Question 1

If a psychological process involved in statistical reasoning is present only among individuals in a certain culture, it is a(n)

Accepted Answer

A nonuniversal is a psychological process that is not found across all cultures, but rather is present in some cultures and not others. This contrasts with universals, which are processes found across all human cultures.

Question 2

All cultures congratulate their members' achievements to make them feel good about themselves, but some cultures are much more willing to do this than others.According to Norenzayan and Heine (2005), what is this an example of?

Accepted Answer

Functional universals are behaviors that are found in all cultures because they serve a necessary function for the survival of the culture. Congratulating members' achievements is a functional universal because it helps to motivate people to achieve and to feel good about themselves, which in turn benefits the culture as a whole.

Question 3

What is the highest level of universality?

Accepted Answer

D

Question 4

A cultural neuroscience study by Hedden, Ketay, Aron, Markus, and Gabrieli (2008) had European Americans and East Asians make judgments on the figure-line task while in an fMRI scanner.The key results were that European Americans showed more activation in the left inferior parietal lobe and right precentral gyrus during the relative task, while East Asians showed this pattern during the absolute task.What do these results mean?

Accepted Answer

The results indicate that East Asians had to exert more cognitive effort (pay more attention) during the absolute task than the relative task, as evidenced by increased brain activation in areas associated with attention and cognitive processing.

Question 5

Assume that the act of giving gifts to neighbors has been documented in every culture that exists in the world.Which of the following is definitely true about the act of gift giving?

Accepted Answer

Given that the act of giving gifts to neighbors has been documented in every culture around the world, it demonstrates a level of universality, meaning it is a common practice across different cultures, though the purpose and significance may vary.

Question 6

Gwen wants to conduct a study on dating preferences among teens in France, but she finds that French teens in the countryside are very different from French teens in the cities.The difference between French teens in the countryside versus the cities best illustrates which challenge to defining culture?

Accepted Answer

The difference between French teens in the countryside versus the cities illustrates the challenge that there are as many variations within cultures as there are between cultures. This highlights the internal diversity and complexity within a single cultural group, showing that culture is not monolithic.

Question 7

In an African studies research paper that you are writing for publication, you use the word "culture" to refer to a group of South African people.Which of the following is a challenge to using "culture" to define a group of South Africans?

Accepted Answer

The challenge with using "culture" to define a group of South Africans lies in the diversity and variability within the population. South Africa is known for its ethnic, linguistic, and cultural diversity, making it difficult to generalize or categorize the entire population under a single "South African" cultural identity.

Question 8

A key belief of the Sambia is that

Accepted Answer

The Sambia believe that maleness is not innate and must be explicitly learned and achieved through various rites of passage, contrasting with the idea that femaleness is innate. This belief is part of their cultural practices and initiation rituals for boys transitioning into manhood.

Question 9

A chimpanzee learns from his human zookeeper to wash carrots in the artificial river in his habitat before eating them.Based on the definitions of culture used in the textbook, can this example be said to be culture?

Accepted Answer

The answer of A chimpanzee learns from his human zookeeper...

Question 10

Your research team found evidence that people in multiple cultures walk with their shoes on their heads, but this "shoe-on-head" way of walking is activated for different reasons across cultures.This would be evidence of a(n)

Accepted Answer

The answer of Your research team found evidence that people...

Question 11

According to the definition offered in the textbook, which of the following would NOT be a good example of culture?

Accepted Answer

Culture involves the shared practices, technologies, attitudes, and behaviors transmitted by a society. While examples A, B, C, and E illustrate learning behaviors from others within a societal context, D represents individual creativity without direct reference to shared cultural practices or learning from others.

Question 12

Some people would describe cultural psychology as the study of how "culture and mind make each other up." What does this statement mean?

Accepted Answer

This statement means that culture and the mind are interdependent, influencing and shaping each other continuously. Culture influences the way individuals think, perceive, and behave, while individual minds collectively contribute to the creation and evolution of culture.

Question 13

After an exhaustive study, you find no cultural variation across all samples explored in terms of sleeping in a tree at night.In other words, all examined cultures exhibited this practice, used trees for sleeping in the same way, and preferred sleeping in trees to the same extent.This finding would best be labeled as a(n)

Accepted Answer

This finding would be labeled as an accessibility universal because the practice of sleeping in trees is found across all examined cultures, used in the same way, and to the same extent, indicating it is universally accessible and applied similarly across cultures.

Question 14

In the Sambian context, the cultural emphasis on boys to go through rituals such as piercing their noses and thrashing them with sticks suggests that, for the Sambia,

Accepted Answer

Masculinity in the Sambian context is not seen as an innate quality but rather something that is achieved through specific cultural practices and rituals. These rituals, which involve enduring pain, are believed to instill masculinity in boys, indicating that masculinity is considered a quality to be gained through certain behaviors.

Question 15

According to the Sambia,

Accepted Answer

The Sambia believe that men can get jerungdu, which is a form of vital essence or life force, from trees with white sap. This is part of their cultural beliefs surrounding masculinity and strength.

Question 16

Cat A teaches Cat B, who lives in the same alley, to hold a mouse in a certain way so that the mouse can be more easily eaten.This way of holding mice then gets passed on to other cats in different alleys.Based on the definitions of culture used in the textbook, can this example be said to be culture?

Accepted Answer

Culture involves the transmission of information and behaviors through social learning, not just within a single group but potentially across different groups as well. In this example, the behavior (a way to hold a mouse) is learned socially (from Cat A to Cat B) and then spreads to other cats, fitting the criteria for cultural transmission.

Question 17

A key difference between cultural psychologists and general psychologists is that

Accepted Answer

Cultural psychologists emphasize the importance of context and content in understanding the mind, while general psychologists often focus on universal principles, sometimes assuming the mind operates independently of specific contexts.

Question 18

Trina believes that deep down, people from different cultures are all the same.Which psychological perspective best represents Trina's view?

Accepted Answer

General psychology often emphasizes the universality of human behaviors and mental processes, suggesting that people are fundamentally the same across different cultures.

Question 19

Which of the following defines culture, according to the textbook?

Accepted Answer

Culture is defined as any information learned from other members of one's species that can influence an individual's behaviors. This encompasses the wide range of knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits that individuals acquire from being part of a society.

Question 20

People from all cultures use umbrellas, but in some cultures umbrellas are used only to block rainwater, whereas in other cultures umbrellas are used only to block the sun.The use of umbrellas across cultures would thus be classified as a(n)

Accepted Answer

The answer of People from all cultures use umbrellas, but...

Quiz 1: Culture and Human Nature