Sociocultural Approach - Cultural Influences

Cultural Norms:

• A set of rules based on socially or culturally shared ne;iefs of how an individual ought to behave to be accepted with that group.

Cultural Dimensions:

A way to think about something. Cultural dimensions are the values within the culture that influence behaviour and cognition.

Individualism and collectivism

• individualism - you are responsible for yourself only

• Collectivism - you are responsible for society and society is responsible for you. Society is more important than the individual

Enculturation:

• when we learn the shared behaviours and values of OUR culture

• Process of acquiring the cultural norms and values of one's heritage culture

• Can be called ‘home’ or ‘natural’ culture

• We are born with a culture, we learn to adopt the norms of our heritage culture in a variety of ways

• We learn cultural norms through our parents, school, or the media. One way in which we learn these “rules” of behaviour is through direct instruction – that is, rewards and punishments from our parents or other “gatekeepers” in our society.

Acculturation:

• When we learn behaviours and values of OTHER cultures

• Happens through contact with another culture, usually after an individual has been enculturated to their heritage culture.

Acculturative stress:

• A reduction in health status of individuals who are undergoing acculturation

• For which there is evidence that these health phenomena are related systematically to acculturation phenomena.