuals who also selectively attended toward happy faces.

Conclusions: These findings suggest that individuals with high levels of depression or social anxiety symptoms attend preferentially to emotional stimuli across valences.     

Individualist and collectivist norms: when it's ok to go your own way

We conducted two studies to investigate the influence of group norms endorsing individualism and collectivism on the evaluations of group members who display individualist or collectivist behaviour. It was reasoned that, overall, collectivist behaviour benefits the group and would be evaluated more positively than would individualist behaviour. However, it was further predicted that this preference would be attenuated by the specific content of the group norm. Namely, when norms prescribed individualism, we expected that preferences for collectivist behaviour over individualist behaviour would be attenuated, as individualist behaviour would, paradoxically, represent normative behaviour. These predictions were supported across two studies in which we manipulated norms of individualism and collectivism in an organizational role‐play. Furthermore, in Study 2, we found evidence for the role of group identification in moderating the effects of norms. The results are discussed with reference to social identity theory and cross‐cultural work on individualism and collectivism. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How values of individualism and collectivism influence impulsive buying and money budgeting: the mediating role of acculturation to global consumer culture

This study examined the effects of individual‐level cultural values of individualism and collectivism on impulsive buying and money budgeting and the mediating role of acculturation to global consumer culture. By applying the person‐environment fit theory and acculturation theory, we argue that people who hold cultural values congruent with the culture they come into contact with are more likely to acculturate to it, and that those who acculturate to global consumer culture (GCC) are more likely to display consumption behaviors stimulated by GCC, namely impulsive buying and poor money budgeting. The findings show that consumers acculturated to GCC report higher impulsive buying and lower money budgeting, and that it is not the distinction between individualism and collectivism, but rather between the vertical and horizontal values that determines the acceptance of GCC and the studied consumption behaviors. Results revealed that vertical individualists (those who believe in competition between individuals and who prioritize their needs over the needs of others) and vertical collectivists (those who believe in the subordination of individuals to groups) were more likely to be acculturated to GCC. Thus, the acceptance of inequality between individuals among other individuals, or within groups, is related to the acceptance of GCC and impulsive buying and money budgeting. The level of acculturation to GCC mediates the relations between vertical individualism and collectivism values and impulsive buying and money budgeting. Theoretical contributions to the research on horizontal/vertical individualism/collectivism, acculturation to GCC, and person‐environment fit theory, as well as practical implications for marketers are discussed.     

The impact of individualistic and collectivistic orientation on the judgment of self‐presentation

The aims of this paper are two‐fold: (i) to examine the impact of audience individualism and collectivism orientation on the judgment of strategic self‐presentations and (ii) to test whether audience individualism and collectivism orientation would affect the importance of likeability and competence in determining social outcomes. In two studies, participants evaluated modest and boastful presentations in an achievement context. It was found that the more collectivistic the audience was, the more likely the modest presenter was to be rated as likable, competent, and deserving of a desirable social outcome. In contrast, the more individualistic the audience was, the more likely the boastful presenter was to be rated as likeable, competent, and deserving of a desirable social outcome. The importance of likeability and competence in predicting the final social outcome was moderated by audience individualism and collectivism orientation. Likeability was more important in deciding the social outcome for those who were more collectivistic than for those who were less so (Study 1). Competence was more important in determining the social outcome for those who were more individualistic (Study 2). These studies build a potential theoretical bridge between social influence and social perception/social judgment literature. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Not all cultural values are created equal: Cultural change in China reexamined through Google books

Given its major transformations in recent decades, China has figured prominently in research on cultural change. Previous research converges in showing a general trend towards individualism in contemporary China while noting that rising individualism tends to coexist with enduring collectivism. To further understand this, we tested whether perceived traditional importance of cultural values would modulate the trajectory of cultural change reflected in word usage frequencies in published books. We re‐analysed Google's Chinese corpus since 1980 based on a broad sample of words associated with individualism–collectivism. We replicated the pattern of rising individualism and declining collectivism among words of modest and low perceived traditional importance. Most important, however, collectivistic words of high perceived traditional importance increased in usage frequencies with time, thus departing from the general trend towards individualism. Overall, our research underscores the role of core culture in cultural maintenance during times of rapid cultural change.     

Psychological distress and help-seeking among Taiwanese college students: role of gender and student status

This study investigated the relationship between psychological distress and attitudes toward seeking professional help and whether the relationship was moderated by gender and student status (traditional vs. non-traditional) among Chinese college students in Taiwan. 961 first-year university students completed standardised measures of depression, anxiety, attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, and a demographic questionnaire. Results from the multiple regression analysis found that while higher levels of depression were adversely correlated with help-seeking attitudes, gender was positively correlated with help-seeking attitudes. Chinese female students held more favourable attitudes toward seeking psychological help than their male counterparts. Additionally, gender interacted with depression and anxiety in affecting attitudes toward help-seeking. These results were discussed within the Chinese cultural context and recommendations were given for student outreach programme aimed at increasing utilisation of mental health services on campus.     

