Post Pandemic Self; Self-system of Psychological Turn for Sustainable Eco-system from a Korean Mentality
The Covid-19 has made a truth very clear that everything is connected each other. Rarely noticed is that there are two patterns of connecting entities. Sometimes they connect as individuals such as in friendship. Often they connect as chok (parts) such as in family. Both patterns occur in every relationship in every culture. Psychology has mostly concerned with the individuality relationship; individuals relate with other entities independently on purpose. Foremost concern of modern psychologists has been on the wellbeing of individuals in dealing with others, separating the self from the environment (including other people). Although not intended, this view of individuals as independent being has contributed in accelerating the eco-crisis because it objectifies all others for its usefulness for human, resulting in the anthropocentrism. However, human beings relate with others as chok more often. Chok is a Korean vernacular meaning part or side, constituting the whole as entity or as business(il).
Part of this idea has been put forwarded as the relational orientation, representing the characteristics of Asian social psychology (Ho, 1993, 1998). However, the chok relationship is more than role relationship. When the mentality of chok operates, duty and obligation take precedence over right or privilege because the primary concern is to contribute to or not to disrupt harmonious functioning of the whole. Rituals of precipitating the mode of chok relationship are daily practice in Korea but are being replaced by the mode of individual relationship in many domains of life. In the chok mentality, self is inseparable from the surrounding. This mentality allows expanding the boundary of self from the encapsulated one and collective to the humanity and the whole eco-system. The pandemic urges psychologists to take turn from constraining the self within body to embracing the self within the eco-system. Psychological task is not to abandon the self but to expand the self (Choi, 2021).
Mutualist and Asymmetrical Polyculturalism: Dual Implications of the Polyculturalist Ideology on Intergroup Attitudes
The cultural ideology of polyculturalism assumes that cultures are interconnected through historical and contemporary interactions. Polyculturalism emphasizes dynamic plural influences of cultures on each other; thus, definitions of cultural groups are not categorical or stable. Research shows that endorsement of polyculturalism has positive implications for intergroup relations and intercultural attitudes. In this presentation, four studies with Chinese and Filipino samples explore the distinction between two characterizations of cultural connections: mutualist polyculturalism (MP) – where interacting cultures mutually benefit from a symbiotic relationship, and asymmetrical polyculturalism (AP) – where one culture benefits more from its relationship with another. A two-factor (MP & AP) scale was developed using EFA on data from a sample (Study 1, n=500) from Guangzhou, then validated using CFA in samples from Macau (Study 2, n=401) and Manila (Study 3, n=340). MP was positively associated with the multicultural acquisition subscales of global orientation and with cultural intelligence in the Guangzhou and Manila samples, but not in Macau. AP was associated with the ethnic protection subscales of global orientation and with genetic lay theories of race in all three samples. Study 4 (n=401) found that MP and AP were positively associated with appreciation for diversity, but only MP was associated with diversity of contacts and comfort with differences; moreover, with Chinese people as target outgroup, MP was associated with interest in intergroup contact, while AP was associated with realistic and symbolic threat. MP and AP were also associated with distinct action tendencies towards Chinese. The results support the dimensionality of the polycultural ideology that has distinct implications for specific intercultural processes.
Goal-directed human behaviors, including social decisions, are driven by motives. Thus, in order to understand a person’s decision, it is crucial to understand the underlying motives. Identifying the motives behind a decision is difficult, because motives are not directly observable, and the same decision can be based on very different motives (for example the decision to help can be driven by empathy or a social norm such as reciprocity). In my talk I will present recent work that illustrates how neuroimaging methods such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can be used to investigate social motives, and their modulation through learning. The potentials and limitation of this approach will be discussed and important questions for future research will be outlined.
