psych546.htm

Psychology 546

Schonemann

Fall Semesters

3 credit hours

Prerequisites: None

Texts (all PB):

1. Bond (ed):  Psychology of the Chinese people. Oxford University, 1986.

2. Hucker: China to 1850. A short history. Stanford University Press, 1978.

Over the last few decades, Chinese scholars have published many cross-cultural studies that shed new light on cultural similarities and differences between East and West. They  only recently have become available in English translation (cf. text 1).

The purpose of the course is to introduce students to this research in the hope it will broaden their horizons and enhance their appreciation of other cultures as well as their own. To achieve this end, and also to develop some feel for the traditional sensitivity of Asian scholars to historical and cultural connections, research findings will be reviewed against a background of the cultural history of East vs. West.

Some videos will be shown and discussed in class.

1. Overview. Limitation to 4 Chinese subcultures: Mainland, Taiwan, Hongkong, Overseas Chinese, and 2 Western subcultures: Europe and US. Broad perspectives: differences in topography, differences in religious and ideological outlook (Weber), differences in language (Sapir/Whorf). The Needham question.

2.  Similar cultural evolutions up to Rome and Han empires:

West: Cultural achievements predating classical period.  Greece, Macedonia, Rome.

China: Bronze age, Qin unification. Han.

Silk road.

3.  Divergence up to 1200.

West: Rise of Christianity, decline of Rome. Migrations and invasions, cultural stagnation during the middle ages. Islam preserves classical heritage. Charlemagne. Crusades.

China: Confucionism, civil service, centralization. Cultural ascendancy of China during Tang and Song eras.

East-West contacts during Mongol empire, not all voluntary, lay ground for Western resurgence during  renaissance.
 
3. Rise of Europe, decline of China up to 19th century

West: Rediscovery of the Greek heritage and the eventual liberation from  stifling dogma. Reform and revolution. Growth of nationalism and capitalism. French  and American revolution, scientific and industrial revolution. Imperialism, colonialism.

China: Stagnation and isolation during Ming and Qing period. Confrontation with the West (opium wars). Rise of revolutionay movements (Tai ping rebellion, boxers) and reform movements. 1911 revolution and May 4th movement. Search for East-West synthesis.

4. Family and socialization: Interaction between culture and child rearing practices. Differences in pre-school practices (video). Between-generational problems accentuated by rapid cultural transitions in the East. Modernization vs. Westernization. Family disintegration in the West.

5. Perception:  Limitations of "scientific psychology" modelled on physical sciences. Review of experimental studies of cross-cultural differnces in visual scanning, saccade frequencies, optical illusions, embedded figure tests. Carpentered world hypothesis.

6. Cognition: cross-cultural differences in Stroop interference test results inconclusive. Presumed ties to hemispheric specialization speculative. Judgements under uncertainty. Bloom's ill-fated counterfactual theories.
 
7. Personality and its change

Familialism, conformism, individualism. Attitude research (Yang Guo-shu). Age as an asset and a liability. Changing role of women.
 
8. Social psychology

Guanxi, face games. Stereotypes, racism. Social distance, degree of (in)formality in social interactions. Privacy. Concern with social ostracism. Prudishness as a cultural variable.
 
9. Psychometrics: Early studies comparing oriental with US students compared to more recent studies (Stephenson). Ability vs. effort controversy.
 
10. Psycholinguistics: idiograhic, syllabic, alphabetic languages. Theories about cognitive-linguistic connections (Sapir/Whorff, "the alphabet effect").

11. Time remaining: Term paper presentations.