The Effect of Contact on Attitudes Toward Old Order Amish1

This investigation was guided by social categorization theory and the contact hypothesis. A convenience sample of 89 adults provided survey data to test the hypothesis that non‐Amish individuals who shared more contact with Old Order Amish would report more positive attitudes (less attitudinal bias) toward the Amish than would individuals who shared less contact. Blockwise hierarchical regression analysis showed that after controlling for demographic factors and known correlates of attitudinal bias, deep (but not superficial) contact was significantly related to positive attitudes toward the Amish. Deep contact and need for cognition explained 29.4% of the variance in attitudes that non‐Amish people held toward Old Order Amish. Application of these findings, suggestions for future research, and study limitations are discussed.     

Core Dimensions of Personality Broadly Account for the Link from Perceived Social Support to Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety

Specific personality traits and poor social support are risk factors for anxiety and depression. Little work, however, has considered the effects of social support and personality on these aspects of psychopathology simultaneously. We examined whether perceived social support mediates the effects of core personality domains on symptoms of anxiety and depression. Measures of personality (based on the Five‐Factor Model [FFM]), perceived social support, and symptoms of depression and anxiety were collected in a large Dutch adult population‐based sample (n = 555), and, except for depression symptoms, in an independent U.S. adult population‐based sample (n = 511). Path modeling was used to test the effects of FFM traits on symptoms of depression and anxiety, with and without the mediation of perceived social support. Social support showed no link to symptoms of anxiety and only modest links to symptoms of depression when controlling for the FFM traits. Neuroticism had the strongest effect on symptoms of both depression and anxiety, with Extraversion also showing links to symptoms of depression. Social support has limited influence on symptoms of depression, and no effects on anxiety, over and above the effects of personality. Links between social support and anxiety/depression may largely reflect influences of Neuroticism and Extraversion.     

The Values and Lifestyles of Idiocentrics and Allocentrics in an Individualist Culture: A Descriptive Approach

A considerable degree of research in cross‐cultural consumer psychology has focused on the effects of individualism–collectivism on consumer preference for advertising appeals. Recently, psychologists have demonstrated a growing interest in the individual‐level manifestations of individualism–collectivism. Idiocentrism refers to person‐level individualism, whereas allocentrism refers to person‐level collectivism. Drawing on individualism–collectivism theory, in this article we look at the lifestyle of idiocentrics and allocentrics. Our findings suggest a convergence between the etic‐ and emic‐level approaches, thus strengthening individualism–collectivism theory. The emic‐level findings of this study also suggest additional questions to be explored at the etic level. Finally, we make suggestions for applications in consumer communication.     

Three components of individualism

In this article, following an assumption that individualism and collectivism are separate factors, we have further established that three central components of individualism can be distinguished. In the first part of the article we examined whether the three proposed components of individualism—autonomy, mature self‐responsibility, and uniqueness—can be distinguished from each other in one cultural context, Estonia. A new scale was developed to measure the three aspects of individualism which demonstrated both the reasonable internal‐consistency reliability as well as convergent and divergent validity with several other measures of individualism and collectivism and related constructs. In the second part of the article we studied whether individualism generalizes across specific contexts or domains of social relationships, namely, across relations with family and close others; friends and peers; state and nation. The results of the three‐mode principal component analysis showed that the individualistic tendencies of the respondents did not differ much while measured toward the three types of social relation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Testing the Effectiveness of Brief Behavioral Activation Treatment for Depression—Revised: Changes in Depression,Anxiety, Dysfunctional Attitudes,and Mindfulness

We tested the effectiveness of Brief Behavioral Activation Treatment for Depression-Revised (BATD-R), and its impact on secondary outcomes: anxiety, dysfunctional attitudes, and mindfulness. It was expected that individuals who completed BATD-R would exhibit decreased depression, anxiety, and dysfunctional attitudes, as well as increased mindfulness. A sample of adults with depression (n?=?42) was recruited to complete the 10-week treatment. A healthy control group (n?=?38) was included for comparison. Outcomes (depression, anxiety, dysfunctional attitudes, and mindfulness) were assessed at pre-treatment, post-treatment or 10 weeks for the healthy control group, and three-month follow-up. At pre-treatment, the clinical group reported greater depression, anxiety, and dysfunctional attitudes, and less mindfulness than the healthy control group. At post-treatment, the clinical group reported decreased depressive symptoms, trait anxiety, and dysfunctional attitudes, and increased mindfulness, compared to pre-treatment. The control group did not exhibit changes across the 10 weeks. Clinical and healthy control group post-treatment scores did not differ. At three-month follow-up, the clinical group reported a slight increase in depressive symptoms from post-treatment, but still maintained lower depressive symptoms than pre-treatment. The clinical group maintained treatment gains in dysfunctional attitudes, and mindfulness. Results support the effectiveness of BATD-R and suggest BATD-R may influence dysfunctional attitudes and mindfulness.