Perks (and Burdens) of Higher Social Status in Japan
Higher social status tends to be associated with higher well-being and better physical health. However, most of such evidence relies on data from Western countries where self-orientation is sanctioned. Some studies have found weaker associations between social status and health in Asian countries where other-orientation is sanctioned. It is possible that in Asian cultures where higher social status is associated with both self-orientation and other-orientation (Miyamoto et al., 2018), higher social status is accompanied by both perks and burdens. In this talk, I will present a study that examined the association of managerial status with well-being, physical health, and relational concerns among a large group of Japanese in the workforce (N = 9,123). The results showed that higher managerial status was associated with higher well-being and lower relational concerns, yet with worse physical health. The negative association between managerial status and physical health was partly explained by excessive and compulsive working by people who occupy higher managerial status, suggesting a possibility that the obligations associated with higher status partly underlie the negative association between higher social status and health. Furthermore, especially among people with higher managerial status, being other-oriented was associated with higher well-being, less relational concerns, and better physical health. Other-orientation may be beneficial, especially for those who occupy higher managerial status in Japan.
The Role of Meta-stereotyping in Intergroup Relations
When people are confronted with members of other groups they are likely to have stereotypes about these other groups. Stereotypes have been found to play an important role in relations between groups. However, people are also quite likely to have thoughts about how members of other groups perceive them. Such beliefs about how other groups view the ingroup are called meta-stereotypes. In my talk I will discuss some antecedents, such as having low power and evaluative concerns, as well as several consequences of meta-stereotyping for how people think, feel, and behave. To illustrate the importance of meta-stereotyping, I will present an overview of some early work in which we examined the role of meta-stereotyping in different social contexts and with different groups. For example, we looked at stereotypes of ethnic minority groups, women, police officers, and HIV patients, and found that negative meta-stereotyping is related to reduced self-esteem, works stress, loneliness, and the confirmation of negative stereotypes about one's group. In addition, I will present recent work in which we examined the influence of meta-stereotyping on application intentions of men and women to apply for a job. Together, this research shows that meta-stereotypes have an important role in the relation between groups, sometimes even to a larger extent than stereotypes about the other group.
Attunement Processes in Class-Based Dyadic Interaction: A Physiological Linkage Approach
As social class divisions deepen in societies with rising income inequality, cross-class interactions are increasingly fraught with tension. Drawing on sociocultural theories of social class, the current research examined how class differences in self-expressions and social attunement might influence same-class versus different-class dyadic interactions, using a physiological linkage approach. Same-class and different-class dyads were paired for a lab interaction via a quasiexperimental manipulation. Dyads revealed information about their class backgrounds through a structured conversation at the start of the interaction. Participants’ pre-ejection period (PEP) reactivity—a cardiovascular response measure of physiological linkage—was assessed continuously throughout the study. Results revealed that lower-class participants showed stronger PEP linkage and weaker displays of dominance to their partners than upper-class participants, regardless of partners’ class similarity. Self-reports of liking and attunement revealed mainly class-similarity effects, suggesting that the linkage patterns tracked more subtle behavioral signals than more deliberative selfreports. These findings illustrate how physiological linkage could be used to understand how social class backgrounds and contexts shape dynamic class-based interactions.
Towards a Psychology of Informal Political Relations: Understanding the Legitimization of Illegal Actors
Individuals’ acceptance of, and cooperation with systems of authority is generally grounded in legitimization rather than coercion or fear. Whereas the legitimization of formal state authorities is typically related to the extent to which those authorities are perceived as adopting fair procedures, other factors may underpin the legitimization of illegal and semi-legal actors seeking to undermine state power. In this talk, I introduce a novel prospective on individuals’ legitimization of criminal and illegal groups. Specifically, I review a program of empirical studies investigating individuals’ legitimization of criminal organizations in Italy and hackers’ attacks in the UK and the US. Cross-sectional, longitudinal and experimental results emphasize the importance of both cultural factors and attitudes towards the state in predicting individuals’ legitimization of these actors. Findings will be interpreted in light of the thesis that acceptance of illegal and semi-legal actors may provide individuals with a way to express their aspirations for fairer social relationships outside formally sanctioned political channels.
Mengyao Li
Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods (Germany) li@coll.mpg.de
Understanding Radical Civil Resistance Under Repression: Evidence from Hong Kong and Chile
Despite the growing social psychological research on civil resistance and collective action, empirical work has largely been limited to normative acts of resistance in liberal and democratic Western societies. Across two distinct social movements characterized by high levels of repression – the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement in Hong Kong (N = 616, on-site survey during a mass demonstration) and the “Chilean Spring” protests of 2019-2020 (N = 769, online survey among community and university samples) – we aimed to address this gap and pursued two main research questions.
