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Implicit trait and contextual theories encompass lay people's beliefs about the longitudinal stability (vs. instability) of traits; the cross-situational consistency (vs. variability) of behavior; the ability to predict (vs. not predict) individuals' behavior from their traits; the ability to infer traits from few behavioral instances (vs. the difficulty of doing so); and the importance of traits in understanding people (vs. the greater importance of contextual factors such as roles and relationships). Implicit trait and contextual beliefs were investigated in two individualistic cultures, the United States and Australia, and two collectivistic cultures, Mexico and the Philippines. Hypotheses based on an integration of trait and cultural psychology perspectives were supported. The structure of implicit beliefs replicated well, and trait beliefs predicted judgments about cross-situational consistency of behavior in all four cultures. Implicit trait beliefs were stronger, and implicit contextual beliefs weaker, in the United States as compared to Mexico and the Philippines. Keywords: implicit theories; traits; cultural psychology

To examine cultural, parental, and personal sources of young adults' long-term romantic partner preferences, we had undergraduates (n = 2,071) and their parents (n = 1,851) in eight countries (Canada, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Malaysia, Philippines, the United States) rate or rank qualities they would want in the student's partner. We introduce and use a method for separating preference patterns into normative patterns (shared across families and generations) and distinctive patterns (that characterized particular families or individuals). We found that youth everywhere wanted partners who aligned with both their own dispositions and their parents' preferences, and these alignments reflected both culturally normative preferences and preferences distinctive to specific individuals or families. Students also predicted their parents' responses: Their predictions were reasonably accurate reflections of what a typical parent prefers, but also reflected distinctive assumed agreement (i.e., they overestimated the degree to which their particular parents shared their particular preferences for qualities that diverged from culturally normative ideals). Culturally normative patterns exerted a stronger influence on actual or assumed parent–child agreement and accuracy in relatively collectivistic Southeast Asia (Philippines and Malaysia) than in relatively individualistic English-speaking North America (the United States and Canada). Conversely, preferences for partners who shared one's distinctive personal dispositions were stronger in Western than Asian countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine cultural, gender, and parent–child differences in partner preferences, in eight countries undergraduates (n = 2,071) and their parents (n = 1,851) ranked the desirability of qualities in someone the student might marry. Despite sizable cultural differences—especially between Southeast Asian and Western countries—participants generally ranked kind/understanding (reflecting interpersonal communion) highest, and intelligent and healthy (reflecting mental/physical agency) among the top four. Students valued exciting, attractive partners more and healthy, religious partners less than parents did; comparisons with rankings by youth in 1984 (i.e., from the parents' generation) suggested cohort effects cannot explain most parent–child disagreements. As evolutionary psychology predicts, participants prioritized wives' attractiveness and homemaker skills and husbands' education and breadwinner skills; but as sociocultural theory predicts, variations across countries/decades in gendered spousal/in‐law preferences mirrored socioeconomic gender differences. Collectively, the results suggest individuals consider their social roles/circumstances when envisioning their ideal spouse/in‐law, which has implications for how humans' partner‐appraisal capabilities evolved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The psychological experience of Latinos/as is deeply rooted in a collectivistic culture that values relationships. This provides them with a sense of identity, purpose, and meaning in life. Consequently, self-actualization is most authentically achieved through their collective values and behaviors and the family plays a central role in defining self-actualizing. The family and the collective are the primary loci where Latinos/as meet their needs for safety, belonging, love, respect, and self-esteem. They are able to reach their full potential, capacities, and talents through positive and nurturing interactions with others. Familismo, personalismo, and simpatia are some of the most important cultural values and behaviors that allow them to fulfill their vocation as highly relational people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We assessed self-consistency (expressing similar traits in different situations) by having undergraduates in the United States ( n = 230), Australia ( n = 220), Canada ( n = 240), Ecuador ( n = 101), Mexico ( n = 209), Venezuela ( n = 209), Japan ( n = 178), Malaysia ( n = 254), and the Philippines ( n = 241) report the traits they expressed in four different social situations. Self-consistency was positively associated with age, well-being, living in Latin America, and not living in Japan; however, each of these variables showed a unique pattern of associations with various psychologically distinct sources of raw self-consistency, including cross-situationally consistent social norms and injunctions. For example, low consistency between injunctive norms and trait expressions fully explained the low self-consistency in Japan. In accord with trait theory, after removing normative and injunctive sources of consistency, there remained robust distinctive noninjunctive self-consistency (reflecting individuating personality dispositions) in every country, including Japan. The results highlight how clarifying the determinants and implications of self-consistency requires differentiating its distinctive, injunctive, and noninjunctive components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new measure of implicit theories or beliefs regarding the traitedness versus contextuality of behavior was developed and tested across cultures. In Studies 1 (N = 266) and 2 (N = 266), these implicit beliefs dimensions were reliably measured and replicated across U.S. college student samples and validity evidence was provided. In Study 3, their structure replicated well across an individualistic culture (the United States; N = 249) and a collectivistic culture (Mexico, N = 268). Implicit trait and contextual beliefs overlapped only modestly with implicit entity theory beliefs and were predicted by self-construals in ways that generally supported cultural psychology hypotheses. Implicit trait beliefs were fairly strongly endorsed in both cultures, suggesting that such beliefs may be university held. