PSYC 340:  Cultural Psychology

Winter 2017

Gary S. Gregg

people.kzoo.edu/ggregg

 

 

 

            The seminar will examine theories of how culture shapes thought, feeling, and the development of personality.  Throughout the term, we will focus on three sets of questions which drive investigations in cross-cultural psychology and psychological anthropology:

1.  What is the relative importance of various societal systems -- family/kinship structures, childrearing practices, religious beliefs, economic relationships, and political institutions -- on psychological processes?  How do these societal systems exercise their influence?

2.  Are there universal psychological structures and processes -- i.e., which all humans share regardless of their culture?  What methods can be used to test the universality of psychological theories?  How can researchers identify psychological characteristics that may be unique to specific cultures?

3.  What is the range of cultural variation in child and adult development?  Do Western child-rearing and educational practices maximize “healthy” development or promote narcissism and disorders of attachment?

4.  Do societies have the same mental illnesses and symptoms?  Do cultures create distinctive forms of psychopathology?  Can universal “disease” processes be discerned beneath culturally-specific symptoms?

 

            We will examine these questions by studying classic works in  topic areas:  (1) culture and personality -- configurationist and psychoanalytic views,  (2) childrearing -- single culture studies and global comparisons;  (3) psychopathology -- spirit possession/trance and depression.

 

 

Note:  The seminar assumes some familiarity with psychoanalytic theory and with models of child and adult development based on American and European research.  A main objective will be to use observations from non-Western cultures to evaluate Western psychological theories, and to suggest features of our own culture that psychologists may fail to investigate.

              If you are not familiar with psychoanalytic and developmental models, please see me for readings you can do as background.

 

 

 


 

The Seminar

 

     The course will run as a graduate seminar:  at the beginning of class I will select one or two students to begin our discussion of each reading by providing a brief summary, critical comments, and questions.  Please bring to class some notes or talking points you can use to help lead or participate in the discussions.

 

     As discussant, your main task is to elicit and provoke discussion.  Your comments should (1) be brief;  (2) show that you’ve worked at understanding the material; and (3) be interesting.

 

Try to use your difficulties with the readings to raise issues for discussion:  these often identify concepts we need to clarify and point to problems in the author’s fieldwork or writing.  If you feel you “don’t get it” others probably don’t either – but please be specific about what you think you get and what you don’t understand.

 

 

 

Readings

 

     Some of the ethnographies will be challenging to read, especially because they present a lot of factual information at the same time they use theoretical terms that will be new to you.  You’ll need to read some of the texts slowly and carefully, and to read some passages and chapters a second time.  I’d urge you to stop at the end of each chapter or section of a chapter, write a brief -- 2 to 4 sentence -- summary.  If you have difficulty writing the summary, take the time to go back over the chapter until you can.   Please take the time you need.

 

 

Assignments

 

     Three roughly 7 - 10 page papers and active participation in seminar discussions each count 25%.  The papers:

 

  1.  A “configurationist” analysis of a sub-culture or a individual’s personality style.

 

  2.  A psychoanalytic analysis of “The 5,000 Fingers” or of another cultural myth.

 

  3.  A critical evaluation of spirit possession as “hysteria” or “M.P.D.”

         or

       A critical evaluation of evidence for and against the universality of “depression.”

 

 

           

Cultural Psychology Syllabus

 

 

 

Introduction

 

Topic

Reading

Week 1 Thur

Introduction &Configurationist Paradigm

Benedict:  Patterns of Culture

  Ch. I  The Science of Custom

  Ch  II  The Diversity of Cultures

  Ch  III  The Integration of Culture

 

 

Configurationist Paradigm

Week 2 Tues

 

Benedict:  Patterns of Culture

  Ch IV  The Pueblos of New Mexico

  Ch V  Dobu

  Ch  VI  The Northwest Coast of America

Week 2 Thur

 

Benedict:  Patterns of Culture

  Ch VII  The Nature of Society

  Ch VIII  The Individual & the Pattern of Culture

Week 3 Tues

Conflicts of Interpretation

Thompson:  “Logico-Aesthetic Integration of Hopi Culture”

Eggan:  “General Problem of Hopi Adjustment”

Bennet:  “Interpretation of Pueblo Culture”

Week 3 Thur

Culture and the Individual

Aberle:  “Psychosocial Analysis of a Hopi Life History”

Week 4 Tues

Intro to Psychoanalytic Paradigm

paper due:  configurationist analysis

 

Psychoanalytic Paradigm

 

Topic

Reading

Week 4 Thur

India:  film & discussion

Kakar:  The Inner World

  Ch. I  Introduction

  Ch II  The Hindu World Image

Week 5 Tues

 

Kakar:  The Inner World

Ch. III  Mothers and Infants

Ch  IV  Families and Children

Week 5 Thur

 

Kakar:  The Inner World

  Ch.  V  The Inner World in Culture and History

  Ch VI  Conclusions:  Childhood & Social Change

Week 6 Tues

Culture and masculinity

 

Herdt:  “Sambia nosebleeding rites and male proximity to women”

Week 6 Thur

Empirical methods of cross-cultural comparison

LeVine:  Childcare and Culture 

  Ch 1  The comparative study of child care

  Ch 2  Infant care in sub-Saharan Africa

Week 7 Tues

Culture & child care

LeVine:  Childcare and Culture

  Ch 8  Communication and social learning

  Ch 10  Early child development in an African context

Week 7 Wed

 

2nd paper due

 

Psychopathology

 

Topic

Reading

Week 7 Thur

Spirit Possession & Trance

Goodman:  How About Demons?

  Ch 1-6

     Ahmadu: Rites and Wrongs

Week 8 Tues

 

Boddy:  Wombs and Alien Spirits

  Ch 1  Departures

  Ch 2  Enclosures

  Ch 4  Zar

Week 8 Thur

 

Boddy:  Wombs and Alien Spirits

  Ch 5  Possession, Marriage and Fertility

  Ch 7  Hosts and Spirits

  Ch 8  The Parallel Universe

Week 9 Tues

 

Krohn:  Hysteria, The Elusive Neurosis

  Ch 4  Historical and Cross-Cultural Perspectives

Week 9 Thur

Depression

Kleinman, ed:  Culture and Depression

  Ch 10  Marsella et al, “Cross-Cultural Studies of

     Depressive Disorders:  An Overview”

  Ch 9  Beiser, “A Study of Depression...”

  Ch 11  Manson et al, “Depressive Experience...”

Week 10 Tues

 

Kleinman, ed:  Culture and Depression

  Ch. 13 Kleinman & Kleinman, “Somatization”

  Ch 4  Obeysekere,  “Depression, Buddhism, &

     the Work of Culture in Sri Lanka

Week 10 Thur

Discussion & wrap-up

 

Gregg: "Culture and Personality Development" [e-mail]

Matsumoto, "Culture and Personality Development" [e-mail]