Cultural differences in process and person focus: Congratulations on your hard work versus celebrating your exceptional brain

Cultural difference, inside and out

“…For example, researchers have documented that The emotions portrayed in photographs of politicians differ (Tsai et al, ). Taiwanese and Chinese leaders' smiles were more likely to depict low‐arousal positive affect (calmer smiles) and American leaders' smiles depicted high‐arousal positive affect (excited smiles). In greeting cards that people send for bereavement, German cards were more likely to acknowledge the recipients' sadness, while American cards focused on positive memories and emotions (Americans desire to avoid negative affect; Koopmann‐Holm & Tsai, ). In greeting cards that people send for graduation, American cards focus on a person's stable traits (e.g., their intelligence), whereas Chinese cards emphasized people's hard work and effort (Choi & Ross, ). In children's books written by Native Americans (compared to those by non‐Native Americans), humans were depicted interacting with the natural world; they also mentioned names of plants and to describe seasons and natural events (Medin & Bang, ). In the website mission statements of universities and corporations, companies and universities in the American Northeast promote an “old and established” persona, whereas those in the American West promote innovation and freedom (Plaut, Markus, Treadway, & Fu, ). In children's books from Japan and the USA, Japanese stories were more likely to be about conformity and group harmony (for example, a story about a tall poplar that gets knocked down in a hurricane), whereas American stories were about self‐direction and achievement (Imada, ).Other cultural products studies have investigated changes within a culture over time, documenting the truism that culture is constantly changing. For example, Definitions of the word “happiness,” as indexed by standard English‐language dictionaries, have changed over time.…”

“…• In greeting cards that people send for graduation, American cards focus on a person's stable traits (e.g., their intelligence), whereas Chinese cards emphasized people's hard work and effort (Choi & Ross, 2011).…”

Cultural psychology.

“…The same situation that is a threat to personal honor in one culture may be a source of amusement in another (D. Cohen, Nisbett, Bowdle, & Schwarz, 1996); a situation fraught with the possibility of losing face for people in one culture may be an opportunity for self-enhancement for those in another (Y. H. Kim, Cohen, & Au, 2010;A. Y. Lee et al, 2000); a decision that represents an opportunity to express one's preferences in one culture may be a situation demanding restraint in another culture so that one does not offend others (Hashimoto, Li, & Yamagishi, 2011;Savani, Markus, & Conner, 2008;Yamagishi, Hashimoto, & Schug, 2008); an occasion for frustration and threat for those in cultures that have an entity-oriented view of skills is an opportunity for self-improvement and growth for those in cultures with a more incremental view of skills (Choi & Ross, 2011;Heine, Kitayama, Lehman, Takata, et al, 2001;Oishi & Diener, 2003); a competitive environment for people in one culture may be a cooperative environment for members of another (see Allison & Blackwill, 2013;and Keller, Loewenstein, & Yan, 2011, on Chinese conceptions of competitive situations that are also cooperative, because competition and trying to outperform others helps everyone in the group achieve its goals; see also Mauss, 1925, and W. Miller, 1988, on how gifts can be seen as coercive or can be viewed as insults or provocations in small-scale societies that engage in competitive gift giving, such as in the Potlatch ritual; also see Cronk, 1989;Henrich et al, 2005; R. Lee, 1969).…”

“…Research by Heine, Lehman, Markus, and colleagues provides an excellent example of this, sketching out the cultural logic that weaves together relational selfconstruals, indigenous Japanese constructs (such as amae), self-critical tendencies and self-improvement strivings, concerns with face, implicit theories of motivation, well-being, and emotion regulation (Choi & Ross, 2011;Doi, 1973;Heine et al, 1999;Markus & Kitayama, 1991; see also the section on soft embodiment). A series of articles tied together various aspects of Japanese culture, illuminating the logic of a culture that seems to operate according to principles that to Westerners are puzzling at best and outrageous at worst: Teach people to criticize themselves rather than feel good about themselves; have them work on what they are bad at rather than concentrate on what they are good at; inspire people by telling them how hard they will have to work; temper positive feelings and teach people to strive for balance in emotions; do not be a burden on others, but some dependence and the indulgence of dependence can be a good thing; and so on (Heine, 2005;Heine et al, 1999;H.…”

Social Cognition in Real Worlds: Cultural Psychology and Social Cognition

“…North Americans remember their success experiences more than Japanese (Endo & Meijer, 2004) and are motivated to re-engage in a task they are good at, whereas Japanese are motivated to re-engage in a task they are bad at (Heine et al, 2001). North Americans tend to believe that their talent and ability is fixed, whereas Chinese and Japanese tend to believe that their ability is changed by their effort (Azuma, 1994;Stevenson & Stigler, 1992); such beliefs are even encoded in graduation cards (Choi & Ross, 2011). North Americans tend to hold promotionoriented motivation, whereas Hong Kong Chinese and Japanese tend to hold prevention-oriented motivation (Hamamura, Meijer, Heine, Kamaya, & Hori, 2009;Lee, Aaker, & Gardner, 2000).…”