3.3.1 Enculturation
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Key Definitions
Cultural norms: unique set of attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors specific to a particular culture
Cultural transmission: passing cultural norms from one generation to the next
Enculturation: process by which people learn the necessary and appropriate norms in the context—that is, cultural transmission (“teaching”) and enculturation (“learning”) are two sides of the same process
Essential Understanding
→There’s a bidirectional relationship between cultural norms and the individuals who make up particular cultural groups
↳ cultural norms grow out of the behavior of individuals, but individuals’ behavior is shaped by cultural norms
→ Mechanism of enculturation is cultural transmission, which on the part of the child takes the form of learning
↳ Trainor et al (2012) shows how active learning leads to enculturation
↳ Odden and Rochat (2004) shows how in some non-western societies, passive observational learning seems to be the predominant way
↳Demorest et al (2008) shows how enculturation affects cognition (cognitive schemas) on a deep level
↳ Kim and Omizo (2006) enculturation interacts with acculturation to influence identity ( and such related behaviors as self-esteem and the attitude towards one’s social group)
Researches
Trainor et al (2012)→Active learning as the mechanism of musical enculturation
↳key: enculturation is the result of active learning
→ studies the phenomenon of music enculturation
→ music is an integral part of any culture, and enculturation necessarily entails becoming sensitive to music from one’s culture
↳Ex: cultural sensitivity to music would be how the same voice timbre may be considered pleasant in one culture and aversive in another
Aim: test the idea that musical enculturation occurs through active learning
Method and Procedure:
→ 38 western infants who were 6 months old were randomly assigned to one of two conditions:
↳ 6 months of active participatory music class
↳ 6 months of a class in which they experienced music passively while playing with toys
→ DV 1 was sensitivity to western tonality
↳ measured by examining infants’ preferences two versions of a sonatina by Thomas Atwood (1765-1838): tonal and atonal version
↳ tonal version: original version
↳ atonal version: additional accidentals added
→ Infants preferences were then measured in a head-turn preference procedure in which a light was flashed, illuminating an interesting toy, and once the infant looked at the toy, the music started playing
↳ music then stopped once the infant looked away
↳ it was assumed that that the longer a child looks at the toy while the music was playing, the more the child likes the music
→ DV 2 was the social development of infants
↳ making music with other people is a cultural activity involving interpersonal interaction, so it was predicted that infants in the active classes would show more social development than those in passive classes
→ Social developments of the infants was measured by a questionnaire given to their parents
Results:
→ Children in the active class showed a preference to the tonal version of the sonatina, while those in the passive group didn’t prefer one version over the other
→ Questionnaires showed that infants in the active condition by age of 12 months showed significantly less distress to limitations, when confronted to novel stimuli, and they were smiling and laughing more
↳ they were also easier to soothe
Conclusion:
→ active music making in a social context involving infants and parents promoting musical enculturation of infants, including their sensitivity to cultural tonality and social development
Odden and Rochat (2004)→ Observational learning as the mechanism of enculturation in some cultures
↳key: participatory learning might not be a universal mechanism of enculturation
Aim: investigate the role of observational learning as a mechanism of children’s enculturation in non-western cultural contexts
Background:
→ Participatory learning is learning that occurs as a result of a child’s active involvement in a learning activity
→ Observational learning is learning that occurs when the child observes everyday activities without directly participating in them
↳ traditionally in theories of enculturation, participatory learning was believed to be the leading mechanism while observational learning was known as a starting point, but never the core process of cultural learning
Method:
→ longitudinal naturalistic observation of children in key contexts of village life
↳ semi-structured interviews with caretakers, teachers, pastors and chiefs
↳ parental belief questionnaires
→ One of the researchers lived in the village for 20 months
Participants:
28 children, aged 4-12, and their parents from a rural village in Samoa
↳Samoan society is hierarchical and socially stratified, which influences practically all practices
Results:
→ Observations and interviews showed high specificity of Samoan attitudes towards education and enculturation
↳ when there was a high PDI, questioning in class was discouraged since it was viewed as disrespect to the adult
→ children were left to learn on their own
→ caretakers believed that children learn by observing and listening their elders
→ Samoan houses often built without walls allows activities of nearby houses to be easily observable
↳ children and adults can then freely observe the activities of others since there’s no concept of privacy
→ By age 15, adolescents spend a significant amount of time doing chores
↳however, parents were never seen explicitly explaining or teaching to the child
↳ same for fishing: by age 12, children were skilled fishermen (would start to borrow fishing equipment and just fish by themselves)
→ Knowledge of the intricate societal hierarchy, ritual practice, and cultural concepts like authority and power was also acquired in the same way
Conclusion:
→ each culture may emphasize a different blend of mechanisms of enculturation
↳ In the Samoan context, observational learning plays a central role in children’s enculturation
Notes:
↳ these results are important for educators, especially in a multicultural classroom situation
→ children who grow up in an environment that emphasizes observational learning as a mechanism of enculturation may be at a disadvantage in a western classroom which is typically focused on direct instruction, scaffolding, and active participation
Demorest et al (2008)
↳key: enculturation influences cognition (cognitive schemas) on a deep level
Participants: 150 trained and untrained participants from the USA and Turkey
Procedure:
↳participants listened to several novel musical excerpts from both familiar and unfamiliar cultures (i.e. western, Turkish, and Chinese)
↳ then completed a recognition memory task
Results:
↳ participants were significantly better at remembering novel music from their native culture
↳ musical expertise did not correlate with this result
Conclusion: enculturation influences musical memory on a deep level (cognitive schemas for musical information)
Note: in this broad sense, cognitive counts as behavior, so this research study may be used to show the effects of enculturation on behavior
Kim and Omizo (2006)2006)→ enculturation, acculturation, and identity
↳key: enculturation interacts with acculturation to influence identity
→ Acculturation is the process of adapting to the dominant group (European American)
→ Enculturation is the process of retaining the norms of the indigenous group (Asian American)
Aim:
↳ examine the relationship between Asian American college students’ enculturation and acculturation in relation to the development of identity
Method:
→ correlational study
↳ all variables were measured through psychometrically validated questionnaires
→ Enculturation was operationalized as engaging in Asian American cultural behaviors
→ Acculturation was operationalized as engaging in European American cultural behaviors
Participants:
156 Asian American college students aged 18-24
Results:
→Both enculturation and enculturation scores didn’t correlate significantly
↳ lends support to Berry et al (1997)’s model where acculturation and enculturation are presented as two independent dimensions and the combination of these two dimensions results in four distinct acculturation practices
→ Were both related positively to participants’ perception that they are good and worthy members of their cultural group
→Enculturation was associated with increased positive feelings towards the Asian American group and the belief that being a member of the group was an important aspect of one’s self-concept
→ Acculturation was associated with self-efficacy, cognitive flexibility and the belief that others view the Asian American group positively
Conclusion:
→ Enculturation and acculturation being two independently processes may both contribute positively to the development of identity
Notes:
→ the study has all typical limitations of a self-report study with college students
→ Generalizability of findings is limited to a specific population of Asian American college students
→ Since the results are correlational, there’s no actual cause and effect relationship
→ Credibility of the results depends on the psychometric properties of the questionnaires used to measure the variables