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Problem 3 of CCP minor
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Problem 3: Autobiographical Memory How autobiographical memories differ across cultures
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3.1 P3: Autobiographical MemoryBender: Number of Siblings in Childhood Explains Cultural Variance in
Autobiographical Memory in Cameroon, China and Germany
Cultural Differences in Autobiographical Memory (AM) & Parenting
- Memory talk = children learn to refer to themselves in the past (starts from ages 3-4),
emergence of autobiographical memory
- Parents teach which life events are considered appropriate biological cornerstones for
their particular cultural context
- Asian mother-child: normative style of reminiscence, e.g. repeating same questions
until child gives expected response, resulting in brief, less detailed memories
- Western mother-child: elaborative style of reminiscence, e.g. confirming &
encouraging child’s responses, resulting in more detailed memories
- Evidence: Cameroonian children have significantly later age of earliest memories than
German children, and show more socially oriented, integrated autobiographical
memories
- These cultural differences expected to become ‘larger & more stable among older
children’
- Westerners have detailed memories about themselves as the main character, Asians
have general memories w/strong group orientation, later age of earliest memory
- Interdependent cultures focus on elements appropriate for social interaction (e.g.
integration, late recollection, routine memories)
- Independent cultures focus on individuating elements (e.g. early recollection, highly
specific memories)
Ontogenetic Importance of Siblings
- Wang: Chinese adults w/no siblings reported significantly earlier age of first memory,
found to be more self-oriented
- Can have effect on views of self
Selection of Samples
- Prototypically interdependent in rural societies, children can contribute to family,
take care of parents, therefore having many children is valued. Independence in this
context is not functional, because independent child may leave the family, look after
their own self-interests
- Prototypically independent educated, middle-class, nuclear families (typically
Western): economic dependence on offspring not considered necessary/desirable,
children raised to be independent & self-sufficient
- Interdependent sample = Cameroonian
Independent sample = German
Chinese sample from suburban context = autonomous-related context, middle position
between interdependent & independent
- Most cross-cultural studies (on AM) focus on Asian & Western cultural differences,
so having Cameroonians in the sample increases opportunity to generalise
, Hypotheses
1. Cultural differences in AM Cameroonian participants to have later first memory,
less specific, more structurally integrated than German, Chinese take middle position
2. A) Having siblings affects AM first memories start at later age, structurally
characterised by integration, rather unspecific (routine) events. Few/no siblings: first
memory from earlier age, less integrated, more specific events
B) Number of siblings explains cultural variance in AM cultural differences in AM
will be reduced once effect of number of siblings is eliminated from cultural variance
Method
Measures
- Assessment of AM
Wang: participants asked to provide 2 earliest childhood memories, one centred on
the person themselves, the other revolving around others
- Coding of AM
Specificity autobiographical narratives coded as ‘specific’ or ‘general’
Cognitive complexity differentiation (perceiving differences – individual) &
integration (perceiving connections – social)
Current study uses elaborated levels of both:
Elaborated differentiation = restriction of meaning (limit the perspective, e.g. ‘in my
point of view’), relative comparison (e.g. more/most), contrast (opposite of each
other, e.g. happy/sad)
Elaborated integration = causal links (causal influences between things, e.g. ‘they
gave each other space’), similarity statements (shared attributes, experiences, e.g.
‘both of them came to see me’), resolutions (expression of central theme, e.g. ‘that
day will stay with me forever’)
- Sociocultural Orientation (PVQ)
PVQ = bias-reduced, cross-cultural instrument
PVQ conservation values encompass valuing conformity, security and tradition
Results
- No effects of AM observed across & within cultures for age of participants and for
educational background
- Gender: females reported later first memory than males
- Hypothesis 1 Germans < Cameroonian < Chinese
Specificity: German & Chinese > Cameroonian
Cognitive complexity: Germans more differentiated, Chinese did not significantly
differ from Germans, close to Cameroonian. Chinese & Cameroonian used more
elaborative integration than Germans
- Hypothesis 2a more siblings, more interdependent their values are, more
integrated their autobiographical information processing is, later the age of first
memory, less specific autobiographical account
- Hypothesis 2b number of siblings = highly significant mediator
Discussion
- 67% of cultural variance in sociocultural orientation could be explained by sibling
effects – shows that differences that are seen as being due to cultural differences could
be due to ecological differences such as no. of siblings
- Hypothesis 1:
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