Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 274-303).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Wyoming, 2009. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on July 13, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 27-32).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Catholic University of America, 1938. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 176-179).

When launching brand extension strategies globally, It is very important for today’s brand marketers to understand the differences in those countries with high cultural diversity such as South Africa,. This research intends to investigate the role that a consumer’s cultural value plays in evaluating brand extensions, in the context of the cultural dimension of individualismcollectivism, in order to close the theoretical gap in this area.This research is quantitative and causal in nature, and used an experimental factorial design in the conduct of the research. Triandis’ scales were used in the questionnaire design, and 161 MBA students participated in the experiment at GIBS. The research results disprove that cultural values play a role in evaluating brand extensions, and there was insufficient evidence to prove that individualists differ from collectivists in evaluating brand extensions. Nevertheless, the research results found that there are some positive interaction effects between the product category relatedness and product involvement in the process of brand extension evaluations. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Individualist and collectivist cultural approaches describe the relationship between an individual and his or her social surroundings. the current study had a two-fold purpose. the first was to investigate whether Brazilians, like other collective peoples, displayed more group self-representations, categorized items more relationally and paid more attention to context than Americans. the second purpose of this study was to investigate if counter-cultural primes played a role in activating either collective or individual selves. Both American (n = 100) and Brazilian (n = 101) participants were assigned either to a no-prime condition or a counter-cultural prime condition and then were asked to rate emotion cartoons, categorize items, complete the Twenty Statement Test (TST), and choose a representative object. As expected, unprimed Brazilian participants displayed more collectivist patterns on emotional (F[1,196] = 10.1, p = .001, ?²= .049; F[1,196] = 7.9, p = .006, ?²= .038; F[1,196] = 9.0, p = .005, ?²= .044) and cognitive (F[1, 196] = 6.0, p < .01, ?² = .03) tasks than Americans. However, Brazilians offered more individualist self-representations (F[1, 195] = 24.0, p < .001, ?² = .11) than American participants. Priming only had a marginal effect on item categorization (F[1,194] = 3.9, p = .051, ?² = .02). Understanding such cultural differences is necessary in the development of clinicians’ multicultural competence. Therefore, these findings, along with the strengths and limitations of this study and suggestions for future research, are discussed.

Fairness is an important topic that has captured the interest of researchers in many fields. Looking at behavioural and experimental economics, various methods have been used to shed the light on fairness. One of the most recognizable ways is through the use of the ultimatum game. In this paper, we aimed to look at fairness considerations by utilizing this game, while also highlighting gender and culture as factors of importance. Two models, specifically Rabin’s reciprocity model and Fehr and Schmidt’s inequity aversion model, in addition to various research papers on the topics of gender and culture, were used as the cornerstones for this paper. The experimental design was a replication of the ultimatum game, which was carried out online. Results showed that there were noticeable effects from both gender and culture on the behaviour of the participants in the game. However, the results were not statistically significant enough to be considered as determining factors in regard to why individuals behave in a specific manner in the game. Since research from the field has reached mixed conclusions, we can say that making inferences about human behaviour is harder than one might think.

This independent thesis project has been the development of a methodology of working which is anchored in dependence on one another and collectivist ideals within art and design work. I have taken my community, the Design + Change BA program student body, as a stakeholder throughout this process. The methods are actions and practices which I have been gathering with fellow classmates in conversation. I am using the medium of a conversation which I define not as an exact moment in time but rather a continuous long-term dwelling-with, while also iterating on appropriate tools in facilitating this conversation, in order to take the idea of living and working as a dependent collective and run it through with people, addressing their concerns (and mine) along the way. The methods are simple, yet their simplicity depends on a mindset which many are fearful of, the group mindset. To learn, live and work as a group with the belief that a group is as strong as its weakest link, points to a certain letting go. It directly touches on one of the biggest individualistic insecurities, that of having to depend on anything but yourself. I see an orientation toward dependence necessary for a + Change-oriented collectivist mindset. However, the task that I have set for myself with this project is not to convince that this is the new, better story we should believe, I am working with our ability to temporarily adopt this mindset, to shift between paradigms. There is one thing that unites us when we first arrive in the + Change classroom, and that is the faith that a society of fairness is possible. We soon understand that together we are stronger than individually, yet, we find it hard to work with someone who does not share our vision, our utopia, our mindset. So, we drift toward those who do, unintentionally creating a space of division (and oppression), the very thing we are trying to + Change globally. This is the gap that I want this project to bridge, through the assumption that the biggest influence in our + Change system is the individualist paradigm.

Self-disclosure is the process of sharing personal information with others and varies according to relationship intimacy, cultural norms, and personal values. Collectivism, defined as the tendency to define oneself in terms of social/cultural roles, may impact self-disclosure in intercultural relationships. The present study investigated whether Latinos/as reliably self-disclose more in intracultural versus intercultural friendships and acquaintanceships. An additional question was whether cultural variables such as collectivism, ethnic identity, and acculturation are related to self-disclosure differences. Data were collected via an online survey from internationally born Latinos and Latino Americans. Results of linear mixed effects model testing revealed that relationship type and partner ethnicity had significant relationships with self-disclosure. Higher collectivism was related to increased self-disclosure across all relationship types. Acculturation was related to self-disclosure only in the context of partner ethnicity and friendships, while ethnic identity did not demonstrate a general relationship with self-disclosure. Potential explanations for these results are discussed.

This thesis has used the methodology of an ideological criticism on the long-running science-fiction television series, Doctor Who. Argued within, is that an ideological paradigm shift occurred during the fifty years of scripted storylines. To discern evidence supporting the shift, multiple episodes were viewed from each of the first eleven Doctors. During the viewing process all aspects presented within the show, such as dialogue, movements, tactics, and traits, were explored for ideological agency. Once found, the discourse was further analyzed to understand how these ideologies were enforced. From the findings, proof was examined in order to show by the end of the eleventh Doctor, Doctor Who had moved from portraying the viewpoints of individualism to collectivism.

Loneliness is a widespread public health concern. Loneliness may be less frequent but have more severe consequences for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a collectivist (e.g., Japanese) versus individualist (e.g., United States [U.S.]) culture but little is known about cross-cultural associations of loneliness. This study determined if loneliness would be higher in the U.S. and in persons lower in collectivism. We also studied if loneliness would be positively associated with CVD indicators and if these associations would be stronger in (1) Japan than the U.S. and (2) individuals higher in collectivism. U.S. (n = 529) and Japanese (n = 292) adults from the Midlife in the United States Series, aged 36 to 78, completed psychosocial questionnaires, provided blood samples, and underwent a physical exam. Logistic regression and path analyses using structural equation modeling determined individual differences in loneliness, whether loneliness predicted CVD indicators (e.g., metabolic dysregulation, inflammation, blood pressure, and sleep dysfunction), and whether nationality and collectivism moderated these associations. Japanese adults reported less loneliness compared to the U.S. Unexpectedly, loneliness did not predict any CVD indicators. For U.S. adults with low interdependence, loneliness was associated with elevated metabolic dysregulation. For Japanese adults, loneliness was associated with decreased metabolic dysregulation. We decided to test additional models that included gender as a moderator of the association between loneliness and CVD indicators. Complex associations between gender, nationality, interdependence, and loneliness were found. Clinicians should consider addressing metabolic dysregulation and sleep in lonely patients, especially males and U.S. females. Future work could investigate how loneliness is appraised by Japanese men and U.S. women, and how loneliness affects the health behaviors and eating patterns of these groups.