Cultures are typically divided into two categories: collectivist and individualist. Individualist cultures, such as those of the United States and Western Europe, emphasize personal achievement regardless of the expense of group goals, resulting in a strong sense of competition. Pretty much Darwinist from a social perspective. Collectivist cultures, such as those of Saudi Arabia, Kenya,China, and Japan, emphasize family and work group goals above individual needs or desires.
Collectivism and individualism deeply pervade cultures. People simply take their culture's stance for granted. In the U.S., everything from 'self-serve' buffet tables to corporate structure to cowboy movies to payment card rules reflect the deeply ingrained individualism.
Both collectivist and individualistic cultures have their failings. People in individualist cultures are susceptible to loneliness, and people in collectivist cultures can have a strong fear of rejection. Elders who instill collectivist rejection rules in youngsters are often rejected by foreign direct investment from individualist capital. Individualistic Doers are self-assured and very independent people. They are quiet and realistic, very rational, extremely matter of fact people. They strongly cultivate their individualism and enjoy applying their abilities to new tasks. But they are also very spontaneous and impulsive persons who like to follow their sudden inspirations.
Traits of Collectivism
Each person is encouraged to be an active player in society, to do what is best for society as a whole rather than themselves.
The rights of families, communities, and the collective supersede those of the individual.
Rules promote unity, brotherhood, and selflessness.
Working with others and cooperating is the norm; everyone supports each other.
as a community, family or nation more than as an individual
Traits of Individualism
"I" identity.
Promotes individual goals, initiative and achievement.
Individual rights are seen as being the most important. Rules attempt to ensure self-importance and individualism.
Independence is valued; there is much less of a drive to help other citizens or communities than in collectivism.
Relying or being dependent on others is frequently seen as shameful.
People are encouraged to do things on their own; to rely on themselves.
Examples of Countries with Generally Collectivistic Cultures
China (Mainland and Taiwan)
Pakistan
Indonesia
Bangladesh
Malaysia
Egypt
Greece
Cyprus
Ghana
Nepal
Argentina
Armenia
Belarus
Brazil
Bulgaria
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
Georgia
India
Kazakhstan
Korea
Lebanon
Portugal
Romania
Russia
Ukraine
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Singapore
Turkey
Vietnam
African countries (Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, Somalia, etc.)
Poland
Philippines
Japan
Examples of Countries with Generally Individualistic Cultures
United States
Australia
United Kingdom
Canada
Netherlands
Hungary
New Zealand
Italy
Belgium
Sweden
Ireland
Norway
Switzerland
Germany
South Africa
Finland
Poland
Luxembourg
Czech Republic
Austria
Israel
Slovakia
Spain
Poland (post-communist generation)
Attribution is the process of understanding the actions of others based on limited information. Since the process is inexact, large errors often creep in. In individualistic cultures, there is a strong bias towards attributing a person's behavior to the characteristics of that person, instead of to the situation that person is in. This is called the fundamental attribution error. People in collectivist cultures have this bias to a much lesser degree.
Personality Types
The stereotype of a 'good person' in collectivist cultures is trustworthy, honest, generous, and sensitive, all characteristics that are helpful to people working in groups. In contrast, a 'good person' in individualist cultures is more assertive and strong, characteristics helpful for competing.
The idea of the 'artistic type' or 'bohemian' is not usually found in collectivist cultures. However, collectivist cultures usually have a 'community man' concept not present in individualist cultures.
The Clash Between Collectivism and Individualism in Chinese Culture
In Chinese society, collectivism has a long tradition based on Confucianism, where being a 'community man' or someone with a 'social personality is valued. Additionally, there is the personality type, who is worldly and committed to family.
Individualist thinking in China was formed by Lao Zi and Taoism. He taught that individual happiness is the basis of a good society and saw the state, with its "laws and regulations more numerous than the hairs of an ox," as the persistent oppressor of the individual, "more to be feared than fierce tigers." He was an opponent of taxation and war, and his students and the tradition that followed him were consistently individualistic.
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