Information and Communication Technology and Cultural Change

Abstract

This paper studies whether and how information and communication technology (ICT) changes self-construal and cultural values in a developing country. Ethiopian children were given laptops in the context of an ICT for development scheme. We compared children who used laptops (n = 69) with a control group without laptops (n = 76) and a second control group of children whose laptop had broken down (n = 24). Results confirmed that after 1 year of laptop usage, the children’s self-concept had become more independent and children endorsed individualist values more strongly. Interestingly, the impact of laptop usage on cultural values was mediated by self-construal (moderated mediation). Importantly, modernization did not “crowd out” traditional culture: ICT usage was not associated with a reduction in traditional expressions (interdependent self-construal, collectivist values). Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

The Development of Psychological Capacity for Action: The Empowering Effect of a Microfinance Programme on Women in Sri Lanka

“…For example, in a laptop program for students, primary school children in Ethiopia, independent of their elders and teachers, learned to master the laptop. This active and often shared laptop use triggered the stronger development of an agentic self as evidenced by stronger reasoning skills, an independent self‐construal, changes in cultural values, and more positive attitudes toward gender equality (Hansen, Postmes, Van der Vinne, & Van Thiel, ; Hansen, Postmes, Tovote, & Bos, ).…”

Debating globalization: Perceptions of the phenomenon based on political positioning and on ideological understandings of economy, culture, and the nation‐state

“…Globalization is a multidimensional phenomenon with important societal implications, and an emerging research area in psychology (Diaz & Zirkel, ). A growing body of sociopsychological research addresses the changes associated with globalization in issues of identity (Buchan et al, ; Hansen, Postmes, van der Vinne, & van Thiel, ), intergroup relations (Thomas & McGarty, ), and global and collective action (Brunsting & Postmes, ). Globalization is hence an impactful process and an ideological concept calling for examination of its discursive superstructure (Jost et al, ).…”

Brokering Culture and Power in a Media-Driven World: Parents of Adolescents in Northern Thailand

“…Empirical scholarship has, in part, aligned with this proposal. Research suggests that exposure to media facilitates movement toward endorsing values of independence and individualism; it does not, though, conclusively suggest movement away from endorsing values of interdependence and collectivism (Hansen et al, 2014;Hansen, Postmes, van der Vinne, & van Thiel, 2012). Hansen and colleagues' social-psychological research points to the coexistence of interdependent and independent cultural values in cases of experimentally manipulated technological change.…”