     

Contact and Anxiety as Predictors of Bias Toward the Homeless1

We examined contact and anxiety as predictors of attitudes toward the homeless and attributions for homelessness. Study 1 presents data on undergraduates' attitudes, Study 2 reports on student and nonstudent data from an Internet survey, and Study 3 examined attitudes of individuals who have been homeless at one time. Structural equation modeling and path analyses indicated that data fit our conceptual model well and that contact quality consistently predicted more positive attitudes and situational attributions for homelessness. However, contact quantity did not reliably predict attitudes or attributions, and the mediating role of anxiety was inconsistent across studies. We contrast results with findings regarding attitudes toward other types of out‐groups and suggest reasons for why our findings differ.     

Assessing alternative models of individualism and collectivism: a confirmatory factor analysis

Six alternative structural models of individualism–collectivism are reviewed and empirically compared in a confirmatory factor analysis of questionnaire data from an Australian student sample (N = 340). Central to the debate about the structure of this broad social attitude are the issues of (1) polarity (are individualism and collectivism bipolar opposites, or orthogonal factors?) and (2) dimensionality (are individualism and collectivism themselves higher‐order constructs subsuming several more specific factors and, if so, what are they?). The data from this Australian sample support a model that represents individualism and collectivism as a higher‐order bipolar factor hierarchically subsuming several bipolar reference‐group‐specific individualisms and collectivisms. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Perceived cultural attitudes toward homosexuality and their effects on Iranian and American sexual minorities

This study examined the relationship between three mental health constructs and perceived cultural attitudes toward homosexuality among lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals. Specifically, differences in perceived cultural attitudes and depression, self-esteem, and perceived stress between 49 Iranians and 47 Americans were compared. It was hypothesized that (a) perceived cultural attitudes toward homosexuality would be more negative among Iranians than Americans; (b) perceived cultural attitudes would be related to depression, self-esteem, and perceived stress; and (c) that Iranian participants' scores on the depression, self-esteem, and perceived stress measures would reflect poorer mental health than that of their American counterparts. Results indicated more negative perceptions of cultural attitudes toward homosexuality among Iranians. Contrary to prediction, however, no difference was found in levels of depression, self-esteem, and perceived stress among American and Iranian participants. Findings are discussed in terms of cultural and familial differences with regard to sexual orientation disclosure.     

The effects of individualistic‐collectivistic value orientations on non‐fatal suicidal behavior and attitudes in Turkish adolescents and young adults

This study aimed at investigating the effects of individualistic‐collectivistic value orientations on non‐fatal suicidal behavior and attitudes in Turkish adolescents and young adults. A questionnaire containing measures of individualism, collectivism (INDCOL), non‐fatal suicidal behaviors and suicidal attitudes was used to collect the data. The results showed that both suicidal ideation and attempts were significantly more frequent in participants classified as individualist than those who were classified as collectivist on the basis of INDCOL scale scores. Participants with individualistic tendencies displayed more permissive attitudes toward suicide than those with collectivistic tendencies but collectivists believed to a greater extent than the individualists that people should communicate suicidal problems to others. Participants with collectivistic tendencies showed more accepting and helping reactions to an imagined suicidal friend than those with individualistic tendencies. Suicidal ideation and attempts were more common among adolescents than young adults. The findings suggest that individualistic and collectivistic value orientations and developmental status specific stressors play a role in the distribution of nonfatal suicidal behavior and the nature of suicidal attitudes.     

Measuring individualism and collectivism: The importance of considering differential components,reference groups,and measurement invariance

A new instrument of individualism and collectivism (I/C) was developed and three key issues in I/C measurement were addressed: differentiating components of I/C, understanding the impact of reference groups, and testing of measurement invariance. Three components of I/C were assessed in China and the U.S.: independence, competitiveness, and uniqueness for individualism; considering of one’s decisions on others, sharing of positive outcomes, and sharing of negative outcomes for collectivism. Collectivism was measured with respect to parents, friends, and general others. Results indicate that Chinese participants are less unique but more independent and competitive than their counterparts in the U.S. The expected cultural difference is found for parent collectivism across all three components and for sharing negative outcome with respect to all three reference groups. These results suggest that individualism is a multidimensional construct, whereas the dimensionality of collectivism appears to be a function of social distance. Measurement invariance was tested at configural, factor loading, and intercept levels for all components of I/C.