First, what psychological processes underlie protesters’ engagement in radical resistance? We tested three distinct, but not mutually exclusive hypotheses. First, low efficacy of non-violence and lack of hope might motivate engagement in radical actions (“nothing-to-lose” hypothesis). Second, protesters might use radical means strategically to achieve specific movement goals (“strategic choice” hypothesis). Third, radical resistance might be driven by the perception that extreme actions against repression is in itself morally righteous (“moralization” hypothesis). To test these hypotheses, we examined 1) the motivational differences between individuals who had engaged in radical protests and those who had protested exclusively in non-radical ways, and 2) whether the same motivations predicted willingness to engage in future radical acts of resistance. Our results across both studies provided support for the “strategic choice” and “moralization” hypotheses, but not the “nothing-to-lose” hypothesis. Second, do the state’s repressive responses contribute to deterring or mobilizing radical resistance? We proposed and provided evidence for a model of movement escalation, whereby past experiences of police violence predicted stronger intention to engage in future radical actions via increased risk perceptions, and heightened motivations for radical resistance.
Taken together, these findings illuminate that repression in the form of coercive police violence may be ineffective in quelling social unrest. Rather, it contributes to the radicalization of protesters and, ultimately, a conflict spiral within social movements. Potential boundary conditions and cross-contextual generalizability of the current results will be discussed.
SpeakerGyuseog Han
Biographical Note
Gyuseog Han is a retired professor of psychology in the Chonnam National University in Korea. His research covers broadly socio-cultural psychology of Korean people. More specifically, he
rks on a frame of moral development based on Korean worldview and on indigenous construction of mind. Previous publication covers hierarchical relationship, social values, history of psychology in Korea and
heoretical
issues in psychology.
SpeakerGiovanni A. Travaglino
Biographical Note
Giovanni A. Travaglino is an Assistant Professor in Social and Organizational Psychology at the Centre for the Study of Group Processes, School of Psychology, University of Kent. He has held
a faculty position at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen). His main research focuses on the nexus between cultural processes and political behaviour. He is co-editor with Benjamin Abrams of
Contention: The Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Protest.
SpeakerMengyao Li
Biographical Note
Mengyao Li is a Senior Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods in Bonn, Germany. Her research lies at the intersection of social, political, and peace
psychology. In her work, she explores the psychological processes of intergroup conflicts and their resolution, group-based violence, national identity, transitional justice, and political protests.
SpeakerJacinth Tan
Biographical Note
Jacinth Tan is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the Singapore Management University, School of Social Sciences. She studies how social status influences individuals’ cognition, affect
and biology, and consequently shape intergroup interactions that underlie socioeconomic gaps in health and well-being. She received her Ph.D in social psychology from the University of Illinois and postdoctoral
training at UC San Francisco.
SpeakerGrit Hein
Biographical Note
Grit Hein is a psychologist and neuroscientist, and head of the Translational Social Neuroscience at the University of Würzburg (Germany). Her team investigates how social interactions shape
human motivation, learning and behavior in health and psychopathology, combining brain imaging, computational modeling, and behavioral experiments.
SpeakerYuri Miyamoto
Biographical Note
Yuri Miyamoto is a professor at Hitotsubashi University in Japan. She received her Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Michigan and worked as a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on the interplay between cultural contexts and psychological processes by elucidating multilevel influences of culture and social hierarchy on psychological processes and by illuminating cultural differences in cognition and emotion and their health implications.
SpeakerErnestine Gordijn
Biographical Note
Ernestine Gordijn is a professor of social psychology at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. Her research focusses on intergroup relations and she is especially interested in how people feel, think, and react when their group is in conflict with another group. She published several papers with respect to (meta)-stereotyping and intergroup emotions. She has been the editor of the European Journal of Social Psychology, an associate editor at Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, and she is currently an associate editor at the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.
SpeakerAllan B. I. Bernardo
Biographical Note
Allan B. I. Bernardo is Distinguished University Professor and University Fellow at De La Salle University, Philippines. His current research relates to four broad themes: polyculturalism and intergroup relations; socioeconomic inequality; cultural aspects of hope, character strengths and well-being; and sociocultural dimensions of academic achievement and motivation. He obtained his PhD in Psychology from Yale University.