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the self-enhancement literature, 2 major controversies remain-whether self-enhancement is a cultural universal and whether it is healthy or maladaptive. Use of the social relations model (SRM; Kenny, 1994) might facilitate resolution of these controversies. We applied the SRM with a round-robin design in both friend and family contexts in 4 diverse cultures: the United States (n = 399), Mexico (n = 413), Venezuela (n = 290), and China (n = 222). Results obtained with social comparison, self-insight, and SRM conceptualizations and indices of self-enhancement were compared for both agentic traits (i.e., egoistic bias) and communal traits (i.e.. moralistic bias). Conclusions regarding cultural differences in the prevalence of self-enhancement vs. self-effacement tendencies, and the relationship between self-enhancement and adjustment, varied depending on the index of self-enhancement used. For example, consistent with cultural psychology perspectives, Chinese showed a greater tendency to self-efface than self-enhance using social comparison and self-insight indices, particularly on communal traits in the friend context. However, no cultural differences were observed when perceiver and target effects were controlled using the SRM indices. In all cultures, self-enhancement indices were moderately consistent across friend and family contexts, suggesting traitlike tendencies. To a similar extent in all 4 cultures, self-enhancement tendencies, as measured by the SRM indices, were moderately related to self-rated adjustment, but unrelated, or less so, to observer-rated adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] The Big Five traits predicted everyday personality and affect states in five cultures. [•] Individuals manifested the positive poles of the Big Five traits more in situations with greater autonomy. [•] The relationships between traits and positive affect were generally fully mediated by personality states. [•] Cultural differences in the strength of the trait-state relationships were limited. [•] Cultural differences were not due to individualism–collectivism, dialecticism, or cultural tightness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Within-individual variability was investigated in seven cultures. [•] Density distribution and situation-behavior approaches were compared. [•] Self-concept and personality state variability were moderately convergent. [•] Variability in personality states was predicted by need satisfaction in situations. [•] Individualism–collectivism, dialecticism, and tightness did not account for cultural differences. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Social Relations Model was used to compare cross-observer agreement and self-concept consistency in trait judgments in the United States, Mexico, Venezuela, and China. Target participants recruited friends and family members who comprised separate friend and family round-robin groups. Consistent with trait perspectives, in all cultures, (a) consensus and self-other agreement in trait judgments was found for most traits within the friend and family contexts, (b) across-context consensus was observed for at least some traits, and (c) self-concept consistency across contexts was substantial. Consistent with cultural psychology perspectives, consensus was generally greatest in the United States, intermediate in Mexico and Venezuela, and lowest in China. However, measures of dialecticism, self-construals, and cultural tightness failed to account for the cultural differences. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Self-concept consistency and short-term stability were investigated in the United States, Australia, Mexico, Venezuela, Philippines, Malaysia, China, and Japan. Evidence for substantial cross-role consistency and reliable within-individual variability in trait self-perceptions were found in each culture. Participants in all cultures exhibited short-term stability in their self-reported traits within roles and moderately stable if–then patterns of trait self-perceptions. Cultural differences, which primarily involved Japan, were partially accounted for by cultural differences in dialecticism, but not self-construals or cultural tightness. In all cultures, satisfaction of needs in various roles partially accounted for within-individual variability in self-reported traits. The results provide support for integrating trait and cultural psychology perspectives, as well as structure and process approaches, in the study of self-concepts across cultures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Three theoretical perspectives on cultural universals and differences in the content of self-concepts were tested in individualistic (United States, n =178; Australia, n =112) and collectivistic (Mexico, n =157; Philippines, n =138) cultures, using three methods of self-concept assessment. Support was found for both trait perspectives and the individual–self-primacy hypothesis. In contrast, support for cultural psychology hypotheses was limited because traits and other personal attributes were not more salient, or social attributes less salient, in individualistic cultures than collectivistic cultures. The salience of some aspects of self-concept depended on the method of assessment, calling into question conclusions based on monomethod studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We investigated trait self-enhancement, explanatory variables, and adjustment in European American (n =141), Asian American (n =72), Mexican (n =141), and Filipino (n =174) college students. Consistent with trait perspectives, students in all cultural groups rated their traits with moderate to high accuracy, using peer ratings as a criterion. European Americans did not exhibit self-enhancement relative to peers, but both self and peer ratings were higher (i.e., more positive) for European Americans than for the other three groups. Support was found for some, but not all, cultural psychology explanations of self-enhancement. In all cultural groups, self-enhancement was more associated with personal (intrapsychic) adjustment than interpersonal adjustment, as judged by peers. The results provided support for an integration of trait and cultural psychology perspectives. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]